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Yangzhou, Jiangsu

 
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rubert7



Joined: 29 Nov 2012
Posts: 4

PostPosted: Tue Jan 22, 2013 2:35 pm    Post subject: Yangzhou, Jiangsu Reply with quote

Hi folks, just looking for any opinions on a job I may have lined up. It pays 9000RMB a month which "includes 1000RMB allowance for housing."

The only thing is it's basically full time, 5 days a week with 5 hours teaching and 3 hours office a day. This seems like a lot, but the money is more than most other TEFL jobs in China I have come across. This would be my first teaching job. Is it worth trying to negotiate less hours?

Thanks in advance.
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fred13331



Joined: 20 Feb 2012
Posts: 108
Location: Southern China

PostPosted: Tue Jan 22, 2013 3:49 pm    Post subject: Re: Yangzhou, Jiangsu Reply with quote

rubert7 wrote:
Hi folks, just looking for any opinions on a job I may have lined up. It pays 9000RMB a month which "includes 1000RMB allowance for housing."

The only thing is it's basically full time, 5 days a week with 5 hours teaching and 3 hours office a day. This seems like a lot, but the money is more than most other TEFL jobs in China I have come across. This would be my first teaching job. Is it worth trying to negotiate less hours?

Thanks in advance.


Jiangsu is not cheap. That is too low. A reasonably good uni would pay that for 15 hours. I'm guessing this is private school, so you will be there every week, no long holidays, probably some weekend and evening work.

I think the way to go in China is a uni job, even say 6,500 or 7,000 for a newcomer. 4 or 5 days off a week if you want. 4 months off a year if you want (5 months in some jobs). Or, as I prefer to do, vast swathes of time to make more money. But at least you have the freedom to choose. Not so with the private school gig.

It works out at 52 RMB an hour. $8, E6. Private classes should be at least 150 an hour, tho 250 is more like it in my view. 300 is achievable, even 400 (in bigger cities anyway) Why work for 50 when you can get much more?
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rubert7



Joined: 29 Nov 2012
Posts: 4

PostPosted: Tue Jan 22, 2013 5:19 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Thanks for the reply. I agree it is too low, I worked out the hourly rate too and came to that conclusion.

I have tried to find a university job but I just can't seem to pick anything up. Is Dave's the best place to look or are there better places for Uni jobs rather than private? Of course there's always knocking on doors with a CV but I'm not in China yet.
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fred13331



Joined: 20 Feb 2012
Posts: 108
Location: Southern China

PostPosted: Tue Jan 22, 2013 6:00 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

rubert7 wrote:
Thanks for the reply. I agree it is too low, I worked out the hourly rate too and came to that conclusion.

I have tried to find a university job but I just can't seem to pick anything up. Is Dave's the best place to look or are there better places for Uni jobs rather than private? Of course there's always knocking on doors with a CV but I'm not in China yet.


Dave's seems to attract the more private, money machine schools as advertisers. Universities, Im not sure where to look, but you can door to door online these days. Universities like to fix themselves up before the long holiday. IE it is prob too late now for the March starts. May/ June is a good time to start applying. In your position, i would pick a target city, and ask questions here and other forums (fora???) I know the Guangzhou scene pretty well, but thats about my limit
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Denim-Maniac



Joined: 31 Jan 2012
Posts: 1238

PostPosted: Wed Jan 23, 2013 10:52 am    Post subject: Re: Yangzhou, Jiangsu Reply with quote

rubert7 wrote:
Hi folks, just looking for any opinions on a job I may have lined up. It pays 9000RMB a month which "includes 1000RMB allowance for housing."

The only thing is it's basically full time, 5 days a week with 5 hours teaching and 3 hours office a day. This seems like a lot, but the money is more than most other TEFL jobs in China I have come across. This would be my first teaching job. Is it worth trying to negotiate less hours?

Thanks in advance.


Some may not agree ... but I think you may be going about this the wrong way. Or if not the wrong way, perhaps looking from a perspective that is slightly off-kilter.

Im assuming that as well as being your first teaching job ... this is also your first job in China? I believe that if this is the case, putting your job focus on hours worked and salary may well be a mistake. I dont believe that is the way to really judge a job in China, and even less so for a total newbie with no work experience or China experience.

Id seriously think about evaluating a job according to the following criteria:

Teaching and support You dont mention anything about the nature of the teaching in the job you mention, but not all teaching jobs are created equal. 30 kindergarten age kids Vs. 50 unruly middle schoolers Vs 60 university students in a writing class Vs Business English taught to adults Vs 1-1 lessons with a pretty girl in a coffee shop. Id take one of those options for 50 yuan per hour ... yet some others I wouldnt look at for 500 per hour. Thinking about and understanding the type of teaching can make all the differences when evaluating a contract.

And also think about the support, training and mentoring. My first experience in a Chinese classroom was simply 'there's the door, just go and speak English to them!'. Many people have that experience (and its not always positive) but its doesnt mean that everyone has that experience. Choose the right job and you dont have to.

Location Is this job on the outskirts of town with an expensive taxi to get to the nightlife? Is the school in a downtown area meaning you'll need a long and often uncomfortable commute to get there each day? Or it is in a lovely little self contained area where everything you need is in walking distance? The answer to these questions can make the difference between a great job and a horrendous one for some people.

How polluted is the area? Choose the wrong place and you can look forward to a smokers cough for several months a year or worse. Choose the right place and notice very little change from home.

Also a key part of the location lies in who else is attracted to go there. My first paid job in China was in a small town that had no MacDonalds or KFC, no Wal-Mart or Carrerfour, and no bars whatsoever. As a result, the only other teachers there were 6 or 7 missionary types.

My second location was the polar opposite with western food and amenities readily available, and a wide and diverse ex-pat crowd to buddy up with if thats your thing.

Working hours Again, I think this makes a big difference and could make a small hourly salary seem more attractive. Maybe this is just me, but the 8 hour days you mention wouldnt seem too bad if they were all Monday to Friday and between the hours of 9-5 in a well resourced office and school. And because of this the office hours just become prepare lesson hours.

But you dont mention the 'when' for the hours.

They may be from 14.00 - 22.00 with the busiest period being at the weekend, with your days off being monday and thursday. And those office hours are used for promotional work and meeting parents.


Get these things right first ... and the salary will look after itself and fall into place IMO. The difference between a good China job and a terrible one isnt really about the money, but about everything else around it. [/b]
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rubert7



Joined: 29 Nov 2012
Posts: 4

PostPosted: Wed Jan 23, 2013 6:38 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

@Denim-Maniac
I realise my initial post was all about the money but I agree it should not be my main focus. In fact, this job seems to be quite good overall and it was only as an after thought that I questioned it based on the money.

I don't know the timing of the 8 hour days, something to ask. However I would be teaching classes of less than 20 students, so not so bad.

You make some good points and certainly lots of questions for me to consider regarding this and other jobs.

@fred1331
Thanks for the advice re universities. I will follow it up if I'm still looking in a few months. Picking a city sounds like a good idea.
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Denim-Maniac



Joined: 31 Jan 2012
Posts: 1238

PostPosted: Thu Jan 24, 2013 10:22 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Im probably in the minority with my comments ... but I hope they do give you food for thought. The teaching and the town make or break many an experience I reckon.

Good luck
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kungfuman



Joined: 31 May 2012
Posts: 1749
Location: In My Own Private Idaho

PostPosted: Thu Jan 24, 2013 11:00 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Yangzhou itself is a pretty nice place.

The money offered vs the time commitment is a poor ratio.
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