Job Discussion Forums

[bigben10]

Hi.

Newbie here. I've been offered a position in YunCheng, Shanxi starting in September.

The school seems fine and have been very frank and honest about what to expect and what not. I just can't seem to find out much about the area other than a few random articles on Wikipedia.

Is anyone familiar with the city or can anyone who is or has been there give me a few insights into what sort of city it is. The lack of expats doesn't worry me so much, I'd just like to get a feel for the place before I formally accept the position.

What drew me was the fact it is a direct hire, and everything seems above board.

Thanks in advance for your help.

[LeiFeng]

I was offered a position in Yuncheng years ago. The recruiter sent me a contract from "Yuncheng School." I noticed that there were two spaces between "Yuncheng" and "School," as if an additional word had been erased. After a bit of searching, I found posts about "Yuncheng IELTS School," mostly negative reviews about broken Z visa promises and the like.

But you were asking about the city. I haven't been there, but I am willing to bet that it is much like other similarly-sized cities in northern, less-developed provinces: polluted, chaotic, unsanitary, isolating, and depressing; but also endlessly interesting if you want to get to know the "real" China, and potentially a lot of fun if you can adjust.

Why are you focusing on this particular school? China is huge, and what city or region you work in can make a world of difference. If you haven't already, you might read up on as many parts of the country as you can (check out a few travel guidebooks, Vikivoyage, etc.) Keep watching the China job board on Dave's and Seriousteachers.com, and look through the directory of schools on the China Job List site. If you know what kind of school and location you want, and you expand your job search, you can probably find something more to your liking.

[bigben10]

What drew me to this school was the salary was considerably higher than others, certainly in that province that I have seen. The fact they are a direct hire and deal with everything themselves, emails were answered rapidly, and they are able to deal with work permits etc without issues.

The school is not part of Yuncheng IELTS or another agency for which I have seen various ads, simply a private school.

My reason for asking about the location was more to get a feel for it. The school were upfront and told me they are in an isolated spot and the nearest city is potentially an hour away but the city apparently has most things I would need.

I don't need big city living and constant nightlife and am happy with solitude so I envisage it will be a good fit.

If however there is anyone who currently lives in Yuncheng who can give a more rounded view, I'd be happy to hear from them.

Thanks.

[MESL]

I was in Yuncheng a year ago. Not much to say about it, one way or another. Just your basic medium size Chinese town. There's a foreign owned western restaurant where most of the few dozen expats hang out on weekends.

[DickonMorris]

Not too bad, pollution ain't great

[Deats]

http://aqicn.org/city/yuncheng/

If you don't mid having your life expectancy reduced by a decade, then I'm sure you'll love it!

You should REALLY check out this website before agreeing to any job. Pollution is no laughing matter in China. Find a city where you will not be blowing black snot from your nose and coughing up vile looking mucus on a daily basis. Anyone working in most parts of Shanxi will die an early death

[hdeth]

[bigben10]

Thanks for all your replies.

It wasn't the school you mentioned, it was in Yuncheng itself.

I didn't take up the offer in the end, not because of pollution but I was offered a better deal elsewhere. It seems that salaries generally in that area of Shanxi are lower than others.

This post should be useful to others who might also be toying with the idea though.

[3701 W.119th]

If pollution was that big a concern, there would be very few places you could work in China.

Are your 80s really all that great anyway? Being that old looks pretty shit to me.