How to Get Hired as a Yoga Teacher
How Yoga Studios Look Through Large Amounts of Job Applications
Who should read this article:
This article is for current or aspiring yoga teachers who are looking to make a living from their practice. It covers strategies for seeking employment or freelancing. Many teachers start with employment or freelancing before eventually creating their own studio.
IMPORANT: This document might “trigger” some people into recommending that we should look more at the individual and that this and that is not “fair” and that there are people that simply have “xyz” and you should consider that “xyz”. However, even as we would perhaps agree with all or most suggestions that make the process of hiring more warm and loving, we focus in this article on objective reality.
We know that most studios will apply a similar lens on the applications and if we pretend and make up loving stories it won’t help you to get hired. We would mislead people into believing that the world of yoga is a cuddly bubble outside of the real world but there are certain things that apply to every organization. When you hire people you always take a huge risk! As a school you expose all of your students to a new person that can be potentially harmful to your students or your school. Therefore you will hire the best people you can get. Since you don’t have time to get to know them all, you will apply certain criteria that narrow down your chance of making a wrong choice.
Sandhya L. - Masters degree in yogic science, E-RYT 500, one of Yogamu’s teachers
About us:
Yogamu (the owner of GYTA) is a relatively large yoga school with thousands of past and current students. As that we must always make sure that our teachers are highly qualified and can deliver exciting and profound classes to our students.
As with many things in life things are not always black and white. When an applicant catches the eye, we might drop all bias towards certifications and degrees and just hire them but usually there is a relatively simple methodology how we filter through applications.
First, there are many applications! If you have some degree of popularity, you will receive hundreds of applications per job post. This article analyzes a set of applications we have received to shed a light on the way we filter through them and make our preliminary (pre-interview) decisions.
“There are hundreds of applications per yoga job opening. You have to filter them first.”
Let’s look at potential candidates out of 413 applications
For this post we looked at Yogamu job applications from a more recent batch of 413 candidates that applied for a teacher position. 185 candidates where filtered out before looking at the applications in detail. The main reasons for being filtered out where:
Job applications without resume
Candidates with “sloppy” resumes (We have seen hard to read mobile pictures of papers with coffee stains and worse)
Candidates who start their cover letters by bashing their sangha, school or teachers
Applications with a “low” designation (200HR) and without Instagram, Youtube or website unless there are not enough applications that have it.
Candidates with no designation, resume or social links
Boasting candidates
Candidates with no certification or training that tell us that yoga is a natural process etc. are sorted out
Yoga Therapists: 56 (invited to interview 33)
500 HR teachers: 62 (invited to interview 18)
200 HR teachers: 119 (invited to interview 2)
We start by looking at the applicant’s qualifications. We look at certificates, degrees, certifications, and other credentials they might have. We also look for relevant experience and any other qualifications that might be relevant.
We then read through the resume and cover letter. We look for any relevant experience, creativity, writing style, and other factors that might be relevant to the position.
Next, we look for any references or testimonials that the applicant might have. We like to see what kind of recommendations people have for the applicant, as this can give us an idea of how reliable and effective they are.
Finally, we look for any additional documents or portfolios the applicant might have. This helps us see their work, their style, and how they approach their work.
Now a very interesting pattern arrises. Once all applications has been sorted by degrees and certification, the need to consider the “bottom of the stack” is already very low. If we find enough candidates to interview, there is no need to look at the least likely candidates.
General observations:
We will always try to interview the top candidates first, the least likely candidates last. Therefore 200HR teachers are always on the bottom unless they have amazing skills like calisthenics or similar.
Candidates that have certification in Yoga Therapy or Masters degrees have often a long list of additional qualifications and experiences.
Other Considerations
Low Designations and Degrees
If you have a “low” designation but your Instagram shows that you can balance on one thumb we will interview you. If your YouTube is like a rising sun of loving kindness we interview you. If you have no experience and nothing to show we would not know what to base a positive decision on.
So, this is the general process we use to filter through applications. It is not perfect, but it allows us to quickly identify the best applicants and move forward with the hiring process.
Should you not Consider Everyone Who is Really Nice?
Please always understand that there are many candidates looking for a job and most of them are loving and kind. This is not a special trait but the minimum qualification to be considered for any kind of career in yoga. People who are rude, mean spirited, deceptive, backstabbing, gossiping or similar will never be hired or not for long. That is especially true for yoga schools. Even though we might not always have the time for doing so, in today’s world most recruiters and HR departments will look through your social media to get a better feel for your personality. If you are bashing others, divulge business secrets of your current employer, post promiscuous pictures of yourself, they won’t proceed in the hiring process. There are always many candidates available that are qualified, kind, humble and willing to work hard. Therefore being nice needs to be combined with experience or good certification.
Conclusion
Out of 413 candidates virtually only 500HR+ and Yoga Therapists were considered. That does not mean that a 200HR teacher has no chance, it only means that every recruiter for a school will assume only basic knowledge. That might not be enough for the position to be filled. Every school wants the best qualified candidates. When schools are trying to grow, it helps a lot to show that only the most qualified teachers have been chosen.
What Should I do to Increase My Chances to be Hired?
Aim for lifelong learning. If you are “in training” for your 500HR and already have plans in place for your Yoga Therapist education or Master’s in yoga, you have incredible chances to get hired
Have a strong resume
Once you feel ready, create an Instagram profile and perhaps upload YouTube videos explaining things
Write a nice cover letter or have a friendly email in place.
Have your own daily sadhana. It is the sattvic fuel that will get you on top of the stack by grace
Practice karma yoga. If you think “how would helping others get me a job?” you have not yet understood yoga
Apply to many jobs and perhaps read something about the organization you would like to work for. Check their website and say something relevant. “I really like your new XYZ course”.
If you would like to upgrade your qualification, please remember that Yogamu is about to close the doors to this years special. We currently offer to upgrade everyone (from 200 to 500, from 500 to Yoga Therapist) at up to 70% discounts.
Click here if you are a 200HR teacher (or in training) and would like to become 500HR teacher
Click here if you are in a 100HR training only
Click here if you are a 500HR teacher and would like to become a Yoga Therapist
