Assistantships

Work as an assistant

Work as an assistant

English language assistants are mainly supposed to help the teachers of English at the school(s) or college(s) they are assigned to. Although the nature and range of activities involved will vary from post to post, the main task of an assistant will be to help pupils improve their English language skills, particularly listening and speaking, and to present aspects of English-language culture.

In the classroom

Assistants may work with the class teacher in the classroom or on their own with smaller groups. It may be required that you plan your own activities and teach parts of language classes under supervision.

Culture

Assistants will also have to represent British culture (which is why only Native Speakers of English and UK nationals are eligible for British Council Assistantships). Assistants will have to prepare classroom activities that deal with history, society and culture and will have to give explanations of cultural aspects in classes or present current affairs to a group of students.

Expected work

Assistants are normally expected to work around 12 hours a week, but this can vary from school to school and country to country.

Application choices

Application choices

There are two options for working as an assistant in a school:

Applying with the British Council

You will usually spend the whole year in one country.

Please note that for Germany the BC has introduced short term assistantships, which might be of interest to you if you study two languages. Please refer to the British Council website for details.

Work Placements

Students can also find work placements as language assistants in schools that are not arranged by the British Council. We collect placement ads we receive from interested schools and companies and make these available to our students on the VLE.

 *Please note: All information on financial aspects of the year abroad, such as tuition fees, grants and salaries are currently under review and might change.

Choice of location

You cannot choose freely where you will be working as an assistant, but in your application you can indicate a preference for three areas/Bundesländer, whether you would like to live in a smaller town or in a city and whether you would like to work with primary school children or children in secondary schools (several categories to choose from).

The schools are usually willing to offer advice or assistance with accommodation, but you may have to find your own accommodation.

Forms

Forms

Global Opportunities provides details of forms to complete (including Travel Risk Assessment, pre-departure checklist, travel log, Learning Agreement for Traineeship, Certificate of Arrival, Certificate of Attendance, Feedback form etc) at their pre-departure workshops. Many of the forms need to be completed by you and then signed by your Year Abroad Coordinator at York and the host organisation, so it’s important to submit forms for signature by other people well before the specified deadlines.  

Please also follow the British Council’s information for the most up to date versions of forms you may need to complete and ensure you meet their deadlines for submission.  

• British Council Certificate of Service: BritishCouncilCertificate (PDF , 37kb)