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In the heat of the moment
Joined: 22 May 2015
Posts: 393
Location: Italy
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 Posted: Fri Mar 02, 2018 6:59 am Post subject: |
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| saren wrote: |
If I can find a room near the places to work, I think I can make it profitable despite being China's most expensive city.
If I can find enough of these, I can possibly earn with 15, 20 or 25 hours.
If I earn 300RMB/hour or more, I can reach the same goal of (25K) with only 20 hours/week (at the same rate). |
Thanks, now I've got the song from 'Fiddler on the Roof' as an ear worm.  |
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Jmbf
Joined: 29 Jun 2014
Posts: 663
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| Posted: Fri Mar 02, 2018 7:39 am Post subject: |
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| Non Sequitur wrote: |
Please focus on the visa matter I highlighted above.
You need a job offer from a school authorised to hire foreigners. With that and a pass on the health check you apply to your local Chinese consulate for a Z (work) visa.
When you arrive your employer will take your passport to the PSB and a residence permit sticker will be placed in your PP.
You will also need to pass a local health check arranged by your employer.
Not unnaturally your employer will expect you do do your 16-30 hours pw contact time with their students at their school.
State schools have fewer contact hours pw, but lower pay.
Suggest you plan on just doing your contracted job for the first semester and look for privates later.
You seem to be mesmerising yourself with income calculations. |
+1. You'll need to focus on securing a 'normal' teaching position first. Without that nothing is going to work. Everything else is secondary. Of course you should take into account the private tutoring market in your selected area BUT developing your own private student base will take time and effort and you need go into it with an overall game plan and strategy in place. |
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Dream_Seller2
Joined: 30 Dec 2017
Posts: 5
Location: the upside down
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| Posted: Sat Mar 03, 2018 10:11 am Post subject: |
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| To the OP, I think you should stay there because you get the most bang for your buck. I can estimate that you can invest more than $3500 a month. Why come to China for $500 more? The longer you are there, the more you can increase your salary there. Specialize. I have no interest in going there but in your position why leave a job where you are doing well financially? There is NO reason to. Instead of taking vacations , work. |
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Markness
Joined: 30 Dec 2009
Posts: 738
Location: Chengdu
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| Posted: Fri Mar 09, 2018 1:23 am Post subject: |
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Been a while since I've posted here but here is my 2 jiao thrown in...
If you work at an "international" school you can pull in 15-25k pretty easily. The hours will be low and you'll be free in the evenings/weekends.
If you start at the lower end you will be making 15k. This leaves you with 10k missing in order to get to the 25k that you desire. In a tier 2 city you can make about 200RMB per class, so that would mean you need to teach 50 classes a month or about 12 a week. This done over 6 days means only 2 classes per day to get to that number.
And people wonder why there are so many lifers in China now ...
edit: spellin' |
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cormac
Joined: 04 Nov 2008
Posts: 768
Location: Xi'an (XTU)
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| Posted: Fri Mar 09, 2018 9:08 am Post subject: |
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| saren wrote: |
| I think a first tier city is the place to focus on |
Why? 1st Tier cities come with their own problems. Much higher costs, more competition, greater attention from the authorities, etc.
2nd Tier cities can be an excellent resource. Yes, the starting off salary is likely to be lower, but the costs are also much lower. Less competition, and in a way more interest in being with a foreigner which results in more pvt gigs.
| Quote: |
| If I can find a room near the places to work, I think I can make it profitable despite being China's most expensive city. |
From friends living in Shanghai (and my few short-term periods there), finding reasonable housing is a nightmare. Shanghai is very expensive and there is serious competition for absolute crap-holes within the city limits. You might want to do some research on the costs and availability within these work areas. Personally, I suspect your work areas will be in different parts of the city, and you'll end up living quite far from them.
| Quote: |
| My initial idea is to work a few hours per week with several different companies, language centers, etc..This way I can earn an hourly rate of about 250-300RMB. |
Um.. Really? Like sure, those kind of rates have been mentioned on these boards, and you can get them but... from a language mill? or an average for all pvt classes? I'm skeptical.
| Quote: |
| If I earn 300RMB/hour or more, I can reach the same goal of (25K) with only 20 hours/week (at the same rate). |
I think you're dreaming. Might be best to have your feet on the ground, and making contacts before assuming those kind of figures.
Personally, based on your posts, I think your best bet is to find an international type school with a base salary around 20k, and work for them. You can easily pick up your extra 4-5k in pvts. But you'll be working more hours than you wish between preparation and actual teaching. (not taking into account the extra socialising that usually comes with such work) |
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nimadecaomei
Joined: 22 Sep 2016
Posts: 605
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| Posted: Fri Mar 09, 2018 8:45 pm Post subject: |
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| cormac wrote: |
| saren wrote: |
| I think a first tier city is the place to focus on |
Why? 1st Tier cities come with their own problems. Much higher costs, more competition, greater attention from the authorities, etc.
2nd Tier cities can be an excellent resource. Yes, the starting off salary is likely to be lower, but the costs are also much lower. |
What I have found, especially after moving here to Jiangsu, is that many rich people in Shanghai are from the 2nd, 3rd, 4th... tier cities around it. The money is very much available in the other cities. Been to SH twice and was not very impressed. People are too uptight. |
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saren
Joined: 19 Nov 2007
Posts: 70
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| Posted: Sat Mar 10, 2018 2:27 am Post subject: |
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| Ok please recommend other cities other than Shanghai, i have experience with Xiamen more than 10 years ago, i liked it there but i was younger. What about Haikou? |
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LarssonCrew
Joined: 06 Jun 2009
Posts: 1308
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| Posted: Sat Mar 10, 2018 3:53 am Post subject: |
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In first tier cities [I'm using BJ as my example] 300 is actually easily doable.
I found a bit of part time work to live off, and it came down to just biding my time. I was offered plenty of jobs an hour away for 200 an hour and I just rejected them.
Found a great little place working with high end students who mostly attend international schools, and I also get a 10% bonus of re-signings as well as 350 an hour.
Only do 5 hours but I can easily live on 1750 a week, and it means my international schools salary is entirely sent back to the UK and invested. |
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saren
Joined: 19 Nov 2007
Posts: 70
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| Posted: Sat Mar 10, 2018 5:32 pm Post subject: |
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| Excellent work i am interested in a similar setup, except the part about the international schools. I need to know how to make it stick whilst working at language mills. 10 years ago, one such mill inside of an office tower offered me 200RMB/hour when at that time others were excepting 150, and 100RMB/hour elsewhere. Now, the number is 300RMB/hour that is the goal. And with only a few hours a week with that and it is enough to find a room somewhere handy. 10 years ago i lived out of a guesthouse, stayed in an empty dormitory with bathroom outside for 40RMB/night. Nobody ever stayed in the dorm. Of course now those prices have gone up, but to find an emoty dorm or budget hotel that has weekly and monthly special rates,maybe a kitchen to cook, definetly wifi, and clean sheets, bathrooms, etc..Then I can live there while going to work. |
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cormac
Joined: 04 Nov 2008
Posts: 768
Location: Xi'an (XTU)
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| Posted: Sun Mar 11, 2018 10:11 am Post subject: |
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| saren wrote: |
| Ok please recommend other cities other than Shanghai, i have experience with Xiamen more than 10 years ago, i liked it there but i was younger. What about Haikou? |
I've done 7 years in Xian, and while I've reached the end of my patience (too much history), I'd still highly recommend the city. Personally, I prefer the 2nd tier cities to the 1st tier. 1st Tier simply cost too much for the small benefits involved and there are far more scam-like schools there.
You won't be finding 300rmb per hour in your first year though. Xian is one of those places you really need the right connections to get the nicer payouts... but it's a very easy city to socialise with the 'right' people. |
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saren
Joined: 19 Nov 2007
Posts: 70
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| Posted: Sun Mar 11, 2018 6:21 pm Post subject: |
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| Who are these right people? |
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cormac
Joined: 04 Nov 2008
Posts: 768
Location: Xi'an (XTU)
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| Posted: Sun Mar 11, 2018 9:25 pm Post subject: |
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| saren wrote: |
| Who are these right people? |
The wealthy, obviously. Or those with access to them.
Otherwise, you'd be stuck with the fairly average 150-200 rates. |
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saren
Joined: 19 Nov 2007
Posts: 70
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| Posted: Mon Mar 12, 2018 4:07 pm Post subject: |
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| People still accept 150RMB/hour? Are these the drunkards, ex-con and party kids rate or do people of reputable stature also work at these rates? |
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cormac
Joined: 04 Nov 2008
Posts: 768
Location: Xi'an (XTU)
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| Posted: Mon Mar 12, 2018 6:40 pm Post subject: |
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| saren wrote: |
| People still accept 150RMB/hour? Are these the drunkards, ex-con and party kids rate or do people of reputable stature also work at these rates? |
I don't.
However I have in the past. It depends on where your students are coming from. I've gone through periods where the only people looking for lessons were students from the countryside without the resources to pay over 150 rmb. They didn't have the nice phone, clothes or such. Sons/Daughters of farmers. Dirt poor but sincere about wanting to learn. Makes a nice change from the rich bored teenagers. Quite a few people like that in Xi'an.
I think you have a choice. You can take the lower amounts if that's all available to you, or do the legwork to get better rates. I know a few teachers who are too lazy to do the legwork or build up the reputation for the better rates to come find them. Or you can hire someone to do the marketing for you and get the better rates.
I tend to charge in the 350+ range but... honestly, that's to reduce the offers I get. I don't want to be doing pvt classes all that much. |
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saren
Joined: 19 Nov 2007
Posts: 70
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| Posted: Tue Mar 13, 2018 6:48 pm Post subject: |
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The legwork? Hmm, in Shanghai, 10 years ago, a language mill offered me 200RMB/hour after they liked me but normally they pay 150RMB/hour. I suppose this is not what you mean by legwork? I don't think I understand too much about what this legwork implies?
Can't I just apply to every language mill in Shanghai, and just accept work from the 2 or 3 highest paying places, that way I can work about 15-25hours/week, which is my desired workload
Doesn't this approach also add up to 25k/month |
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