Job Discussion Forums

TheFlyingCamel · Joined: 22 Aug 2004 Posts: 5 Location: Australia

[color=blue]I am arriving in Shanghai in late September and have not yet accepted a job offer. A question for those who are currently teaching in China, should I organise a job before I leave or search for one once I arrive.
I have been told that some of the the best jobs(conditions and salary wise) are locally advertised and easier to get if you are already in the country.
What are your thoughts?

Also, has anyone had any experience with DD Dragon English Schools??

FC Twisted Evil

virago · Posted: Sun Aug 28, 2005 9:05 am Post subject:

Usually you can get a good job on the ground once you are in the country. You can go to a number of interviews, see the accommodation, talk to the bosses etc and then negotiate a salary. Generally all good.

BUT, because you are on a visitors visa and you have not received an invitation letter from your employer to obtain your Z visa entry you run the risk of having to leave the country (head to HK) to get the proper visa documents etc. It's just the rules.

A 'catch 22' really. If you want to go to HK anyway well it could work and sometimes the employer will put up the cost of the air/train ticket.

Mideatoo · Posted: Mon Aug 29, 2005 5:21 am Post subject:

I got my job when I was still in the states. If you plan to come here, a F visa (3 month) is plenty enough to find a job.

bubblebubble · Posted: Tue Aug 30, 2005 6:43 am Post subject:

it's always better and easier to find a job once you are IN the country. at least you can go and take a look at the school and the accomodation they are offering. also, it's easier to negoitate for a higher salary face-to-face.

i sometimes find interview over the phone a bit risky. good luck!

tw · Joined: 04 Jun 2005 Posts: 3898

Looking for a job after arriving in China is risky because you don't know if the employer is legally allowed to hire FT's. Then there is the risk of lies and cheats as the FT faces running out of time as the visa will expire soon and has to take the first job offer that comes along.

Outside of China, you can demand the employer to send you the work permit and visa notice so you can get your Z visa, and also to be sure that they are legally allowed to hire FT's.

jeffinflorida · Posted: Thu Sep 15, 2005 6:15 am Post subject:

All good and valid points.

I accepted a job offer while still in the states. There are benefits to this. They pick you up at the airport, have an apartment ready for you, and you have some dialogue already in place before you come here. Plus you know how much you will be making and how many hours / periods involved.

Do your homework! Check previous posts here and beware warnings from others who have worked at the schools you are thinking of working at.

And... Make sure you have money in case it does not work out or you need to leave. remember you may not get paid for 1-2 months until after you start working.

Good Luck !

Keath · Posted: Fri Sep 16, 2005 7:57 pm Post subject:

Hong kong isnt going to be a viable option. The regulations for changing travel tourist visa to Z type are very strict now. You'd save alot of money by bringing your SAFEA invitation and Local Government Invitation Letter to Emoo.net and have them to process your documents.

Otherwise you're going to waste alot of money going to Hong Kong even if you are able to convince them to convert it.

I am in no way affiliated with Emoo., however we have just used their service several times to process Z visas successfully. You can only process Z visas if you are working in Shanghai, cannot process visas from any other province.

Keith

www.journeyeast.org

2 over lee · Posted: Fri Sep 16, 2005 10:07 pm Post subject:

Security vs money. What are your savings like? You can find much better paying jobs on the ground in Sh, but probably on an F visa, you need to arrange yourself, not to mention apartment.

That said most of the jobs on the net for Shanghai pay crap. I'd need at least 10 K RMB a month to live in that city.

struelle · Joined: 16 May 2003 Posts: 2372 Location: Shanghai

Having now had *experience* in China and other Asian countries, I'd definitely go with looking for jobs on the ground. That tends to be the way people do things over there, especially compared to using an otherwise anonymous internet and/or going through recruiters.

But if I was a newbie, I don't know if I'd have the guts to do pull off a job search on the ground, and would prefer to negotiate overseas. That's pretty much what I did for my first job.

It all depends on the person anyhow, and what approach works best.

The visa issue is really not that big of a deal. There's nothing that says you can't look for employment on an L or F visa, it's only when you accept employment that you must have the proper visa. If you can't change the visa in China, you just go to a 3rd country with the proper papers. It's called a visa run Wink

Visa runs are extremely common for teachers in Thailand and Korea ... why not in China? So I consider it a privelege if the visa can be changed directly in China, as that's not the norm in many countries.

That all said, it makes a lot sense to choose a location where a visa run could technically be done in minimal cost and time. Obviously I have a bias for South China, for this and other reasons. Then again, it would be interesting to see which provinces in China don't require visa runs, and compare that with the map.

Steve