This study aimed to probe tertiary- level students’ perceptions of the characteristics that make English as a Second Language teachers effective and successful. To achieve the study purpose, the researcher designed a questionnaire that consisted of 60 items distributed into three main dimensions of descriptors: academic characteristics, social and psychological characteristics of personality, and practical and pedagogical expertise. The sample of the study consisted of 70 female students enrolling in English as a Second Language Foundation Level 2. Means and standard deviations of the questionnaire main dimensions and items revealed that college teachers’ practical and pedagogical expertise got the highest mean and standard deviation than the other two dimensions. “Being friendly and kind”, “speaking English clearly and accurately”, and “varying classroom instructional techniques” gained the highest means and “ Having females to teacher female students” gained the lowest means. Recommendations for teachers were suggested
Keywords: Effective ESL Teachers, English as a Second Language Instructors, Instructors’ Pedagogical Expertise, Teacher Qualifications
