Job Discussion Forums

Katja84 · Joined: 06 May 2007 Posts: 165

I know this post will receive critique for being too general, but I just wonder if anyone could recommend any cities in China that sort of fulfill the following criteria:
- Nice university to teach in (and one that may perhaps, with a bit of persuation, accept a non-native speaker)
- Preferably Western/Central China (esp. northwest or Sichuan)
- Small/medium sized - preferably no larger than a million or two, but if the city 'feels' small (eg. Lanzhou) it's okay anyway.
- Small-town feel to it.
- As few foreigners as possible, and a population that is welcoming to foreigners. Not on any backpackers trail.
- Chinese accents that are somewhat understandable (tricky one, I know, and not essential).

I've previously taught in Yinchuan, and it was ideal in every way, but would like a few other options and perhaps the opportunity to see more of China...

james s · Joined: 07 Feb 2007 Posts: 676 Location: Raincity

james s · Joined: 07 Feb 2007 Posts: 676 Location: Raincity

james s · Joined: 07 Feb 2007 Posts: 676 Location: Raincity

james s · Joined: 07 Feb 2007 Posts: 676 Location: Raincity

Katja84 · Joined: 06 May 2007 Posts: 165

boubou · Joined: 07 Mar 2007 Posts: 61

I don't know about universities in my town, you would have to look it up, but I would say Zhengding! It's a small town, we are currently (as I know of) the only 2 foreigners there. It has a long history and a couple of temples worth seeing. It's in the suburb of Shijiazhuang so if you need anything specific (special western food or just going out to see other people) the bus ride is 30-45 minutes and is only 3 rmb. The people are very welcoming as they don't see foreigners around to often and the accent is OK to understand... my Chinese is still at a very beginner level but I'm catching on very quickly... I havn't seen any backpackers or travelers here appart from friends coming for a visit... so it's a good place if you're trying to isolate yourself... Smile

Katja84 · Joined: 06 May 2007 Posts: 165

Steppenwolf · Joined: 30 Jul 2006 Posts: 1769

boubou · Joined: 07 Mar 2007 Posts: 61

californian · Posted: Mon May 14, 2007 12:55 pm Post subject:

Try Changsha. Few Foreigners and the location seems to suit you. Another choice in Hunan would be Xiangtan. Xiangtan has more of a small town feel to it and is only about 30 minutes away. Both cities have universities and have a history of hiring non native ESL teachers. I worked there for a while because I wanted to be close to my teenage girlfriend, just keep in mind that salaries are quite low.

Personally, I think that small coastal cities are nicer. They tend to be cleaner and hooting hellos are far less common.

AussieGuyInChina · Joined: 23 Nov 2006 Posts: 403

SWUFE - Mianyang, Sichuan

Katja84 · Joined: 06 May 2007 Posts: 165

Thanks a lot for all the different suggestions Very Happy

Changsha is just a bit too big for me, and in travelling through it didn't seem very pleasant either, but that may have just been first impressions! Xiangtan - that's not where Mao is from, is it? Cause in that case I can imagine hordes of Chinese tour groups and backpackers... The reason why I have not looked into coastal cities is that they tend to be more attractive to native speakers (making it difficult to find jobs) and there tends to be more foreigners about generally - if you can think of any coastal cities this does not apply to, I'd be very interested Very Happy

Ankang and Hanzhong seem ideal - are they famous for anything special or are they mainly just normal smaller cities? Ankang appears to have a teachers college, will they need foreign English teachers, do you think? I can't find any information on google for universities or other colleges in either city, if you have more details they'd be much appreciated! My main problem is really in just finding small cities with universities in - China is full of wonderful small towns but only a handful will have a university.

If you have the name of the university in Zhengding, I'll bare it in mind, but it may actually be a bit too close to Beijing for my liking Wink

boubou · Joined: 07 Mar 2007 Posts: 61

It's a 45 minute bus ride and 2h30 train ride to Beijing... the location is actually perfect if you ask me Razz

californian · Posted: Tue May 15, 2007 5:20 pm Post subject:

Xiangtan has no tourist industry to speak of. Shaoshan is where Mao is from and all the tourist traps are there. Xiangtan is a pretty sleepy town with some nice parks.

Shantou is a coastal city in eastern Guangdong province. It has a pretty small town feel to it and has the best air quality out of any city I have ever been to in China.