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Kushluk
Joined: 06 Jun 2007
Posts: 22
Location: NYC
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 Posted: Sun Jun 24, 2007 4:52 pm Post subject: A few Random Questions |
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1. Has anyone here taught a language OTHER than English in Taiwan?
2. Is it possible to get a plane ticket with your job?
3. A lot of people say you should show up and look a bit for work, when is the best time/s of year to do this? |
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TaoyuanSteve
Joined: 05 Feb 2003
Posts: 1028
Location: Taoyuan
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| Posted: Mon Jun 25, 2007 2:24 am Post subject: Re: A few Random Questions |
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| Kushluk wrote: |
| 1. Has anyone here taught a language OTHER than English in Taiwan? |
Not me personally, but, yes, languages such as Japanese, French and a few others are taught here. Apart from Japanese, though, they are not taught widely and opportunites to teach them are not that numerous.
| Kushluk wrote: |
| 2. Is it possible to get a plane ticket with your job? |
I've posted a link to one English school company that I've known to LEND teachers the airfare money and deduct it back out of salary. Then they pay most of it back again in a completion bonus. On the whole, though, Taiwan doesn't usually have many schools that will pay airfare. It's not a place to come flat broke, usually.
| Kushluk wrote: |
| 3. A lot of people say you should show up and look a bit for work, when is the best time/s of year to do this? |
August would be good as hiring for the following semester will be in full swing. After Chinese New year is also a good time. Of course, if you're willing to go where the work is, you can almost arrive anytime. |
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SanChong
Joined: 22 Nov 2005
Posts: 335
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| Posted: Mon Jun 25, 2007 4:24 am Post subject: |
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Welcome to the forum!
| Quote: |
| 1. Has anyone here taught a language OTHER than English in Taiwan? |
Yes, it's possible, but much, much, much more rare. As Steve said, there are some French and Japanese teaching jobs, but these are rarer also.
Literally 99.9% of the jobs involve teaching English.
| Quote: |
| 2. Is it possible to get a plane ticket with your job? |
As Steve said, this is very rare in Taiwan. It's possible for you to get a plane ticket, but I'd be wary of most jobs that offer a plane ticket, especially if it's a little Mom & Pop school. There might be a good reason they are desperate enough to offer so much...!
| Quote: |
| 3. A lot of people say you should show up and look a bit for work, when is the best time/s of year to do this? |
You can either come without a job, or plan ahead and confirm a job before you arrive. There have been involved discussions on the forum on this subject. Different people have different opinions.
My opinion is that coming without a job is risky and unnecessary. You will be getting off a plane in a very foreign country and trying to find your way from job interview to job interview. The risk of finding yourself in a bad situation is definitely very much a possibility.
Also, more and more schools are planning ahead and hiring teachers well ahead of time. This is obviously a much more organized way of doing things. What kind of school waits to find a teacher until the very last second! If a school plans months ahead, that generally says very good things about their professionalism and organizational skills.
If you plan ahead, come to Taiwan with a good, reputable organization with a good reputation and good history, then you will likely have a much smoother beginning. Also, that way you can start working and earning money right away.
No matter what school you end up at, here is the best advice you will ever hear: NEVER sign a contract until you speak with a current teacher at the school. Ask them about their experience. Ask them how they have been treated. That will give you all the information you need to make an informed decision.
Any school that avoids giving you contact information of their current teachers is a school to be avoided. They should be happy to give you this info!
I'd recommend applying with Companies like Reach To Teach, Dewey, etc. |
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TaoyuanSteve
Joined: 05 Feb 2003
Posts: 1028
Location: Taoyuan
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| Posted: Mon Jun 25, 2007 4:56 am Post subject: |
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| SanChong wrote: |
Literally 99.9% of the jobs involve teaching English. |
Perhaps a small point, as I agree with the overall sentiment, but I think 99.9% is an exaggeration. Japanese is actually quite widely taught. If OP is a native Japanese speaker (something tells me not), then he'd actually have quite a few opportunities. Excluding Japanese, then the 99.9% is more accurate.
| SanChong wrote: |
| but I'd be wary of most jobs that offer a plane ticket, |
I wouldn't be wary of the school I mentioned in particular. The only reason they have been known to do loan money to prospective teachers for airfare is they are quite a large company and need large numbers of teachers. Hess also offers start up loans (but you'll have to get yourself here to get them).
| SanChong wrote: |
| My opinion is that coming without a job is risky and unnecessary. You will be getting off a plane in a very foreign country and trying to find your way from job interview to job interview. The risk of finding yourself in a bad situation is definitely very much a possibility. |
The "risk" is being exaggerated here. There is a very real risk--and a risk far greater than simply showing up-- of getting burned by a recruiter. This risk is much greater than the sky falling if you choose to come here by yourself. I came here originally via recruiter. I got left at the airport when my job suddenly vanished. The more common complaints are being put out in the sticks in crappy little schools. Recruiters are not necessary. When I had to, I found a job in days after arrival (and I waited that long because I waited for my gf to find work first). Recruiters profit from peoples' fears about going to foreign countries. But reality is the worst jobs get recruiters to find them staff as the local foreign teachers take the better jobs.
These days, it's easier than ever to get your own job once here. Simply post an ad here and/or on tealit.com and you'll receive offers on the double.
| SanChong wrote: |
| Also, more and more schools are planning ahead and hiring teachers well ahead of time. This is obviously a much more organized way of doing things. What kind of school waits to find a teacher until the very last second! If a school plans months ahead, that generally says very good things about their professionalism and organizational skills. |
Nonsense. More and more schools are hiring from the very healthy population of resident foreign teachers. The best jobs are taken by those already here as they have the experience, can meet with the schools directly and can demonstrate staying power.
| SanChong wrote: |
| I'd recommend applying with Companies like Reach To Teach, Dewey, etc. |
This leads me to believe that SanChong is a smerf identity for another user on this board. |
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Kushluk
Joined: 06 Jun 2007
Posts: 22
Location: NYC
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| Posted: Mon Jun 25, 2007 9:01 am Post subject: |
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Thanks for the answers TaoyuanSteve. The other language is Spanish, I'm from Chile but I've lived in America more than 20 years. I moved as a small child. I can see the near-hopelessness of teaching Spanish to Chinese speakers, the languages could NOT be more different.
Yeah I'll just get my own damn plane ticket. More freedom is a good thing, best not to be beholden.
@SanChong - You strike me as a little of an advertiser, I think Taoyuansteve is correct. I've lived in Taiwan before and I speak Chinese, but even without those skills I don't think Taiwan is that scary, _at all_.
Chou Doufu is about as frightening as Taiwan gets. In fact it seems to be one of the safest countries I've ever been in! Certainly safer than NYC. |
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SanChong
Joined: 22 Nov 2005
Posts: 335
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| Posted: Fri Jul 06, 2007 2:36 am Post subject: |
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| TaoyuanSteve wrote: |
| SanChong wrote: |
| My opinion is that coming without a job is risky and unnecessary. You will be getting off a plane in a very foreign country and trying to find your way from job interview to job interview. The risk of finding yourself in a bad situation is definitely very much a possibility. |
The "risk" is being exaggerated here. There is a very real risk--and a risk far greater than simply showing up-- of getting burned by a recruiter. This risk is much greater than the sky falling if you choose to come here by yourself. I came here originally via recruiter. I got left at the airport when my job suddenly vanished. The more common complaints are being put out in the sticks in crappy little schools. Recruiters are not necessary. When I had to, I found a job in days after arrival (and I waited that long because I waited for my gf to find work first). Recruiters profit from peoples' fears about going to foreign countries. But reality is the worst jobs get recruiters to find them staff as the local foreign teachers take the better jobs.
These days, it's easier than ever to get your own job once here. Simply post an ad here and/or on tealit.com and you'll receive offers on the double. |
We have had this conversation many times before. I understand your perspective and it's a fair one. However, as has been demonstrated many times before, not everyone agrees with you. You had one bad experience with a recruiter, but that doesn't make them all bad, as Clark always says. Same thing with any employer. If you work for one financial Company and have a bad experience, does it make all financial Companies bad? Of course not. It's important to separate good Companies from bad Companies, in any industry.
It's fine if someone wants to come to Taiwan and look for a job once they get here. However, I don't think it's any easier and it could also be a lot more stressful. We have also had a number of people post about how it's a lot harder than it used to be to find a job on the ground. If that is because schools are becoming more organized, that is a GOOD thing!
It's simply true that a lot of people don't feel comfortable coming halfway across the world without having a job in hand first. What would you tell these people to do? What is your solution for them?
Finally, it's absolutely true that, on average, a school waiting until the last second to advertise a position is unorganized. What kind of school waits until the week they need a teacher? That would worry someone back home and it should worry someone here too.
| TaoyuanSteve wrote: |
| SanChong wrote: |
| I'd recommend applying with Companies like Reach To Teach, Dewey, etc. |
This leads me to believe that SanChong is a smerf identity for another user on this board. |
Was it necessary to question my integrity? Steve, I have been posting on this board for years. We have agreed at times and disagreed at times, but there is no reason for you to question my motives. I give a fair perspective and back it up with a lot of evidence and reasons that make sense. I consider that condescending and completely unnecessary.
I've made that same recommendation literally hundreds of times, just as I make recommendations about other things. |
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Toe Save
Joined: 04 Oct 2004
Posts: 202
Location: 'tween the pipes.........
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| Posted: Fri Jul 06, 2007 3:45 am Post subject: |
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SC,
Welcome to the wonderful world of discussion forum promotion. A few years back, I had an opportunity to launch a new concept that, should it have been successful, would have given lots of language coaches the opportunity to share their true talents (not just an ability to look good on a poster/DM and splooge out verb conjugations) in an English environment. If successful, coaches would have begun at 1000NT/hour. Certain negative nellies around here and other parts came out of left field to attack my integrity, honesty and even my look. I call them keyboard commandoes. It got real bad for me around the office. Some jerk from South Africa pointed out all these threads to my boss (he wanted my job), and I had to do some fast talking to save the program. I didn't. It was scrapped. I almost lost the job too. If I hadn't been able to come up with an alternate program on the spot, I would have. 100% because of attacks such as TS just levelled at you (He nailed me too). I don't understand why guys like this take such pleasure in flaming others, who, just like the aggressors, are trying to eke out a living here. Makes me shake my head in disbelief.
OP, I was once against all recruiters. I may have be the most vociferous poster here about just getting here and looking around. Having met some of the key players of Reach to Teach socially (as well as some of their recruits), I can tell you now, without a shadow of a doubt, that if you are the least bit unsure of yourself, then R2T is the way to go. Last I heard they had over 200 placements currently in country. They offer more support than could possibly be imagined and have a networking system to give all their recruits a chance to meet each other. Reach to Teach has set the bar for recruiters. Footprints, while exclusively KoJen, and maintaned from overseas) also has a good rep, but pale in comparison to the stewpendous after-sales service R2T provides, is an acceptable alternative for those who really don't have any confidence to just get their feet on the ground here. But you'll have to work for KJ for a year and that can be hit or miss, depending on your placement.
My opinion here is to just get here. You already have in-country experience, so...what are you waiting for.
And for you keyboard commandoes out there, why don't you try to support your fellow bignoses instead of running us into the ground? Does it make you feel like a real man? Good for you. YOU ROCK!!!!! |
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MomCat
Joined: 02 Dec 2004
Posts: 297
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| Posted: Fri Jul 06, 2007 4:01 am Post subject: |
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| Toe Save wrote: |
I don't understand why guys like this take such pleasure in flaming others, who, just like the aggressors, are trying to eke out a living here. Makes me shake my head in disbelief.
And for you keyboard commandoes out there, why don't you try to support your fellow bignoses instead of running us into the ground? |
Yes, good advice.
Cat |
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Toe Save
Joined: 04 Oct 2004
Posts: 202
Location: 'tween the pipes.........
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| Posted: Fri Jul 06, 2007 4:04 am Post subject: |
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| Haha. I heard that loud and clear Cat. Snap! |
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BigWally
Joined: 07 Jun 2006
Posts: 765
Location: Ottawa, CAN (prev. Kaohsiung "the Dirty South")
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| Posted: Fri Jul 06, 2007 4:10 am Post subject: |
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Are you saying my nose is big!?!? 
I think you are unfairly labeling all white people as having big noses. Here you go again, making generalizations about all white people being the same.
I'm so sick of people like ToeS making derogatory remarks all the time.  I'm sitting here with my medium sized nose, and then you come out bashing my nose size.
When will the hate stop people?!!? 
***sorry this is getting way off topic*** |
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Toe Save
Joined: 04 Oct 2004
Posts: 202
Location: 'tween the pipes.........
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| Posted: Fri Jul 06, 2007 4:25 am Post subject: |
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| BigNose wrote: |
Are you saying my nose is big!?!?
I think you are unfairly labeling all white people as having big noses. Here you go again, making generalizations about all white people being the same.
I'm so sick of people like ToeS making derogatory remarks all the time. I'm sitting here with my medium sized nose, and then you come out bashing my nose size.
When will the hate stop people?!!?
***sorry this is getting way off topic*** |
Erm, I think I was calling for the support of bignoses. If you don't want or need support, then you just won't get any. Feel better, Mr. I Can Do It All By Myself? Wish granted.
From here-on in, the above quoted poster (really, go look at who it is {in case you haven't already}) will get no advice from this board. Should he try to promote anything, he is fair game.
Hey, it's what he wants.
How's that Chong Bee Dze Shen San? |
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