Learning English online is becoming very popular for those who are seeking to master it as a second language and many are starting at a very young age. This has created opportunities for aspiring teachers to venture into the fun world of virtual classrooms.
In today’s post, I’ll be talking about how to make money with VIPKid and turning it into a potential online tutoring business.
What Is VIPKid
Founded in 2014, VIPKid is an education technology company that helps Chinese children (from China) improve their English proficiency skills under the guidance of native-speaking teachers. The curriculum is equivalent to the elementary school level in North America and it’s only catered for kids between the age of 4 to 12 years old.
Classes are held between Monday to Saturday (Beijing Time) and each session will last for about 25 minutes. Parents who are interested will be in charge of signing up their kids for the program. If the chosen tutor is you, you would log into the teaching portal at the specific time and date to connect with the students.
How Much Can You Earn
A tutor’s earning is made up of base pay and incentives. Depending on your credentials and experience, the base pay is between $7-9 for every session carried out. By just showing up, you’d get $1 per class and if you can complete more than 45 classes in a month, you’d get an additional $1.
Meanwhile, tutors who accept short notice classes within 2 to 24 hours in advance, get an additional $2. If a new student decided to sign up for the VIPKid program after a trial session with you, that would be another $5 bonus. Payments are made monthly and income taxes are applicable depending on which state you are coming from.
Assuming you can teach between 15 to 20 hours per week, earning an average of $2k per month is totally doable. That’s not bad for a part-time wage. To date, there are about 800,000 active students and over 30,000 tutors on the platform so there’s more than enough job demand to keep everyone busy for a while.
What Is The Requirement
Unlike teaching in physical classes, certain aspects of the job are quite loose when it comes to tutoring on VIPKid. It’s good to know that you aren’t required to speak any Mandarin language or liaise with the parents. In fact, it’s not even necessary to have TEFL or TESOL in order to be qualified.
What you do need however are these;
- Must be a US or Canadian citizen who speaks English as your mother tongue.
- Have a college degree in any field – law, math, photography, journalism – those will do too!
- Have at least 1 year of teaching experience
- Must be able to commit for a minimum of 7.5 hours per week for at least 6 months.
- Able to access high-speed internet and comfortable communicating through video/audio recordings.
If you fit into the minimum requirements, proceed to the next steps.
How to Apply
You can apply to become a VIPKid Tutor at any time of the year and the 5-step process usually takes about a week or two to complete. The first thing to do is to submit your resume online, followed by a 1-on-1 or recorded interview that lasts for about 30 minutes.
After a brief introduction to the teaching platform, you are expected to conduct a mock class to be evaluated based on certain teaching criteria. Among the qualities, they are looking for is your ability to;
- Perform physical response and demonstration skills.
- Use proper and easy to understand English with a natural tone.
- Display a professional teaching attitude.
- Use props to make classes creative and engaging.
- Manage classes in terms of planning and timing.
- Adhere to the learning objectives of the curriculum provided.
- and so forth…
If you passed the interviews and all, you’d sign the contract and upload all the necessary documents. Once qualified, you will get access to the teaching dashboard, schedule your availability and accept class bookings.
While there’s no application fee involved, it’s your responsibility to get your own computer, headset, and whatever teaching props deemed necessary. The more well-prepared you are with these tools and equipment, the better the interaction you’d create for everyone. So that’s something to keep in mind.
The Advantages
As you would imagine, teaching English online comes with some perks that make this job increasingly popular with the tech-savvy generation.
- Firstly, you get to choose your own working hours and since there’s no maximum limit (at least that’s the case for now), you can commit to as many hours as you like. It’s a great idea for generating extra income during the summer months.
- And because the job is remote in nature, you can literally work from anywhere without the need to commute. Stay at home moms will find this work opportunity accommodating as well as those who are looking to earn some extra money while traveling cheap.
- VIPKid has all the curriculums figured out so to achieve the teaching goals for a particular course, you just need to follow the lesson plans and instructions provided. The best part is, each class only lasts for 25 minutes and there is no grading work is required – yay!
- Also, there’s no need to promote yourself to get students to sign-ups. The VIPKid teaching portal is linked to the student site based in China which has its own system to acquire new subscribers. If your profile is captivating enough, you are bound to receive bookings from their large clientele base.
- Given the flexible space and minimal startup cost, the job can serve as a good stepping stone to see if you like teaching foreign kids as a career in real life or not. If you enjoy the cultural interaction, this may be the right job for you.
- From what I’ve read so far, the company pays tutors promptly on a monthly basis so the platform is legit in every way.
The Disadvantages
Having said all that, the platform isn’t entirely perfect either. Here are some things worth knowing before venturing too far in;
- Classes are booked 2 weeks in advance which makes it rather difficult to do last-minute changes on your side. In case an emergency prompted a class cancellation, this could potentially affect your ratings and put your online reputation at risk.
- The difference in time zone also means you are likely going to work at odd hours at your local time in the US or Canada. If you have a full-time job, managing the schedule can be challenging unless you are willing to sacrifice sleep and tutor online into the wee hours of the morning.
- When it comes to teaching English as a foreign language, the VIPKid’s rate isn’t exactly the highest in the market. For example, Magic Ears pays between $22 to $26 per hour, Say ABC pays $19 per 40-minute class and with iTalki, you get to set your own rate. So go through the requirements and some reviews to see which may suit you better.
- In case you are wondering about pay raise, yes, the program does cater to that but here’s the thing. The increase is only 50 cents on top of the base rate, granted you meet the demanding requirements to be qualified for the raise in the first place. It’s pretty little, but cumulatively, it could be a lot – depending on how you see it.
- And just like what you would find with gig services, whatever you earn from VIPKid is subjected to taxation. You don’t actually get to keep all the profits – sadly – and it’s your responsibility to declare the income when the time comes. Strict reminder – failing to do so will put you into legal troubles.
Take Your Side Hustle a Notch Higher
So, is that all there is to teaching with VIPKids? Not really. You see, there’s another reason why VIPKid is a lot more popular than other teaching platforms. Anyone who has experience teaching with the company is sharing their stories on blogs and YouTube videos, encouraging others to join as a tutor as well.
When someone signs up through your unique link, pass the interview and teach their first class, you’ll receive a referral bonus. There’s no fixed amount to what the sum maybe because the incentive changes periodically, but one thing for sure, it’s there.
For example, when someone searches for a keyphrase ‘teach for VIPKid’, they are presented with all this information. Imagine if one of the videos or blogs on the first page of Google belongs to you – wouldn’t it be nice to convert all the traffic and views into potential/successful teachers?
In fact, if you Google for VIPKid affiliate program, you would find a dedicated page explaining the entire process. That means you can earn from affiliate commissions rather than just delivering classes. It’s a great way to grow a teaching business online if you plan to work remotely for a much longer period of time.
This is done mostly through content marketing where you could share details about the program application, pros, and cons, how to set up teaching props and proof of income (if you are comfortable showing that).
Of course, this would mean more work time in front of the PC, but hey, if it diversifies your income, why not, right? If you are interested to learn more about how to make money with VIPKid through affiliate marketing, check out my recommended entrepreneurship platform here. It has got all the tools and training to help you get started.
Evelin says
I’ve applied for VIPKid before but wasn’t accepted for the next step. It sucks and it’s confusing that they don’t let you apply again after you’re denied though. Hope they can improve on that.
DerrAd says
Is there any chance for a non-native English speaking person with good command of English and experience in teaching it to be considered? Because that clause there automatically disqualify other people and I know there are many proficient non-native English speakers who can benefit from this job.
Do you also have to be a qualified teacher on the platform before you can partake in the affiliate program? Thanks.
Cathy says
Most online language classes – Verbaling, iTalki and etc – require teachers to be native with the language they are teaching. But I guess there’s no harm to try anyway with the relevant qualification you may have. As for the VIPKid affiliate program, yes – you need to be qualified with them before joining.
John says
Many people think that teaching online is a lady’s job but I teach online before and I have done on some other platforms. VIPKid looks really different though from the ones I’ve worked with. The income potential looks realistic and I am glad that it’s free to get started. Will check out the site and maybe I could go back to become an online tutor. Thanks!
MissusB says
This is great news especially for teachers like me who would like to make this a part-time or weekend job. Sadly, it only applies to US and Canadian citizens. I was almost disheartened but then you gave another option to earn through the help of Vip Kid affiliate program.
ESL tutoring is a big thing in China and the influence goes to other Asian neighboring countries like Japan and Korea. We also have those types of online ESL tutorial here in our country owned by Chinese companies but the pay is really low, like $2 per 25-minute session. Obviously, VipKid pays a lot better.
Henderson says
VIPKid sounds like a very good platform where one can really make good money teaching English online. They seem to pay higher than most jobs I’ve seen before. I like the fact that we’ll be communicating with little kids – they are a bunch of refreshing audiences and I bet the experience would be fun too. Thank you for sharing this opportunity with us, Cathy!
Shelley says
VIPKd is definitely a top-notch option when it comes to teaching English online and that’s a thumbs up for me. Though I have a Bachelor’s degree in English, I have never truly practiced in my field because of the kind of treatments received by teachers in schools.
However, this would present me with a much better alternative to really practise the things I learned. Focusing on teens and kids is totally cool for me and the convenience that comes with this is awesome too. I shall look into the opportunity – thanks!
Stella says
I used to work as a literacy tutor and I’m a retired classroom teacher. I’ve been building up an online business, but I did look into online tutoring at one point. VIPKid is one of the platforms that I checked out, but I sort of shelved the idea for a while.
Reading your post has got me interested in pursuing online tutoring again because I could use the extra income right now. So, thanks for sharing this great overview of the VIPKid program. It answered a lot of my questions right off the bat.
I do have a question. You said the main platform runs out of China. Do you know if it’s very difficult to get a real person to talk to if you have concerns or questions about anything related to the program?
Cathy says
Hi Stella. It looks like VIPKid has got an office set up in San Francisco. They don’t provide direct contact to the office, but I think you can do so from within the teaching dashboard once you’re qualified. Otherwise, send them an email and see.
Willy says
This is not just an insightful post but an educative one. My younger sister has been planning to join the VIPKid program and start teaching Chinese kids but I was a bit apprehensive. Your review showed just how worthy and reliable the platform is. She’s a very creative person so I think this will be a fun side hustle for her. Thank you.
mattias says
Teaching the English language online has now become somewhat of a lucrative offer and so many companies are really taking it a step further. I have once worked at a native camp before but the pay wasn’t okay at all and that was the reason I quit. Thankfully this VIPKid program offers something better than that. I have a TEFL certificate already so I hope to sign up pretty soon.
Cathy Allen says
Great article! I’m really glad you posted it. I thought you also needed to be fluent in the other individual’s language. I know that some Japanese elementary schools don’t require you to know Japanese to teach English. Very interesting program though.
You are definitely right when it comes to scheduling; two weeks out is a bigger commitment than some people realize. You never know when some last-minute emergency will pop up – the poor disappointed little student would be so sad.
Your review convinces me I’m not quite ready for this, but I’ll keep it in mind for the right person. I know several former teachers who might find this to be right up their alley.
Jim says
This is amazing stuff, Cathy. I had no idea that anything such as VIPKid even existed. In my younger years, I completed a degree in business, including one year of teacher training. I never went on to become a teacher so I really have no experience dealing with children on an educational basis.
I went directly into the world of business, something I later regretted. I’m in a position now to actually be able to take on a business such as this as I’m approaching the retirement age. Can you tell me if they will take on someone that doesn’t really have any experience in this field and is at the retirement level?
Cathy says
As far as I know, there’s no age limit to become a tutor. As long as you are a native English and has a college degree (in any field), you are welcomed to apply. Give it a try if you are interested in teaching kids from a different culture.
Peter says
Fascinating concept. The pay does seem a bit on the low side though for the amount of time commitment required. As an ex-teacher, I am very interested in the concept as a sideline.
Are all classes live or can you pre-record them? How much interaction is there with kids? If they are learning English and I don’t know any Mandarin, I can only guess that it will be challenging. And class sizes – is there a minimum or maximums?
Cathy says
Hi Peter, all classes are live and are conducted one-on-one. And no, you don’t need to learn Mandarin in order to communicate with the kids. For more information, please refer to the FAQs on the VIPKid website. Hope this helps.
Charles says
Thank you very much for sharing about VIPKid – thou I am family with some English tutoring site like Magic Ears. This is the first time I am getting to know about the teaching platform and it looks very professional. I will try and upload my resume and arrange for an interview. I do hope there are enough jobs to apply for as you claimed.
Desiray says
I think that this is a great system for children even adults to learn another language. I would like to see this grow into more opportunities for other countries, languages, and age ranges. It definitely would be nice to be that traveling school teacher and I am sure the kids get a really good education from it as well.