Job Discussion Forums

[amberandonyx]

Background:
Mid 20's
Male
Black (unfortunately relevant at times). "Obama Black" to Chinese
BA in TEFL from brick & mortar unknown uni
M.Ed from online uni
Currently beginning an Ed.S from online uni....possibly to be parlayed into an Ed.D at a later date
1 year experience teaching English and Public Speaking at a tier 88 uni
About to begin teaching Communications in an international partnership program between a US uni and a Chinese university this semester

I am looking for a couple of questions answered and perhaps some guidance from the more seasoned members among us.

1. In regards to ESL, EAP, ESP, and uni teaching that is not English......how difficult is it to move between the two, multiple times? My first job was ESL and EAP classes, and in this new job I will not be teaching English. Frankly, I anticipate enjoying this much more. My question is that if my next job after this is in English education (due to opportunity or necessity), do you think it will be difficult to transition back out again? Should I avoid teaching English from here on out to not be forced back onto that path or do you anticipate moving back and forth will be ok?

2. In overseas teaching (specifically Asia), are Ed.Ds and Ph.Ds viewed differently?

3. When is the Fall hiring season for universities in China? April or so? This is more to deal with my own butterflies, because I am currently on a 1 semester contract because they hire based on academic year, but I want to stay at my current job for a long time. So I would like to get my ducks in order prior to when negotiations/offers are likely to take place. They have mentioned teaching next year, so I have a good feeling, but coming from a tier 88 uni to this position....I am just nervously excited haha.

4. Is there a mandated or typically practiced time limit for foreign teachers at unis in China? If all goes well, I could honestly see myself staying at this uni for 10 years or so.

5. Does anyone have experience with Wall Street English's VVIP corporate/private tutoring jobs in China? What is the likelihood that my skin color would be a detriment for this sort of position? EF, Web, and WSE have all offered me jobs before, but I don't know if this VVIP thing is a different story.

this is the job

Ummm I think that's it for now. Any help will be greatly appreciated!

Thank you!

TL;DR
1. Possible to build career of both English teaching and other subject teaching at uni level?
2. Ed.D vs Ph.D, any difference in Asia uni teaching?
3.When do Chinese unis hire for the Fall?
4. Time limit on teaching at one Chinese university before you're forced to move on?
5. Anyone heard of Wall Street English's VVIP jobs[/url]

[Elicit]

1. Sorry no idea.

2. Most I know in the better places have Ph.Ds instead especially for teaching subjects. You need to make your mind up and set a career goal before choosing one or the other because they are each useful in different higher education contexts. Do a search and you will come across a recent thread that goes into the usefulness of Ed.Ds. Personally, I would do as traditional Ph.D as I could because as well as being useful for subject teaching it would also allow a move into administration if desired.

3. The best places have already advertised and the cut-off dates come and gone. As for the rest, I have seen jobs advertised from January until the start of the new academic year so you really need to start narrowing down the places you'd like to work at. With your qualifications you should be choosing where to apply to and not checking random advertisements for a possibly good or possibly bad job.

4. No idea again.

5. No experience in China but lots of experience in other countries of CLT work. Can be a lot of fun especially using the ML course books. In my experience, likability was the biggest factor in students' opinion of the teacher. However, being a black teacher already in China you are probably best placed to answer this one yourself. Again, do you want to be an EAP teacher, CLT trainer, subject teacher or work in an administrational setting in the future?

Looks like you have some thinking to do. Consider the jobs you have had and choose to do what you enjoyed most. Even deciding you future lies within university or private company work would be a start.

[amberandonyx]

Hey thank you very much!

Sorry, by Fall hiring season I meant the upcoming hiring season for Fall 2017. I worded that poorly.

Thanks for the guidance. Yeah, I am leaning toward riding out this job for as long as possible, then deciding then which route I want to teach. To be honest, subject teaching, CLT, and administration all interest me at this point haha.

All I know after my first year is that the Oral English route does not interest me long term, but university teaching in general does. Anyway, thank you for your advice!

[Non Sequitur]

May/June is the main hiring season for Fall semester which generally kicks off
around 1 Sept.
A year teaching Oral will allow you to get to grips with the China situation.
Remember other than Oral the Chinese have the teaching of English under control. Similarly the other uni subjects. Not unsurprisingly, for the most part, Chinese students in Chinese schools, expect to be taught in Chinese.

[ChrisHenry15]

[Non Sequitur]

Sorry to compound the felony - so to speak, but colour will be the main determinant of employer interest.
You won't see small gradations of rank/pay for quals other than qualified classroom teachers who head for the internationals.
Sorry if this sounds like 'whitewashing' you, but include lifestyle-type pics in your application showing you in happy interaction with other races.
Best

[EnglishLanguageOne]

[Elicit]

... and anyone with relevant qualifications like yours, as long as they're from accredited universities, should not have to worry about race being too much of an issue, because they would not be applying to institutions that regard race as a deal breaker.

Hopefully the new university partnership job works out for you. Wasn't an issue there and would not likely be in similar set-ups.

Best of luck.