Job Discussion Forums

nonconsilium · Joined: 07 Apr 2008 Posts: 12 Location: New York

Hi, I was offered a job recently doing high-end admissions consulting, and I'm entirely new to the field. I did some research, and realized just how much families wind up paying companies like the one seeking to bring me over. They offer me about US$800 per student contract assigned, and that's to include 24/7 contact rights for each student/family, and assistance above and beyond simple consulting on applications. Housing, food, and flight are covered. I wonder, is this a fair deal, since I'm essentially being paid possibly less than 10% of what the company is making on each contract, though I'll be doing about 75%+ of the work? Is that an industry norm for a newbie, or am I stepping into overwork and exploitation?

muffintop · Joined: 07 Jan 2013 Posts: 803

I don't know what's considered normal in that line of work but it sure as hell sounds like a crappy deal to me. Though I have no idea what the term is for each contract.

You shouldn't think of it in terms of....the company gets paid XXX and I'm only getting YYY. This is always flawed since you do not eat other expenses on par with that of the company. However, you should decide what your time is worth and stick to that...also you need to decide if having a life is important to you at all. With this gig it does not sound like you will.

I worked on call for many years....it was not fun. I could not imagine what it would like to be on call to Chinese parents worried about getting their precious little angels into University.

teenoso · Joined: 18 Sep 2013 Posts: 365 Location: south china

Could you explain more simply what the job is ? it's in China ? consulting with Chinese students' families? and the students are going to the USA to study?
Will you just answer questions on 'housing , food , flights' etc ? or will you help arrange some of these things (from China ) ?

johntpartee · Joined: 02 Mar 2010 Posts: 3258

Sounds like commission, too. Not for me.

doogsville · Joined: 17 Nov 2011 Posts: 924 Location: China

Jeez, not even my wife gets 24/7 contact rights on me. I like to go to sleep from time to time to recover from all the stress and strain my students put me through. I'm guessing you're going to be available to students who are in different time zones, who don't care what time it is for you, phoning you to ask where's the nearest good Chinese food to be had, and parents calling you at all times of the night and day to ask for progress reports on their kids, regardless of whether that's your responsibility or not.

Also, warning bells are ringing for me. Housing taken care of, good. Flight reimbursed, good. Food? How does this manifest? Do you go to nice restaurants and keep the receipt? Do they take you to the supermarket once a week? Or is it a staff canteen which serves canteen food, day in day out?

Another Also. Is the $800 for a semester or an academic year or the full life of the course abroad? Do they guarantee you a minimum number? What will you do if they give you five students @ $4000 and then that's it for a year?

Run away. Run far, far away and look for a proper job.

nonconsilium · Joined: 07 Apr 2008 Posts: 12 Location: New York

Some quick clarification--it's a seasonal gig, spanning the fall-winter admissions season. They give you a sufficient stipend for food, they reimburse or cover the flight outright, and housing is a shared flat with other staff. Students pay if "the terms of the contract are met"--other companies seem to assure students they'll get into at least one of their choices, or money back/half back. I've thought about overhead for the company when considering what's fair per contract, but the company states that if you do this a few seasons and learn Chinese along the way, you'll be making upward of 12,000RMB per student per admissions season. It begins to dawn on me that that is misleading, b/c I assumed it meant you'll be making that kind of money with the company a season or two in, when in fact what it probably means is they might direct a couple students your way for a finder's fee once you can fully fend for yourself, and then you then negotiate your own contract with the family independently.

Bud Powell · Joined: 11 Jul 2013 Posts: 1736

What kind of visa is this company offering?

This might not be too bad if you have an outgoing, charismatic personality.

The shared housing is a put off.

Why only six-month employment? They need new students throughout the year. You can sign them up 4 months before the next term/cycle.

Can you share the contract with us. This sounds a bit different.

LarssonCrew · Joined: 06 Jun 2009 Posts: 1308

So shared housing and 4800 per student.

Chinese parents may use you for all sorts, set up dinners, meetings etc. to annoy you, or use you for free English training:

'Hey, I need to meet you to discuss something'
[Talks for three hours and brings a friend for 'meet the white guy' meetings.]

Any guarantees? 4800 once a month is a killer, if you can rack up 5 or 6 it might be, that'd be nearer 30 a month.

Realistically '24 hours availability' is neither here nor there because you have no idea how realistic is it.

'Please call him during reasonable hours and meet at such times.,' OR they told the parents .'Your son/daughter can call him for free English 2 or 3 hours a day until you go' are different things.

johntpartee · Joined: 02 Mar 2010 Posts: 3258

Javelin of Radiance · Joined: 01 Jul 2009 Posts: 1187 Location: The West

nonconsilium · Joined: 07 Apr 2008 Posts: 12 Location: New York

Also, and I know it sounds worse and worse (but this is a company of young expats whom I was able to speak with directly! They seemed very nonchalant and personable, so maybe some leeway is due? Does it happen that foreigners take advantage of other foreigners often?), but I haven't been sent a contract, only a proposal. I was instructed to come in on a tourist visa, and to sign the contract in person after arrival...

I honestly don't mind living with fellow staff as someone who has never been to China, let alone worked there, and if it saves me the cost of paying for housing, all the better (such were my thoughts before reading some of the comments here).

johntpartee · Joined: 02 Mar 2010 Posts: 3258

Denim-Maniac · Joined: 31 Jan 2012 Posts: 1238

johntpartee · Joined: 02 Mar 2010 Posts: 3258

muffintop · Joined: 07 Jan 2013 Posts: 803

Yeah..not to derail this thread but D-M you have been lucky so far. I lived in shared housing when I first came here and the first guy was a godsend. He spoke Chinese pretty well and helped me survive what would have been a pretty rough time without his help. We are still friends almost 4 years later.

The second guy was a pill popper and drunk who would sit in his room all day and night. I think I saw him twice in passing. We never saw him shower once in the two weeks he was there. After he left we found he had been puking in his room and just letting it sit there....that house was on the 8th floor (attic) and it had no A/C and this was summer. To make it even worse baijiu was apparently his drink of choice...think it smells bad when it goes in?...it's worse after it comes out. You can only imagine the stench that assaulted us when we opened the door. He had soft drink bottles filled with....what I have to assume was urine...laying all over the room. I never encountered such an individual before in my life and hope never to again.