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Connect with the Peace Corps
If you're ready for something bigger, we have a place where you belong.
Apply to the Peace Corps
The application process begins by selecting a service model and finding an open position.
Let us help you find the right position.
If you are flexible in where you serve for the two-year Peace Corps Volunteer program, our experts can match you with a position and country based on your experience and preferences.
Serve where you’re needed mostMiddle and High School English Teacher
Education
Job highlights
- Receive practical, high-quality training that prepares you to teach English anywhere.
- Gain project management, leadership, and intercultural collaboration skills transferable to any profession.
- Learn French and one of Benin’s many local languages from dedicated Language and Cross-Cultural Facilitators.
Get answers live — every weekday at .
Apply by
November 15, 2026Know by
January 1, 2027Depart on
June 20, 2027Duration
2 years, plus 3 months trainingAbout the project
Looking for a chance to make a positive impact while challenging yourself to grow as an educator? Rural Beninese students and teachers are eager to strengthen their English language skills and understanding of American culture with your support.
English can unlock global educational and professional opportunities, making language learning a national priority for Benin. Yet rural schools face significant challenges, including a variety of learning needs within a single classroom and limited English exposure. Local teachers are also managing heavy workloads and competing demands. These factors limit opportunities for lesson planning and professional development, making it difficult for students to gain confidence using English.
As a Middle and High School English Teacher, you will collaborate with local educators to create a conducive learning environment and implement student-centered teaching practices that benefit all students. Outside of the classroom, you will develop connections to the larger community through much-needed extracurricular activities, such as clubs or spelling bees.
Learn more about what Volunteers do in country by visiting our Benin project page.
Required skills
Qualified candidates will have one or more of the following criteria:
Bachelor's degree in any field.
Language: There are no pre-requisite language requirements for this position.
Required behavioral competencies
These competencies are essential for all service assignments and are assessed in the application and interview process:
Motivation for and commitment to service
Adaptability and open-mindedness
Problem solving and resourcefulness
Behavioral maturity and professionalism
Photos from Benin
How you and the community will make an impact together:
Plan and teach engaging English lessons to middle and high school students.
Support faculty planning and coordination.
Organize and lead extracurricular activities for youth, such as camps, sports, and clubs.
Facilitate projects to improve school facilities or community spaces.
Participate in cultural celebrations and community gatherings.
You may also work on additional projects that meet the community’s interests and priorities, such as gardening and painting educational murals.
Volunteers are placed in a community in the departments of Atlantique, Collines, Couffo, Mono, Oueme, Plateau or Zou. Each department offers a geographically diverse climate from savannah to rocky hills, to lush river valleys, to wetlands bordering lakes and the ocean. Volunteers will be placed in rural or peri-urban communities living in a self-contained concrete house inside a compound with either a resource family or community members.
Learn more about the living conditions, including detailed information on culture, communications, housing, and health/crime statistics on our Benin country page. You can also delve into stories about local communities by reading our blog or Volunteer stories.
Meet a Volunteer in Benin
Julianna P.
TEFL Volunteer
"When I return to the U.S., I believe I will be more comfortable working with people who have different backgrounds than my own. I’ve also become a more resilient and community-minded individual."
See full Volunteer profile
As a Middle and High School English Teacher, you will be trained on lesson planning, best practices for clubs and camps, and supporting cross-sectoral areas, such as gardening and entrepreneurship. Peace Corps/Benin will teach you French to help you comfortably live in and connect with the community. You will also receive language resources and learn one of Benin’s 50+ local languages, such as Fon, Mina, Adja, Bariba, Yoruba, Idaatcha, Tchabe, Fufulde, Mahi, Nagot, or Ife.
After 10 weeks of training, you will move to a rural community where you will collaborate with a secondary school. You will work with the community to assess the local needs and develop solutions for student achievement, teacher capacity, a positive learning environment, and activities to support well-rounded learning.
Only heterosexual couples can be accepted for this program. Each person must apply separately and qualify for a position in the same sector as their partner. Same-sector couples may live with different host families during training but will see each other for joint-training sessions and may have time together on weekends. Couples who are selected for the same sector will live together but work with different local partners which may be in the same community or in neighboring communities (not more than 30 minutes apart). Cohabitating couples are highly encouraged to present themselves as married throughout service due to cultural expectations.
To learn more about serving as a couple in Benin, visit the country page.
Application process
From application to departure takes around nine months. Learn about the application process for Volunteer opportunities.
Medical/legal clearance
You will need to be cleared medically and legally in order to serve in Benin. Review information on medical clearance and legal clearance to learn about the process.
