Job Discussion Forums

[anthyp]

Or, Why You Shouldn't Come Here.
by anthyp

I have been in Shanghai for a couple of weeks now hunting for jobs, ever since my poor wife had an accident here and I was forced to come here unexpectedly. At some point we decided to try and make a go at it here; "After all," we reasoned, "there are SO many jobs and salaries are SO high, why not settle down for our last year (give or take) in China before you (my wife, not you dear reader) get your visa?" Alas, the reality would prove to be, to quote the classic (ahem) rock band Kansas, "Dust in the wind."

I sent hundreds of emails and went on over half a dozen interviews with institutions ranging from private universities to public high schools and even joint venture companies. I "pounded the pavement" China-style and practically camped out at the Internet cafe, churning out the resumes, attempting to sift through the garbage (8000 RMB for 40 hours a week with English First?) from the doable. I offer here my unbiased (hmm) opinions on the market, especially for my fellow China hands thinking of making the jump from small-city China to the "Pearl of the Orient."

First of all, forget about private language schools like Web, EF, or Wall Street. Yes I am making a generalization there - but for good reason. My only experience with these outfits was limited to interviews, but trust me, that was enough. Just take the jokers at one of these organizations, which boasts about its "Multi-discipline Learning Method." They made me wait over 30 minutes before seeing me, and the "Head of Recruitment" greeted me in this raggedy company T-shirt and sneakers. Cripes I saw him passing by a couple of times and thought he was a student! He then proceeded to lecture me on the importance of never, EVER, using L1 in the classroom (nevermind my years of experience and copious amount of research in favor of doing so, OK you know better, after all you've reached the top of the TEFL chain).

OK so all of the private outfits aren't the same, I was almost even impressed by one of them, a Canadian-run group with branches all over the city. But all of these companies are looking for cogs in the machine, for people who will assimilate their teaching methods and spit them out without question, whatever keeps the money pouring in, and that just isn't me. Besides I think Chinese people are better off spending their money in Chinese-run schools, with fully qualified, bilingual local teachers. That's what I want for my wife, aside from the fact that we will save a lot of money and get the same (or even better) results.

So you've ready to give up on the private language "schools" altogether and go with the public ones, right? Good call. But forget about the colleges and universities, unless you're ready to scrape by on salaries Chinese folks would balk at. Seriously I got an offer from a uni here for 3500 per month, which I thought was a joke or there was a 0 missing or something. Come on, I made more than that in my little Jiangxi backwater, how can they offer that in the "Paris of the East?" Well maybe it's OK so maybe there are two or three colleges that can offer 8000 - 10, 000 a month, but better apply early. And don't even bother replying that you are making more than that here with a college or university, those positions are truly endangered.

No, your best bet is with the hundreds and thousands of private and middle schools dotting the land. Many are crying out for foreigners even now, just days before the start of the new term. The pay can be good but I haven't had a single offer from a school that included anything but cold, hard cash (no housing, airfare, etc.). I guess that's just the way it works here in Shanghai. You want my advice: if your skills are limited to being a native speaker of English and holding a degree, look elsewhere. The dustier, the better. You will be much happier somewhere where they actually appreciate having you around. Me, I am getting out of this TEFL mess altogether as soon as my wife gets her visa.

And don't even get me started on Shanghai food, it's like the stuff I ate back in Jiangxi, without the flavor.

[Calories]

Pft. Eat western in Shanghai. DUH!

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[anthyp]

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