Are you wondering if you’re a good fit for Magic Ears? Well, you’ve come to the right place. In this post, I’ll give you all the information that you need to know, not only what to expect from this company, but also the quirks and issues that you may encounter along the way. I’ve been working for Magic Ears since December 2017 and I really couldn’t be happier with the job.
Since I have lived in various international destinations for the past 15 years, having an online job with steady and decent pay rate has been essential. I’m happy to say that for the past 2 years my husband and I have relied solely on the income generated from our online ESL teaching, and not only have we been able to support ourselves, we’ve also been able to save!! *cha-ching!*
Yes, I know you want to make the world a better place and enrich the lives of the little Chinese children that are pretty adorable, by the way. But let’s talk about what you’re really here for: THE PAY. Magic Ears start all their teachers at $9 per 25-minute class, unless you have a bachelor’s degree in education (then you get $10 per class). There are 3 bonuses that you can get: $1 per class to be on time, $1 per class to open up 60 peak slots per month, and $2 per class when you take a standby class when another teacher needs a substitute. So, with your base pay and bonuses, just starting out, you’d make as little as $18/h (without bonuses) or up to $24/h (with bonuses). Plus, raises are given on contract renewals. After being with the company some time, renewing a few contracts and ranking up, you could make up to $26/h.
The pay is very enticing indeed. However, pay doesn’t really matter if you can’t get any booked classes that actually pay, right? Don’t worry. I understand. The first thing to note is that we’re booked by the company, so you can focus on teaching and not worry about having to market yourself.
How do bookings work?
We are booked by the company, not by the parents. Your guaranteed hours will increase as you “rank up” in teacher status and as you make a certain % of supervisor and parent feedback.
All new teachers start out as Freshmen rank and have limited slots open. After you teach your first 10 classes, you can rank up to Benchmark (where you can open full schedule but will not receive a high booking rate) or Junior (you will see about 50-60% of your open slots booked).
After you have taught 100 classes you’re eligible to potentially rank to Senior, and you’ll be guaranteed to have 80% of your open slots booked. Magic Master is for those in the top 5% of feedback and they get 100% of their opened slots booked.
Are you ready to get on board yet?
Let me tell you a little more about the company before we get into all the little details. The staff does a great job communicating with the teachers and listens to our ideas (and actually implements them). The Magic Ears Family Facebook page is super-supportive and positive, too. Since Magic Ears is still a small company, there are still opportunities for advancement and secondary positions.
Scheduling is totally flexible and they don’t penalize you for sick days or emergencies as some other online companies do.
I love the teaching platform! You can move your camera around on the lesson, make your own camera or the students camera nice and big, taking the main stage, or normal size. It also includes state-of-the-art interactive lessons with built-in games, videos, and songs. The lessons are all provided, they’re very thorough, extensions are rarely needed to fill up the 25 minutes of class time and it only takes a couple of minutes before classes to review each lesson and grab a few props. We also have our reward system built right into the platform so you don’t have to spend time creating secondary reward systems. Yay!
It does take a little practice to get used to the controls on the platform. For example, controlling the noise coming from the student’s audio feed and using the features where the teachers and students videos can float around the lesson screen, etc.. Magic Ears is very patient though and they provide plenty of training opportunities to help teachers to succeed.
What qualifications do I need?
- You must be a Native English speaker from USA or Canada
(native speaker requirements are non-negotiable). - You must have a Bachelor’s Degree
(or currently be working towards your degree) - ESL Certification
(Don’t worry, it’s easy and inexpensive to get.) - Have Experience with Children
Be sure to attach all resumes and certifications (if applicable), otherwise, your application will be automatically rejected by the system for being incomplete.
How long does the hiring process take?
The normal hiring process takes approximately 2 weeks, however, if you have extraordinary teaching skills & excel during your interview, you’ll be invited to join the Fast-Track Program! This program will allow you to be hired, trained and start teaching in as little as 48 HOURS after your interview! If you meet the qualifications to apply and shine during your interview, you’ll be invited to join the Fast-Track!
What is the expected pay?
If you have a Bachelor’s Degree in ANY subject (or are currently working towards one) you’ll receive a base pay of $9/class PLUS the opportunity for the bonuses listed below.
If you have a Bachelors or Masters in Language Education + ESL certificate of some sort + 5 or more years teaching experience, your base pay will be $10/class PLUS the opportunity for the bonuses outlined below
You will have opportunities to receive a raise for outstanding teacher performance every 6 months (caps at $26/hr).
Bonuses:
#1. Enter the first class of the day 3 minutes early and you will receive a $1 bonus per class (which is equal to an additional $2 per hour).
#2. Open 60 peak time slots and get an additional $1 for each class you teach, peak time, or regular time.
What are the available hours?
5:00 P.M.- 9:00 P.M. (BJT) Monday – Friday
9:00 A.M.- 11:00 A.M. & 2:00 P.M. – 9:00 P.M. (BJT) Saturday and Sunday
Are there Standby Classes?
YES! Standby classes will appear on the schedule and you may choose to book. If teaching Standby, you will enter the platform 5 minutes before class and remain 15 minutes after class time has started.
Standby Bonuses If you do not teach, you will earn $5 for standing by. If you do teach, you will earn class play + $2 bonus for standing by.
Is there a required amount of hours I have to schedule per week?
Nope! There is no minimum hourly requirement.
What is the cancellation/emergency policy?
In the case of an emergency or illness, you can cancel, penalty-free, at any time.
Sick cancellations: Anytime you are ill, Magic Ears would rather you take time off than teach while you’re ill and possibly not be at your best. You are never penalized for having to cancel due to illness! If you are the only care-taker available for your children during class times, you may also cancel penalty-free if they become ill.
Emergency Cancellations: This covers pretty much any type of situation out of your control. This can include natural disasters, power outages, family emergencies, etc.
Non-Emergency/Non-Sick Cancellations: You get 2 days of non-emergency/non-sick cancellations per month. These cancellations need to be made at least 24 hours in advance in order to not be penalized. Cancellations within 24 hours, but prior to 2 hours, will be penalized $10. Cancellations within 2 hours of class time, that are not due to emergency or illness, will be counted as absent.
These cancellations count for the entire day, so if you are canceling two classes within the same day, it will only count as one cancellation.
Keep in mind that absence is a penalty of $20 and can result in a class suspension of up to one week. 2 absences within one contract can lead to contract termination.
Open Slot Cancellations: Open slots can be closed and opened at any time without penalties
How far in advance must I set my availability?
As soon as you are hired, you can begin scheduling your availability just 48 hours from then or up to four weeks in advance! Keep in mind that the way you set your availability will affect your booking rate. A higher booking rate will be received based on the following criteria:
- Your “Rank”
- How many slots were opened for the upcoming month
- How many Peak Time slots were opened
- How far in advance these slots were opened
What OS do I need?
For now, our platform can NOT run on Chrome book. Recommended configuration requirements on teacher portal, please refer to these following processor:
- -Processor: CPU I5 4th Generation, Models with suffixes M, HQ and HK etc and above. For instance: i5-6400
- -Memory: 4GB and above.
- -Headset and camera: Logitech is recommended
Recommended network:
- Network which is stable and cannot be influenced by traffic peak (China Union, China Mobile are preferred)
- Wired home network (more stable than WiFi)
- Bandwidth should at least be 5Mbps, however, 10Mbps and above are preferred
These following configuration requirements cannot be used:
- -Processor: Intel CPU I5 3rd
- -Generation and below, CPU Model with suffixes U (stands for low power consumption) Y (stands for Ultra-Low Voltage) etc., for example: I5-3339Y，i5-3337U-AMD：A10 Generation and below, FX-9800P RADEON R7 -Memory: smaller than 2G [Generally speaking, the network which has been used less than 3 years, which can guarantee smooth TV-watching experience, which can meet the need of video chatting are fine.]
How do I set up my interview/demo class?
If you choose to do a live interview, you will schedule the interview on your Magic Ears teacher portal. As soon as you book the interview, you will have access to the class material you will use to “teach” an 8-minute demo to the interviewer as if you are leading a real class.
I highly recommend giving yourself a few days to practice for your interview! It’s also super-helpful to send me a recorded copy of you teaching the interview lesson so I can give you feedback. Those who take me up on this offer have a MUCH higher rate of passing the interview : )
If you choose to do the recorded demo, you will schedule a time at your own convenience. The demo material will load at your start time. You may schedule as many demo times as you feel necessary to get the best recording. Make sure you use a screen recorder. The demo should take about 8 minutes, and you should have at least 2 props relevant to the class material.
What is a good screen recorder to use for recording a demo?
Mac users may find QuickTime Player to be a great, free option for screen recording. Loom and iSpring are also great options for any computer.
Please don’t hesitate to ask questions! I’m happy to help!
