I’m a university student with junior standing, and I’ll be coming over to Taiwan for the summer to study Chinese. I was hoping I could take a TEFL course and work part time as a substitute, but I read that you need an Associate’s or Bachelor’s before you can teach English. Can I substitute my 2 years of degree work for the AS/AA, as long as I have the TEFL certification?
If not, what are my options for getting part-time work? I’d really like to work this summer instead of having to bum more money off of my parents when autumn rolls around - just dropping the $1000 for the plane ticket to Asia cleaned out my bank account pretty good. 
Since I don’t have any long-term plans to stay in Taiwan, I’d even be willing to consider working under the table, as long as it wasn’t too likely that I’d get picked up.
[quote=“krapht”]I’m a university student with junior standing, and I’ll be coming over to Taiwan for the summer to study Chinese. I was hoping I could take a TEFL course and work part time as a substitute, but I read that you need an Associate’s or Bachelor’s before you can teach English. Can I substitute my 2 years of degree work for the AS/AA, as long as I have the TEFL certification?
If not, what are my options for getting part-time work? I’d really like to work this summer instead of having to bum more money off of my parents when autumn rolls around - just dropping the $1000 for the plane ticket to Asia cleaned out my bank account pretty good. Since I don’t have any long-term plans to stay in Taiwan, I’d even be willing to consider working under the table, as long as it wasn’t too likely that I’d get picked up.[/quote]
Part time for your visa status is illegal. Substitute teaching for your visa status is illegal. Do it and you are taking a gamble of deportation. End of story.
Oh, to answer your question about the degree. You can work for Hess with an associate degree and combined with a TEFL Cert. That is the bare minimum for getting a work permit. You need a full-time gig to qualify for a work permit. However, you need to have a completed associate degree, and actual degree on paper from a university recognized by the g-ment here. So o you cant legally do what you were thinking of doing.
Alright then.
Well, that sucks. The intl. students here can get a job so long as it’s on campus. Heaven forbid I tempt the wrath of immigration when I only plan on staying for a couple months. 
I’d go ahead with the TEFL course anyway (as long as its a “proper” one). They are good fun and you get some skills you might not otherwise acquire. Learning how to teach a language can even help you learn another one…
And, if in the future you end up washed up somewhere, it could always come in handy. I’ve never regretted doing mine, even though I’ve never formally taught English.
You could get married to a local…