Job Discussion Forums

stormrider · Joined: 07 May 2005 Posts: 89

Can anyone help me out?

I'm looking to move to Yangshuo but I'd like to do my research on all available F/T positions and the various schools. How many of them are there anyways?

ChinaMovieMagic · Joined: 02 Nov 2004 Posts: 2102 Location: YangShuo

Many consider the Top 2 to be:

*Zhuo Yue (where I'm teaching PT)
*Omeda (where I'll probably also be teaching PT) (owned by Odar Buckland)

*There's also the Buckland School (not owned by a Buckland brother)
*And West St. School (one of the Buckland brothers)
*The BiLingual Middle School is in dire need of FTs...it's in a beautiful rice-field/karst hills location a few minutes outside of "downtown" YS

Note that schools tend to pay less in YS, because they can hire backpackers for less...unless they care about their long-term reputation

I love this place. It's so compact. Park...school...river...rice fields...clubs...all w/in easy walking distance...

stormrider · Joined: 07 May 2005 Posts: 89

Beautiful! Thanks!

As we speak, I'm applying to Omedia and Xi Jie

Heard anything about them?

I hope your other schools have working emails/websites

stormrider · Joined: 07 May 2005 Posts: 89

BTW, I've heard warnings about Buckland (are they as bad as EF)?

I just want to hang out in Yangshuo for a few months.

Also, does this Bilingual Middle School have an email? I'm having trouble finding them online.

ContemporaryDog · Joined: 21 May 2003 Posts: 1477 Location: Wuhan, China

Roger · Joined: 19 Jan 2003 Posts: 9138

There are 2 Buckland schools, namely the original one in West Street (next to the Aiyuan Hotel and a bank opposite the Paradise Hotel), and the new Buckland outside the downtown area.
The "old" BUckaland in Yangshuo's West Street is where the Buckland saga got underway. It was founded by Owen Buckland. It got so big he sold it on to an investor from Nanning. He then founded his new establishment.

I don't think the West Street BUckland is up to scratch; they are resting on the laurels that were heaped on Owen before.
Owen's new Buckland is a conglomerate of franchised schools throughout China; in Yangshuo he needs no teachers though his brother runs OMeida and recruits a couple or so FTs for their local needs.

A word on cost of living: not only are salaries lower in Yangshuo but the night scene is pretty expensive - by local standards. You will have to live a relatively frugal life if you want to live there. Ordinary waitresses make between 400 and 600 kuai a month, plus housing and free food, but they put in up to 12 hours a day of being at the beck and call of their bosses.

This is not to diminish Yangshuo's attractiveness; however, that is affordable only for tourists and TEFLers who make much more money teaching in other parts of China.

ChinaMovieMagic · Joined: 02 Nov 2004 Posts: 2102 Location: YangShuo

I heard several visiting FTs complain about how they were spending so much money in YS...with boozing etc. nighlife...saying they couldn't afford to live in YS.

Reminds me of a story...about the folks visiting NYC...doing the whole tourist scene, escorted by their NYC hosts...and eventually complaining to their NYC hosts: "Really, NYC is great. But I don't know how you folks can manage to lead such a hectic night life!"

The NYCer replied: "We don't."

As a non-boozer/non-smoker/non-gabber, I'm not an indiscriminate/inveterate clubster. Hanging out by the river/Tai Chi exercising is my joy...until I find the love-of-my-life.

Secret:Several English Schools in YS offer free booze/drinks to their FTs to partake in English Corners at Bars.

I've got a 3 BR apt. right next to the Park, and it costs 700RMB. One can live cheaply in YS.

Michal · Joined: 11 Feb 2005 Posts: 24 Location: China

Anyone heard of Homeland Recruiting or Yangshuo Experimental Middle School of Foreign Studies ??

dajiang · Joined: 13 May 2004 Posts: 663 Location: Guilin!

I worked at Omeida for a while a few years ago.
Really nice place to work at in my opinion.

Yangshuo is awesome, but not in late winter/early spring, when everything starts to mold.

I got a nice cheap place to live at at the time just behind West street for 400 kuai. You can live cheaply there and actually save some of the salary you get, by eating in local foodplaces (guilin mifen, baozi, the night market, Xinjiang shaokao, etc) The wages aren't high, but much higher now than when I was working there. I heard it's as high as 4000 nowadays, which really isn't bad for basically having a really long holiday, going out with students, living the life.

Enjoy,
Dajiang

odaromeida · Joined: 04 Nov 2004 Posts: 10 Location: Yangshuo, China

Hello, everybody,
I am Odar, principal of Omeida Language College. My name isn�t Odar Buckland (haha, I think chinamoviemagic knows now). Omeida is totally independent from Buckland.

Hello, Dajiang. It�s nice to read your message here. Now I think the working conditions are much better than before. Omeida has more teachers and students. Totally we have about 130 students at Omeida now. You can get some updated information about our school from www.omeida.org. We are working on the website. We want to improve it to keep the memory of the great time we had together.