Job Discussion Forums

[ecubyrd]

[Cherry11]

[roadwalker]

Schools that always ask teachers to come over on a tourist or business visa (for a year contract) and then "fix it from there" are schools to avoid in my book. That said, I wouldn't expect summer camp or other short term offerings to come with z-visa offers and documents. But as ecubyrd pointed out, there are at least some employers who in fact do offer full legal status for short time work. Good luck OP.

[sPinkomania]

Nobody is going to hire you for 4 months and give you a z visa. Or if they do you should be counting your lucky stars.

I guess you do have 2 dodgy options. Firstly, dropping out of a contract. Please don't do this, it gives all foreigners here a bad name, means you can't use the school as a reference, gives other foreigners at your school undue stress and extra classes, and create a sizable number of people whose last, and lasting impression of you will be 'that jerk who screwed us over'.

Secondly, you could come over on a tourist visa and then try and work under the table for a school. This is more common than you would think, although normally the teachers who do it have a z-visa with another school.

I had a 6 month contract for EF once, but that was the shortest I've experienced. I guess if you told the school you were leaving in 4 months as soon as you arrived it wouldn't be as bad, but you should try and think of a better solution. Good luck!

[jg]

Hi OP,

If you have patience and resources to maybe wait a month or so, you can find part time work in Shanghai. You will be taking the train to different places and maybe be on call as a relief teacher, and there are lots of agents here who farm out teachers to schools around the city, or to private students for a couple of hours a week.

The Good -

I know several people that do this, and many agencies that recruit part-time teachers pay in cash and ask few questions. It can be lucrative. LOTS of non-native speakers here make solid $$ and do the old subway shuffle in this "industry". Taking the subway hither and yon can be a hassle, but that's life in a big city, no?



The Bad
Unlike just working for a brick and mortar school itself, you are with the agency, and everyone knows that the teachers from agencies in Sh can be transient. The agency doesn't really care, and the teacher doesn't either. So if the kids really like you and you leave after a few months, how will they feel? For most Chinese kids, their relationship to us is hard to grasp, but attachment it attachment.


You may have to sort out your visa yourself. Extensions aren't expensive, and visa runs don't have to be either, but there are no guarantees that a day in HK will solve everything.

Shanghai is expensive. While you are waiting for your ship to come in, you have to have a nice chunk of money. Even just staying in a hostel, riding the subway around and eating at the noodle/baozi shops adds up! Then there is the hassle of living in a hostel and keeping your clothes neat for an interview.

Two words: summer camp

[hilena_westb]