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got an offer with EF in Beijing can anyone help with info??
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aragon1



Joined: 06 Dec 2007
Posts: 4
Location: New Mexico
PostPosted: Sun Jun 28, 2009 11:49 pm    Post subject: got an offer with EF in Beijing can anyone help with info?? Reply with quote
I just got a job offer with English First in Beijing I have read a lot of Negative things on here about them. However, have not heard anything about the Beijing schools. I was wondering if any can help with any information about the EF school in Beijing? the offer was 12,300 RMB a month but I do have tp pay for housing myself. CAN ANYONE HELP WITH ANY INFO OR THOUGH ON THIS OFFER??? THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR ANY HELP!!
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ChinaLady



Joined: 20 Feb 2003
Posts: 171
Location: Guangzhou, Guangdong PRC
PostPosted: Mon Jun 29, 2009 4:09 am    Post subject: EF in Beijing? Reply with quote
12,300 is low. for Beijing. rent is high. food is high. plan on sharing a flat. try to find a place near your unit or near a subway stop. if the work unit is really EF and not a franchise set-up, might be ok. a lot depends on your work mates. most EF units are NOT happy places to work. good luck.
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Renegade_o_Funk



Joined: 06 Jun 2009
Posts: 125
PostPosted: Mon Jun 29, 2009 5:10 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote
I seem to recall somewhere on here that the Beijing EF is alright, and the Chengdu EF is good too. Out of all the EF's in all the other cities in china those are the only two I have seen anyone say something positive about.
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brsmith15



Joined: 12 May 2003
Posts: 1142
Location: New Hampshire USA
PostPosted: Wed Jul 01, 2009 12:07 am    Post subject: Reply with quote
I'd take a pass.
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sharpe88



Joined: 21 Oct 2008
Posts: 226
PostPosted: Wed Jul 01, 2009 7:37 am    Post subject: Reply with quote
there are many EFs in beijing.. hard to say
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alter ego



Joined: 24 Mar 2009
Posts: 209
PostPosted: Thu Jul 02, 2009 2:16 am    Post subject: Re: got an offer with EF in Beijing can anyone help with inf Reply with quote
aragon1 wrote:
I just got a job offer with English First in Beijing...


If you don't have a better job offer on the table, why not take it?

Nothing wrong with that salary if you've only got a BA and TEFL cert. I worked at a Wall Street for one year in a big city like Beijing making a couple thousand more a month and saved money. My nice studio apt. was 2,300 rmb/month. Groceries are cheap everywhere in China, even the bigger cities, especially if you cook at home. You could also do part-time teaching on weekday mornings. I taught at a local college for an extra 2,400 rmb a month.

It's ok to do a year at one of the big chain schools, you work hard but you can also become a better teacher, which gives you an edge in the job market on your next job search.

Good luck!
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englishgibson



Joined: 09 Mar 2005
Posts: 4345
PostPosted: Fri Jul 03, 2009 10:13 am    Post subject: Reply with quote
Quote:
It's ok to do a year at one of the big chain schools, you work hard but you can also become a better teacher, which gives you an edge in the job market on your next job search.
don't mean to cast a shadow on another can of worms into the burger chain, but you make it sound like "better teachers" don't come to burger chains Smile

OP, i gave inductions and training to fts at a couple of EF centers. as a director of studies i had to spend more time on this than on any other job duties 'cause of the high ft turnover. needless to say that my employer then sent some of my recruitees and more experienced fts later to EF clones. i guess the above poster is right in a way as most of fts were newbies, when they came.
on your salary there above, i also think it's pretty good, considering you'll work at macEF. in 2005, one of my EF teachers then, a really cool aussie guy, applied at EF beijing which offered him only 7,000.

yes, macEF's gig's a fine platform to the next one, called a foreign teacher in china..or, mac french fries chef somewhere else Laughing

i wouldn't contribute to this franchise operation with any effort as they're the laundry machine of some filthy rich chinese that've little interest in education. eager beaver macEF franchisors have allowed in a helluva bunch of investors to become the leading educational institution in the world Wink

remember, if you work in a macEF center, you do not contribute to only one center's prosperity but the whole organization as well.

cheers and beers to macdonalds rather than macEF
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Zero



Joined: 08 Sep 2004
Posts: 1402
PostPosted: Fri Jul 03, 2009 2:52 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote
Home this isn't hijacking the thread, but I do think it's related: To the experienced China hands, just what is an appropriate salary for Beijing or Shanghai?
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Jordean



Joined: 12 Dec 2006
Posts: 238
PostPosted: Fri Jul 03, 2009 3:33 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote
12,300 rmb is low? Other than people on this forum, I don't know anyone in BJ who makes anything approaching that. With advanced degrees and teaching experience.

I am always flummoxed by these salary claims. Unless you're working a solid 40 hours a week, perhaps...

That being said, I don't recall EF offering anything approaching that when I floated a letter their way last year.

Good luck.
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YAMARI



Joined: 27 Sep 2004
Posts: 247
Location: shanghai
PostPosted: Sat Jul 04, 2009 12:28 am    Post subject: Reply with quote
No place to live means they have little incentive to treat you well. They have a lot of desk time so it turns out to be a 40 hours a week gig. They can stick you with the same kids for 4 hours at a time. Their classes can be a full 60 minutes which I find painful. I would want a job with free housing and low hours. Ef is the lowest of the low in esl as far as I am concerned.
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