Job Discussion Forums

[djny10003]

I'm planning a year in China for 2007-8 with my wife and our daughter, who will be eleven in April this year.
My friend who spent some time in China said not to trust any jobs except those at universities, but some of these English schools are offering up to 10,000 RMB, as opposed to 4500 RMB at universities.
Are those salaries for real? My wife doesn't want to teach, so it would be great to make 10,000 monthly. Do people on this board pull down that kind of salary? Am I a chump for limiting my search to universities? Help!

[jeffinflorida]

Here's the scoop. if you work at an English mill you can do about 8000 to 12000 +/- a month but expect to be there for 40 hours.

College or univeristy give you much less work time - maybe 14 - 16 but will typically pay 4000 -5000. But then you get much time for side jobs.

As for what's advertised... Ever play 3 Card Monte in Times Square? Only 1 person wins right? the dealer and his stooge - never you.

[jeffinflorida]

ANd your wife will get very board not doing anything so put her to work HomeBoy...

And if she speaks English then she can get some gigs also.

Maybe get her a job at Max's Kansas City...

[Steppenwolf]

Language mill jobs can be pretty exhausting due to constantly changing timetables, long commutes and unstructured lessons and capricious students.
Such jobs agree much more with individuals not burdened with dependants and their needs! It will be a major challenge to keep your family happy!
And have you given any thought to your daughter's schooling in China? And her social life?

[djny10003]

What is a "language mill"? Are they very variable, in terms of class size and schedule? I have never taught at a private company. Any info on what to look for, or look out for, is appreciated.

Re: bringing my daughter, I've given a lot of thought to her education, but no decision as of yet; probably an international school.

[eslstudies]

[jeffinflorida]

DJNY op - a recruiter offered me a job at a school for FOREIGN CHILDREN - if you are interested send me a PM and I will give you the recruiters MSN and you can chat with her directly.

The job was teaching math to foreign students and they may have a need for other FTs and other subjects.

[gengrant]

In response to your OP, it IS possible to get 10k plus teaching, but most likely you'll put in a lot of hours. Most people take less hours with less pay and then take on outside (tutoring) work to make more money. I agree with the post about your wife getting board (sic)...being alone in a strange land without speaking the language will grow very tiresome after about 2 weeks (maybe 2 days!).

I also have a contact with a recruiter here in Shenzhen that might get you some work. PM me if you'd like.

[jeffinflorida]

[djny10003]

My wife doesn't know what she'll do, but she's been working like hell for a number of years and has saved some money, so she's looking forward to aimless drifting for a while!

[vikdk]

[stillnosheep]

[eslstudies]

That's OK. Jeff ain't gonna be no English monkey. Or math monkey for that matter.
Now I'm confused. Should that be no or nor with a double negative?

[djny10003]

Ya see - just being in China is something that actualy takes the wind out of a drifters sails - if they aint got no where or nothing to drift to [/quote]

OK, how about this? Thanks for all your concern, but my wife can take care of herself. I was mainly looking into the work situation. So is a "language mill" a school that's run with varying degrees of competence and reliability? It seems like a university job is the most trustworthy.

[jeffinflorida]