You've been invited to an interview for a remote English teaching job. Well done: that first reply is often the hardest part. Interviews for online platforms are short and fairly structured, and South African applicants tend to get a few extra questions that others don't, especially about power cuts, internet backup and accent. With a bit of preparation you can turn each of those into a point in your favour.
Below are the questions recruiters ask most often, sorted into seven groups, with practical advice from a South African point of view. If you're still exploring the job itself, our course for aspiring online ESL teacher applicants explains what the work involves.
What online teaching interviews ask South African applicants
- Getting to know you
- Your track record
- Training, accent and eligibility
- Power, internet and time zones
- Classroom management on screen
- Reliability, rates, tax and checks
- Your turn to ask
Expect a mix rather than all seven in neat order. A typical process is an application form, a short video interview, then a demo lesson. If you can answer comfortably in every group, you'll be ready for whatever format the platform uses.
Getting to know you
Personality carries an online lesson, so recruiters start with you as a person.
Likely questions:
- Give us a short introduction to yourself.
- Which languages do you speak?
- What subject did you study after matric?
- What is something you are working to get better at?
- What do people rely on you for?
- Why do you want to teach online rather than in a school?
- What would your ideal working week look like?
- What keeps you busy outside work?
Answering tips:
Many South Africans grow up switching between English and Afrikaans, isiZulu, isiXhosa or another home language, and that is worth mentioning. It shows you understand from the inside what it feels like to work in more than one language, which helps you empathise with learners. Keep your introduction under 90 seconds and finish on why teaching suits you.
Explain local terms briefly. An overseas recruiter may not know what "matric" means, so say "I finished high school in 2019 and then studied a BCom" rather than assuming.
Your track record
With the introductions done, the interviewer turns to what you've actually done. Formal teaching is a bonus, not a requirement for many platforms. What matters is proof that you can explain, motivate and stay patient.
Likely questions:
- Where have you taught or tutored before?
- Have any of your learners been second-language English speakers?
- Have you run lessons over Zoom, Teams or a similar tool?
- Tell us about a result at work you are proud of.
- How do you keep a group motivated?
- Which ages are you most comfortable with?
- Tell us about a time you had to handle a problem on your own.
Answering tips:
Think wider than classrooms. Tutoring matric learners in maths or English, coaching a school sports team, leading a youth group, training new staff at a call centre or restaurant, or helping a sibling through exams all count. Pick two examples, describe what you did and what changed, and link them to an online lesson: keeping someone focused, adapting when they're stuck, giving encouragement.
Tidy your CV for an international reader. Lead with any teaching or training experience, keep it short, and leave out your ID number and other personal details a platform doesn't need at application stage.
>> Why You Need A TEFL Course With Certified Practicum
Training, accent and eligibility
Every company sets its own bar. Some want a degree, some have a passport list, and most expect a recognised TEFL certificate. South Africans should check one thing early: whether the platform accepts South African passport holders at all.
Likely questions:
- Are you TEFL certified, and how many hours did the course cover?
- Which part of your training changed how you teach?
- How is an online class different from a face-to-face one?
- Is English your first language?
- How would you describe your accent to a learner?
Answering tips:
Many online companies limit hiring to a list of English-speaking countries. South Africa is on some of those lists and not on others, so read the eligibility page before you spend time on an application. If you're asked whether English is your first language, answer simply and truthfully. South African English is a native variety, and you can add that you speak clearly, grade your language to the learner's level and are happy to follow American materials if the platform uses them. South Africans use British spelling, so mention that you know the common differences.
On training, the best answer is a finished certificate. Completing a TEFL certificate before you apply, ideally with a specialism in teaching English online, gives you real techniques to talk about when the interviewer asks what you learned.
Power, internet and time zones
This is where South African interviews differ most. Recruiters who have hired from South Africa before know about load-shedding and may ask directly how you'd keep a lesson running if the power goes off. A clear, specific answer here sets you apart.
Likely questions:
- What is your connection, fibre, LTE or something else?
- What happens to your lessons during a power cut?
- What are your upload and download speeds?
- Do you have a headset with a microphone?
- Which hours can you teach, in our time zone?
- Is your teaching space quiet and well lit?
Answering tips:
Describe your backup set-up as a system. For example: a fibre connection as the main line, a small UPS that keeps the router and fibre box running for a few hours, a laptop charged to full before every block of lessons, and an LTE or 5G router or mobile data as a second route online. If you have an inverter or solar battery, say so. Add that you check Eskom's schedule and your municipality's notices so you can avoid booking slots during planned outages. Eskom's updates through 2025 reported far less load-shedding than in earlier years, but showing you've planned for it tells the recruiter you're serious.
Time zones are a genuine advantage. South Africa stays on SAST, UTC+2, all year with no clock changes. China runs on UTC+8 year-round, so a 6pm to 9pm evening there is always 12pm to 3pm in Johannesburg or Cape Town, and Japan and Korea's evenings land an hour earlier. During the European summer you share the clock with Central European learners, and in their winter you're one hour ahead. Tell the interviewer exactly which SAST blocks you can offer and point out that they won't move twice a year.
Classroom management on screen
Teaching through a webcam is a skill in its own right. The interviewer wants to know how you plan, how you handle behaviour you can't physically manage, and how you keep the lesson moving when something unexpected happens.
Likely questions:
- How would you teach the same word to a four-year-old and a teenager?
- A learner refuses to answer. What do you try?
- What steps do you follow when preparing a lesson?
- The activity falls flat. How do you recover?
- How do you make a shy learner feel comfortable?
- A parent wants more homework and faster progress. What do you say?
Answering tips:
Answer with a picture of your classroom. Talk about using props, a mini whiteboard and big gestures for young learners, and giving teenagers choices so they feel some ownership. If a child refuses to speak, model the answer yourself, then use a puppet or a silly voice to lower the pressure. Keep a short list of backup activities, such as "I spy" with objects in the room, a quick spelling race, or a would-you-rather question. With parents, show respect, explain what the learner is doing well and agree one small, realistic goal.
Note: a demo lesson is part of most hiring processes. Record a practice run on your phone and watch it back before you do the real thing.
>> Free Resource: How To Create A Winning Demo Lesson Video
Or see our job coaching seminar with Emos
Reliability, rates, tax and checks
Platforms invest in onboarding every new teacher, so they want people who will keep showing up. This part of the interview covers how committed you are, what you expect to earn and whether your paperwork is in order.
Likely questions:
- How many months do you plan to teach with us?
- What makes our platform a good fit for you?
- What rate per lesson or per hour are you hoping for?
- Can you keep a fixed schedule every week?
- How would you like to receive payment?
- Can you provide a police clearance certificate?
Answering tips:
Know the numbers before you're asked. Many online rates are quoted in US dollars; at about R16.59 to the dollar (approx., rates Nov 2026), every US$10 an hour is roughly R166 before any transfer fees. Ask how the platform pays and what it costs to receive foreign currency into a South African account, because that changes what you actually take home.
Tax shows you're thinking long term. South African tax residents are taxed on worldwide income, so pay from an overseas platform still has to be declared to SARS. If you earn it as a freelancer rather than through PAYE, you'll generally be a provisional taxpayer, submitting an IRP6 and paying twice a year. A short "yes, I'll handle my own tax with SARS" is all the interviewer needs to hear.
Some platforms that teach children ask for a criminal record check. In South Africa that's a police clearance certificate from SAPS: you apply at a police station, where your fingerprints are taken, and it can take several weeks to arrive. If it's likely to be requested, apply before the interview so you can say it's already on its way.
Your turn to ask
Have your own questions ready. The answers help you judge whether the platform suits life in South Africa.
Questions worth asking:
- What happens if a power or internet outage forces me to miss a class?
- When are your busiest hours in SAST?
- How are payments made, and are there fees to receive them in South Africa?
- How quickly do new teachers usually build a full timetable?
- Is there ongoing training or mentoring?
- How is teacher performance measured?
- Who supports teachers during lessons if something goes wrong?
- What is the next step after this interview?
>> Need More Help? Join A TEFL Interview Coaching Session
Go into your interview prepared
If you can explain your backup power plan, offer clear SAST availability and talk confidently about your accent and training, you'll stand out from applicants who haven't thought it through.
Charge everything, check your UPS, test your microphone and go and show them what kind of online English teacher you'll be.
Which of these questions would you find hardest? Let us know in the comments.
Also read:
- Top 8 Hacks to Become a Successful Online English Teacher
- What is a core TEFL Qualification
- TEFL as a Student in a University or college
- Top 7 ESL Icebreakers for activities for your New School Year
- Top 4 Reasons to Teach English in Buenos Aires
- 5 Tips for Teaching English in South Korea
- How to market yourself on social media
