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English Language Assistants Application – Guidance 2016/17
Contents
Eligibility criteria
Completing and submitting the application form
What happens next?
Eligibility criteria
You must:
• Be a native level English speaker – this will be assessed by looking at the quality of your
written application, your university reference and your educational background. We will test
your level of English at a telephone or face-to-face interview if necessary and we would
contact you in advance should this be required.
• Have completed your secondary education in the UK (age 11-18, 12-18 in Scotland).
If you spent all of your secondary education abroad you must hold a valid UK passport.
You are not eligible to apply if you were educated abroad and you do not hold a UK
passport. Those educated abroad who hold a UK passport will have their knowledge of UK
culture tested by looking at their application and potentially at a telephone or face-to-face
interview and we would contact you should this be required. Those who had their
secondary education in Ireland are eligible to apply as long as they are currently studying
at a UK university.
• Have completed and passed two years of Higher Education (university-level studies)
by the time you start your assistantship. If this was outside of the UK please contact us
before applying.
• You do not need a formal language qualification to become a Language Assistant. If
you are considering applying for China, you do not need any previous language skills at
all. For other countries, all you need are language skills equivalent to a B1 on the
European Framework. This is equivalent to the first year of A level/Higher. The
requirements for Spain are slightly lower at an A2 level on the European Framework.
Please see the self-assessment table below to determine your level. These skills can be
acquired through regular travel, private study or through a course at the University
Language Centre. We may test your language skills at a face-to- face or telephone
interview if necessary. It is in your own best interest to hold the required language level
as you will be expected to communicate and complete the necessary administration
procedures in the foreign language upon arrival.
• Be flexible regarding your preferences (area, environment, age group etc.) and be
willing to accept any post that is offered.
• Be available and willing to complete the full period of appointment as detailed in our
country pages.
Guidance Notes – English Language Assistants programme. Document compiled by British Council
www.britishcouncil.org/language-assistants
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• Apply for an International Child Protection Certificate (ICPC) which is a form of criminal
record check for UK nationals or non-UK nationals previously resident in the UK, seeking to
work with children overseas. You will be instructed to apply for the ICPC if you receive a
provisional offer of an assistantship from the British Council. Once received, your ICPC will
be assessed on a case by case basis; the British Council retain the right to exclude an
applicant from the programme based on the information contained therein. Under no
circumstances should you apply for your ICPC until instructed to do so by the British
Council.
Please be advised that in line with the British Council’s Child Protection Policy and our
approach to safeguarding children, if you have ever been convicted of or received a
caution, reprimand or warning for a sexual or violence related offence or any offence
involving any type of harm (physical, emotional or sexual abuse) to a child or
children, your application will not be accepted.
• Meet the following country specific requirements:
Country
Age requirement
Other requirements
UK or EU passport
Shorter posts available in first or second
semester (see country page)
Austria
30 and under
Belgium
30 and under
UK or EU passport
Canada
30 and under
UK and Irish passports only
China
55 and under
UK or EU passport (see country page)
France
35 and under
UK or EU passport
Germany
30 and under
Italy
30 and under
UK or EU passport
Shorter posts available in first semester
(see country page)
UK and Irish passports only
Latin
America
30 and under for
Mexico
UK and Irish passports only
for Mexico (see country page)
Spain
35 and under for
Madrid only
UK or EU passport
21-30
UK or EU passport
Switzerland
Guidance Notes – English Language Assistants programme. Document compiled by British Council
www.britishcouncil.org/language-assistants
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Language Levels - Self Assessment Table (based on the European Language Level Framework)
When self-assessing the level of proficiency of your additional language(s) please bear in mind
your understanding and speaking abilities in the language and, choose the level that best
summarises your proficiency in these areas.
Level
A1
A2
B1
B2
C1
C2
Description
Can understand and use familiar everyday expressions and very basic phrases
aimed at the satisfaction of needs of a concrete type. Can introduce
him/herself and others and can ask and answer questions about personal
details such as where he/she lives, people he/she knows and things he/she has.
Can interact in a simple way provided the other person talks slowly and clearly
and is prepared to help.
Can understand sentences and frequently used expressions related to areas of
most immediate relevance (e.g. very basic personal and family information,
shopping, local geography, employment). Can communicate in simple and
routine tasks requiring a simple and direct exchange of information on familiar
and routine matters. Can describe in simple terms aspects of his/her
background, immediate environment and matters in areas of immediate need.
Can understand the main points of clear standard input on familiar matters
regularly encountered in work, school, leisure, etc. Can deal with most
situations likely to arise whilst travelling in an area where the language is
spoken. Can produce simple connected text on topics which are familiar or of
personal interest. Can describe experiences and events, dreams, hopes &
ambitions and briefly give reasons and explanations for opinions and plans.
Can understand the main ideas of complex text on both concrete and abstract
topics, including technical discussions in his/her field of specialisation. Can
interact with a degree of fluency and spontaneity that makes regular
interaction with native speakers quite possible without strain for either party.
Can produce clear, detailed text on a wide range of subjects and explain a
viewpoint on a topical issue giving the advantages and disadvantages of
various options.
Can understand a wide range of demanding, longer texts, and recognise
implicit meaning. Can express him/herself fluently and spontaneously without
much obvious searching for expressions. Can use language flexibly and
effectively for social, academic and professional purposes. Can produce clear,
well-structured, detailed text on complex subjects, showing controlled use of
organisational patterns, connectors and cohesive devices.
Can understand with ease virtually everything heard or read. Can summarise
information from different spoken and written sources, reconstructing
arguments and accounts in a coherent presentation. Can express him/herself
spontaneously, very fluently and precisely, differentiating finer shades of
meaning even in the most complex situations.
Guidance Notes – English Language Assistants programme. Document compiled by British Council
www.britishcouncil.org/language-assistants
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PLEASE NOTE
If your application is approved by the British Council in the UK, it will be forwarded to our
overseas partner agency in the relevant country who in all cases makes the final decision on
appointments.
The British Council places 2,500 assistants each year in 14 countries and works closely with
overseas partner agencies who are responsible for finding the host schools abroad. The British
Council manages the UK side of the programme and has a responsibility for selecting English
Language Assistants to recommend for assistantships overseas. It is important to bear in mind
that the British Council is not the employer of Language Assistants.
You can only be an English Language Assistant four separate times regardless of whether the
posts were in the same or different countries. Both consecutive and non-consecutive years will
be counted. Please note that our partner organisations abroad will have their own eligibility
criteria so please check with us before applying if you would be able to stay for a consecutive
year in that country.
Completing and submitting the application form
• Your application must be completed online. Please see our How do I apply page.
• You will first be asked to register online and for this please use a permanent email
address because this cannot be changed once you have registered. You can later add in
alternative email addresses but the first one you use to register needs to be your main
contact email address.
• In the ‘about you’ part of the application there is an ‘Education’ section. Please
complete the start and end dates as this is our way of piecing together a candidate’s
educational background. On entering the dates for each section, if you are not certain of
the day, please put the first date of the month in which you started and ended. In Higher
Education you need to list any university level studies only.
• Please remember that your responses on the ‘statement’ part of the application have
a word limit which is indicated above each box, with a running total of the words you
have typed at the bottom of each box.
• A complete application will include a reference which is only requested when you
have pressed ‘submit’ at the end of the online form. Therefore please ensure you give
any referees ample time before the deadline to submit their reference for you. Do not
wait until the last moment and press ‘submit’ as they may not have time to complete this
for you, which would result in your application being marked as incomplete and not taken
forward.
• PASSPORT – Please provide your current passport number ensuring it is valid until 6
months after the end of your assistantship. If you passport has expired or will expire
during your assistantship, please provide your old/current passport number. Once your
new number arrives, you can update your details as per the point below.
Guidance Notes – English Language Assistants programme. Document compiled by British Council
www.britishcouncil.org/language-assistants
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• You can update and change all the details on your online application (apart from the
email address that you initially registered with) up until you press ‘submit’. At this point
you cannot change anything, including your choice of referee and preferences.
• Once your application has been assessed you will be given access to an area that will
allow you to keep us up to date with any passport number, contact number or address
changes that you need to inform us of, which have changed since you pressed ‘submit’ to
apply for the programme.
What happens next?
•
o
o
o
o
o
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The British Council will assess your application for the following criteria:
Motivation
Skills and Interests
Adaptability
Expression and Presentation
Teaching Experience
University Reference / Employer Reference and Previous Assistantship reference if applicable
• Remember that this is a job application for a competitive process and that you should sell
yourself using examples and evidence in order to convince us of your suitability for the
programme.
• If your application is not of a high enough standard or the answers provided are too brief it
will not be accepted.
• If your application is successful it will not only be read by the British Council but also by our
overseas partner agency, local authorities and host schools abroad. You should therefore treat
it as you would any job application and make sure that your answers are suitable and
appropriate for a job working with children.
• Please see the Project Lifecycle for information on when you will hear from us.
Please note that we receive around 4000 applications every year. All successful applications
must be entered onto our database, read, quality assessed, followed up on where necessary,
submitted to overseas partner agency and matched to a region. This process takes a long time
so please do not be concerned if you do not hear from us for some time and consult the Project
Lifecycle for more specific information on the timescales involved. The eventual process by
which you are allocated to a school is not coordinated by the British Council in the UK but by
overseas partner agencies who liaise with local authorities and schools.
• Applicants who have put Canada, China or countries in Latin America as their first choice will
be considered for an Assessment Day. Candidates not selected for an Assessment Day might be
offered a transfer to another country as long as their application is of a high enough standard
and meets the relevant country requirements. For all other countries candidates may be
assessed by telephone interview where areas of their application need to be followed up. We will
contact you in advance by email if we require you to participate in an assessment day or a
Guidance Notes – English Language Assistants programme. Document compiled by British Council
www.britishcouncil.org/language-assistants
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telephone interview.
• Once your application has been accepted by the overseas partner agency and you have been
matched to a region in your chosen country, you will receive a provisional offer of an
assistantship. Please be aware that your assistantship will not be confirmed until we have
received and assessed your International Child Protection Certificate (ICPC).
• Should you need to withdraw from the programme, you must contact us by email and outline
the reasons for your withdrawal. If you withdraw from the programme we cannot reinstate your
application that year. Owing to the negative impact that late withdrawals have on the
programme, we reserve the right to disqualify any future application from you if you withdraw
late on in the process without a valid reason.
This is to avoid further damage to the British Council’s reputation with overseas partners
and schools.
• Any queries relating to the Erasmus+ grant should be directed to the Erasmus+
coordinator at your university.
• If an applicant is rejected from the programme, it is not possible for them to reapply,
irrespective of country, for the same academic year.
Thank you for your interest in the programme. We wish you the best of luck with the
application process.
Guidance Notes – English Language Assistants programme. Document compiled by British Council
www.britishcouncil.org/language-assistants