VA Masters & The Hiring Process: From Application to Getting Hired

What Exactly Is VA Masters?

Let's start with the basics. VA Masters is a recruitment agency that connects top-tier Filipino Virtual Assistants with clients in e-commerce, real estate, wellness, human resources, and various other industries. Unlike fly-by-night agencies or sketchy Facebook posts promising unrealistic rates, VA Masters vets both VAs and clients to ensure legitimate, sustainable matches.

Think of it as the bridge between talented Filipino remote workers and international clients who genuinely need skilled support—not the "apply here and we'll ghost you" type of setup that wastes everyone's time.

The Complete Hiring Process Breakdown

Here's exactly how it works from the moment you click "Apply" to getting matched with your first client:

Step 1: Fill Out the Application Form
Head to vamasters.com/careers and browse the open positions. When you find a role that matches your skills and interests, you'll fill out an application form. Crucial tip from Tata: "Make sure guys na tama yung information na nakalagay dun from your number to attaching your resume." Seems obvious, but you'd be surprised how many applications get rejected because of typos in contact details or missing resumes.

Step 2: Resume Review & Initial Screening
The VA Masters team reviews your resume against the client's specific requirements. This is where they determine if you "fit the bill" for the role. If you pass this stage, you'll receive a skill test.

Step 3: The Skill Test
This isn't some generic personality quiz. The skill test replicates the actual daily tasks you'd be doing in the role. As Tata explains: "Kung ngyari, yung task nyo is mag-post sa Facebook at kumawa ng caption, then yun yung marireceive nyong skill test." If you're applying for a social media management role, expect to create sample posts and captions. For customer service, you might handle mock inquiries. It's practical, relevant, and designed to show—not just tell—what you can do.

Step 4: Initial Interview with HR
Perform well on the skill test, and you'll advance to an interview with VA Masters' HR team. This is where they assess your communication skills, work ethic, and overall fit for remote work culture.

Step 5: Final Interview with the Client
The last hurdle is meeting the actual client you'll be working with. This is your chance to showcase your personality, ask questions about the role, and demonstrate why you're the best match for their needs.

Step 6: Getting Hired
If you surpass all the other applicants and demonstrate strong performance throughout the process, congratulations—you're hired. The client selects you, and VA Masters facilitates the onboarding process.

Do You Need Experience to Get Hired?

This is the question that stops most people before they even apply. The answer? It's complicated—but in a good way.

Roxy breaks it down: "Dito papasok yung paano mo i-present yung self mo kahit wala ka pang experience." The key is highlighting your skills through portfolio creation, even if those skills weren't developed in a paid VA role.

Let's say you're applying for a social media management position but you've never been paid to manage anyone's social media. What do you do? Create mock projects. Build a content calendar for a hypothetical client. Edit sample videos. Write blog posts. Design graphics. Include these in your application as proof that you can do the work.

Tata's personal story drives this home: "Nung pumasok ako sa VA Masters, wala akong ano. Wala talaga akong experience being a VA." What she did have was a portfolio of personal projects showcased on her Instagram that demonstrated her skills. That was enough to get her foot in the door.

"Kahit na wala ka pang experience, pwede ka naman gumawa ng mga projects or sample output... Depende pa ano yung ina-applyan mo, anong position niya ina-applyan mo, or ano niya yung hinahanap ni client." — Roxy, From Kayod to Keyboard

The Most Common Reason Applicants Get Rejected

According to Tata, it's simple: "Mismatch with your skill set." Clients and HR can immediately tell if you're not a good fit for the role. The problem? Too many applicants send the exact same resume and portfolio to every position without customization.

Think about it this way: "Hindi ka naman pwede magpasa ng resume na sapatos yung ginagawa mo, tapos nag-a-apply ka sa company na gumagawa ng mga cellphone." You wouldn't apply to a phone manufacturer with a resume about making shoes, right? Yet people do the equivalent in VA applications all the time.

The solution: Make sure you actually see yourself in the role you're applying for. If the job requires video editing skills and you've never edited a video in your life, either learn that skill before applying or find a different role that matches what you can actually deliver.

Life as a VA: Day-to-Day Reality, Work-Life Balance & Burnout

What Does a Typical VA Day Actually Look Like?

One of the most common questions: "Ano ba talaga ang day-to-day life ng isang VA? Chill ba or stressful din?" The answer isn't quite what most people expect.

Roxy explains: "I won't say stressful kasi in the VA world, we have these systems and processes naman." The key to managing a VA workload isn't superhuman multitasking—it's consistency with your Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs).

Here's what that means in practice: Your client has specific tasks they need completed daily, weekly, or monthly. You create systems and processes to handle those tasks efficiently. As long as you stick to your SOPs and maintain consistency, you won't feel overwhelmed or "maloka sa mga tasks."

That said, there are definitely moments of stress. "May mga times din naman na ma-stress ka," Roxy admits. The difference is in how you approach those moments. If a task feels too overwhelming, communicate with your client. Manage their expectations. Let them know if you need more time to deliver quality work.

The VA life isn't inherently stressful—but it does require the right discipline and consistent execution of your systems. Without those, any job becomes chaotic.

Work-Life Balance: Myth or Reality?

Short answer: It's real. But it's not automatic.

As Tata puts it: "Totoo pa, guys. Kaya nga tayo nag-work sa bahay para may work-life balance eh." The entire point of remote work is creating that balance. However, here's the catch: "Ikaw na lang mismo ang gagawa ng boundary na yun. Ikaw ang gagawa ng balance na yun."

Work-life balance exists in the VA world, but you're responsible for creating and maintaining it. The flexibility of remote work is both its greatest strength and biggest challenge. Without clear boundaries, your bedroom becomes your office 24/7. Your rest time becomes work time. Your family dinners get interrupted by client messages.

The solution? Discipline and boundary-setting. Designate specific work hours and stick to them. Create a dedicated workspace, even if it's just a corner of your room. Turn off work notifications after hours. Communicate your availability to clients upfront.

Work-life balance in the VA world is absolutely achievable—but only if you actively fight to protect it.

Dealing with Burnout, Pressure & Demanding Clients

This is where things get real. Roxy shares her recent experience with burnout, offering insight that goes beyond typical productivity advice.

"Pag may client kasi, nandiging priority natin sila," she explains. When you have a client, they become your priority. There will be times when they ask for more, expect more, demand more. That's the nature of being hired as someone's right hand—you're not just staff, you're their business partner.

So how do you deal with the pressure without burning out completely? Roxy's answer is surprisingly emotional: "Importante ka sa company na yun or sa client na yun. Kasi pag i-file mo yun, mamahalit mo yung trabaho and hindi ka, hindi mo ma-file yung burnout or yung pressure or stress kasi sinasapuso mo siya."

"You play a big part of their lives, of their business. And sirete ka, kasi may client ka, while others are fighting for their land to land one... importante ka sa company na yun or sa client na yun. Kasi pag i-file mo yun, mamahalit mo yung trabaho." — Roxy, From Kayod to Keyboard

Translation: When you genuinely feel important to your client's business—when you take the work to heart—you don't feel the burnout and pressure the same way. You're not just clocking in hours; you're contributing to something meaningful.

This doesn't mean you should accept exploitation or unreasonable demands. It means finding clients whose missions you genuinely care about, so the hard work feels purposeful rather than draining.

Skills, Tools & Growth: What Beginners Need to Focus On

The Top 3 Skills Every Beginner VA Must Master

Tata breaks down the essential skills in order of priority:

1. Time Management (The Foundation)
"Yun yung pinakaunang skillset na kailangan nyong i-focus on," Tata emphasizes. Why? Because the entire purpose of hiring a VA is to save the client time. If you can't manage your own time effectively, you can't make their life easier.

Think about it: "Isipin nyo guys kung gaano kahalaga yung time kay client and time mo sa bahay." Your client's time is valuable. Your home time is valuable. If you're constantly scrambling, missing deadlines, or working inefficiently, you're failing at the core VA responsibility.

Tools to master: Google Calendar, Asana, Trello, ClickUp, or any CRM software that's intuitive and user-friendly. Learn how to block time, set realistic deadlines, and build buffers for unexpected tasks.

2. Email Management & Communication
"Lagi mo titignan yung email mo, lagi kang magkocommunicate," Tata notes. Email management isn't glamorous, but it's always part of the role. You'll be responding to client communications through WhatsApp, Slack, Skype, email, or various other platforms.

Master the basics: Professional email etiquette, response time expectations, using templates for common inquiries, organizing your inbox with labels and filters, and knowing when to escalate issues versus handling them yourself.

3. Your Niche-Specific Skills
"Kahit yung pinaka-basic man lang na skill na yun," Tata advises. You don't need to be an expert in everything, but you absolutely must have at least one solid skill related to your chosen VA niche.

If you're applying as a GHL (GoHighLevel) expert, you better know the basics of GHL. If you're a social media manager, you should know how to create and schedule posts. If you're a bookkeeper, you need foundational knowledge of accounting software.

Start with one skill. Master it. Then expand from there. Don't try to be a "jack of all trades, master of none" from day one.

Should You Invest in Tools, Courses & Certifications?

Roxy's take: "Depende sa preference mo, but hindi naman talaga required na need mo mag-enroll sa mga courses."

Here's the breakdown:

Courses & Certifications: Optional
You don't need to spend thousands of pesos on courses advertised in Facebook groups. Most VA skills can be learned for free through YouTube tutorials, blog posts, and practice. "You can learn with your own money," Roxy points out—meaning you can teach yourself without paying for expensive training programs.

That said, if you find a highly relevant course at a reasonable price that teaches exactly what you need, it might be worth it. Just don't think certifications are mandatory for getting hired.

Tools & Equipment: Essential
This is where you DO need to invest. "Need mo talaga mag-invest sa tools or equipments," Roxy insists. Why? Because even if you apply to hundreds of positions, "Hindi talaga ibigay ni Lord yan pag alam niyang hindi ka ready."

If your laptop is broken, your internet connection is unreliable, or your workspace is chaotic, you're not ready to be hired. Clients need to see that you have the basic infrastructure to deliver consistent work.

The good news? Equipment investment has a return. "Kasi pag nag-invest ka naman, may ROI naman yan eh, may return of investment," Roxy explains. You spend money on a good laptop and stable internet now, you earn it back (and more) through your VA income.

Tata adds: "Isipin mo kung nakita ng client mo na ang ganda ng setup mo sa bahay, working yung wifi mo, and all that stuff. Siyempre, tatas yung percentage na gusto ka niyang ihahit." A professional setup increases your chances of getting hired.

Can You Shift Niches Later On?

"It's always a yes," Tata declares. "Any niche na you want to continue, as long as you work on it, it's upskilling na."

She gives a perfect example: A VA at VA Masters specializing in e-commerce also handles customer service (replying to customer messages) and marketing (posting on the client's social media). With those combined skills, that VA could easily apply for customer service roles, marketing positions, or e-commerce specialist jobs at other companies.

"Pwede siya mag-shift later on. Better yet, you can collaborate your niche with other niches para sobrang power, VA powerhouse ka na." The more skills you stack, the more valuable you become.

Don't think of your first VA niche as a permanent label. Think of it as your entry point. Once you're in, you can learn adjacent skills, take on new responsibilities, and gradually shift into the role that truly excites you.

Real Talk: Salary Expectations & The Biggest Misconceptions

How Much Can a VA Realistically Earn?

This is the question everyone wants answered but nobody wants to give straight answers to. Tata and Roxy get real about VA earnings.

Roxy's First VA Job Experience:
"Nung nagsimula ako as a VA, ano ako nun eh, parang content creator VA sa isang marketing agency din. And that time, I earned around 30k a month." That's full-time work doing content creation, social media writing, and video editing.

For part-time work, she estimates: "Let's just say ideal lang ha, mga around 20k, mga ganyan. Pero it will grow naman eventually."

Tata's Reality Check on Niche-Based Earnings:
"Earning in the VA world really depends on your niche." She mentions a VA friend specializing in Salesforce who earns ₱150,000 to ₱250,000 monthly. Yes, you read that right. But here's the context: that VA invested in paid Salesforce training and certification before even applying. "Beginner ka nga sa VA, pero it doesn't mean wala kang specialty."

Contrast that with general administrative or executive assistant roles. For fresh graduates with no experience: "$4 an hour, $3 an hour" is realistic, Tata explains. She doesn't calculate the monthly equivalent, but let's do the math: $4/hour × 160 hours/month = $640/month (roughly ₱36,000 at current exchange rates).

Two crucial factors determine earnings:

Roxy mentions the possibility of juggling multiple clients: "Pwede ka naman mag-juggle ng two jobs, multiple client. But make sure na kaya mo siyang gawin in a day." Just ensure you're giving equal quality time to each client.

The bottom line: VA earnings range from ₱20,000-30,000/month for beginners in general roles to ₱100,000-250,000+ for specialists with in-demand skills. Your earning potential grows as you gain experience, build reputation, and develop specialized expertise.

The Biggest Misconception About Being a VA

"Yung mga nasasabi na pag VA ka, nasa coffee shop ka lang, pa-coffee-coffee, mga pa-click-click lang, ganun," Roxy laughs.

The stereotype: VAs just sit in aesthetic coffee shops, sipping lattes, clicking away on their laptops looking cute for Instagram. The reality? "Ba't hindi nila alam na ang dami mong ginagawa per for the client."

You might look good with your laptop and matcha latte, but what people don't see is "yung mga tumatakbong thoughts sa isip mo while working with your client." The mental load of managing multiple responsibilities, juggling deadlines, solving problems independently, and ensuring client satisfaction—none of that shows up in the aesthetic work-from-home photos.

Tata adds important context: "It's very different. Working in an office and working as a VA. Sa VA, mas marami kang freedom, pero that means mas marami kang responsibility."

"The line of you being at home and the line of you being in work mode is very thin. Sobrang dali niyo i-overstep. And people think kasi na since nag-work ka sa bahay, si pa, relax, relax lang... But that isn't really real." — Tata, From Kayod to Keyboard

In a traditional office, leaving at 5 PM means you're done. As a VA, the physical boundary between work and home doesn't exist. You have to create it yourself through discipline and conscious choices.

"It's not all fun and games. It's not that easy. But it is very, very possible when you open your mind doon sa maraming opportunities na mangyari," Tata concludes. The VA life offers incredible freedom and earning potential—but only for those willing to take it seriously as a real profession, not just an "easy money" side hustle.

Leaving Corporate or BPO: How to Make the Switch Safely

Advice for Those Afraid to Leave Stable Jobs

The question: "Ano ang advice nyo sa mga takot mag-leave ng corporate or BPO job?"

Roxy shares her personal context first: "Actually, hindi ako galing from a BPO. Galing ako ng government office." She worked in a government office for four years before transitioning to remote work. If someone can make that leap from the ultimate "stable" job (government employment), anyone can.

Her primary advice: "If your current job, let's just say corporate, BPO, or nasa government ka, private, sector, if that job doesn't give you the happiness that you crave, the peace that you want, then there are a lot of opportunities you can find online."

The key mindset shift: Don't stay somewhere that keeps you in perpetual survival mode. "Huwag ka nang mag-stay doon sa isang place na hindi naman parang ma-feel mo lang na survival mode ka lagi. Na parang, ay nako, duty na naman today. 8 to 5. Tapos parang after 5pm or 6pm na pa makakahinga kasi nga, nasa survival mode ka."

You don't need to prolong that lifestyle. "You have a lot of choice. Just open your eyes and open your wings and fly," Roxy encourages.

That said, she adds an important caveat: "If your current job naman is okay naman yung status mo doon, masaya ka naman, then parang wala namang reason din to leave, diba? As long as you're compensated well, happy ka, peaceful yung environment mo, masaya ka sa mga boss and colleagues mo, it's fine."

Don't leave a good thing just because VA work sounds trendy. Leave because your current situation genuinely doesn't serve you anymore.

The Real Reason People Are Afraid

Tata cuts to the core: "I think nagagaling lang yung takot dahil sa instability."

In corporate or BPO jobs, even if they're draining, you know exactly when you'll get paid, how much you'll earn, and what your schedule looks like. There's comfort in that predictability.

With VA work? "You are your own boss now. The thing that you are selling is you. And sometimes, may instability talaga. That's uncertainty. Yun lang naman yung certain sa mundo. Yung uncertainty."

"Yun lang naman yung certain sa mundo. Yung uncertainty. Kasi boss ka na eh. Yun yung pinili mong buhay." — Tata, From Kayod to Keyboard

If you choose the VA path, you're choosing the boss lifestyle—which comes with inherent uncertainty. Some months you might have three clients. Others, you might be searching for new opportunities. That's the trade-off for freedom and flexibility.

How to Prepare Before Making the Leap

Tata's practical advice: "Para maging lesser lang yung takot, is to be more prepared."

You can't just quit on a whim. Here's what you need before transitioning:

1. Your Own Equipment
"Hindi ka naman pwedeng umalis na wala kang sariling gamit." You need a functional laptop, stable internet connection, and proper workspace setup before you can accept VA work.

2. Foundational Knowledge & Skills
"Hindi ka naman pwedeng umalis ng wala kang alam." Build at least one marketable VA skill before quitting your day job. Take courses, create portfolio pieces, practice—whatever it takes to develop genuine competency.

3. Emergency Fund & Savings
"Hindi ka pwedeng umalis ng wala kang emergency fund or savings." This is non-negotiable. Roxy emphasizes being "prepared mentally, emotionally, financially."

How much should you save? Ideally, 3-6 months of living expenses. This gives you runway to find clients without panicking if you don't land work immediately.

Roxy's Personal Preparation Strategy

Roxy shares what she did before leaving her government job: "Bago talaga ako nag-resign dun sa previous government, siyempre, may-make sure ko muna na na-hire na ako, sign up yan kung work from home, para if ever may naaalis na ako, at least di ako yung parang mag-stay lang sa bahay na nag-a-apply pa."

Translation: She secured a work-from-home position BEFORE resigning. This ensured continuous income flow and eliminated the stress of being unemployed while job hunting.

The adjustment period was real: "Imagine din mo, nasa office ka for a long time tapos biglang work from home, yung padera mo lang sa kwarto yung nakikita mo, yung mga tao sa bahay." Going from an office environment with colleagues to staring at your bedroom wall with only family members around is a significant shift.

"Medyo may mga adjustments pero in the long run, masasanay ka rin eh. And sobrang worth it din talaga na yung return sa'yo," she concludes.

The bottom line: Don't let fear paralyze you, but don't be reckless either. The rewards of VA work are real—but only if you prepare properly for the transition.

💬 Quick-Fire Q&A: Your Most Common Questions

📻 More Episodes You'll Love:

• Episode 1: How to Find Your First VA Client - Platform strategies and application tactics that actually work
• Episode 2: Social Media Manager Skills You Need - Building a profitable SMM career from scratch
• Episode 3: Work-Life Balance as a VA - Real strategies for protecting your time and sanity

Find all episodes at vamasters.com/from-kayod-to-keyboard