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coledavis
Joined: 21 Jun 2003 Posts: 1838
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Posted: Sat Sep 26, 2009 6:36 pm Post subject: What should an experienced TEFLer expect in China? |
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Hello. I'm CELTA qualified, with TEFL experience in my home country (multilingual classes) and in Russia, but am thinking of working for six months from sometime in January in China just to experience the country. I've seen lots of job advertisements essentially for newbies, qualified and unqualified, and am wondering what I should expect in my position. My experience and preference is for teaching adults and adolescents. As well as pay and conditions, any suggestions about schools would be welcome. |
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alter ego

Joined: 24 Mar 2009 Posts: 209
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Posted: Sun Sep 27, 2009 12:18 am Post subject: |
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A lot of factors involved, but I'd say the three important ones are:
1) do you have a B.A. or above?
2) where are you planning to live/teach?
3) how much money do you have in your moving/job search budget?
There are plenty of teaching jobs in the big city where I live (Shenzhen), but if you're only looking to work for 6 months this will probably limit your job search to schools that are less reputable, have high turnover, etc. You might want to consider teaching young learners, i.e., kindergarten and private preschools, as they seem to be desperate for foreign teachers and might not care if you disappear after half a year.
The other thing is the visa issue, which others here might be able to give you some solid advice about. |
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coledavis
Joined: 21 Jun 2003 Posts: 1838
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Posted: Sun Sep 27, 2009 1:35 am Post subject: |
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BA and more. No, no kindergarten for me. No preference geographically, although not huge cities. I have no intention of 'disappearing'; it would be an agreed period.
My question was primarily, however, about pay and conditions for a well-qualified person as opposed to a newbie. |
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Laurence
Joined: 26 Apr 2005 Posts: 401
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Posted: Sun Sep 27, 2009 4:11 am Post subject: |
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@coledavis:
There are a couple of types of university positions which you might like to look into:
- Some universities offer a 'bridging' program, which prepares students for study abroad. This is often done in collaboration with a foreign university, and often referred to as a 'joint venture' program.
- Some foreign universities actually operate campuses here in mainland China. I know that Ningbo, Hanghzhou, Suzhou and Zhuhai all host foreign universities and you will most probably find more if you look around. Positions are likely to be for subject teaching, not strictly EAL.
The workload of these types of courses would probably be on the heavier side,
but then so would the pay : )
But if your goal is to experience the country, why not take a 'newbie' post with light hours, low pay, a free apartment and long holidays?
Actually, I think it's quite hard to get into non-newbie territory (over 15000 per month) unless you have spent time on the ground, so to speak.
Let us know what turns up for you ~ |
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alter ego

Joined: 24 Mar 2009 Posts: 209
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Posted: Sun Sep 27, 2009 5:39 am Post subject: |
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coledavis wrote: |
I have no intention of 'disappearing'; it would be an agreed period. |
Sorry, that's what I meant, that your employer(s) would know you were only teaching for six months before "disappearing", as we all do, when we finish a contract or term of employment. No disrespect intended.
From my experience, pay and conditions in China vary according to the school or employer, and most of the better schools and employers that provide residence permits might not agree to hire you for a 6-month period. One year is the standard length of employment.
Of course, if you're as well-qualified as you say anything is possible, with pay between 100 to 200 rmb per class and conditions fair to excellent. |
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coledavis
Joined: 21 Jun 2003 Posts: 1838
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Posted: Sun Sep 27, 2009 6:33 am Post subject: |
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alter ego wrote: |
coledavis wrote: |
I have no intention of 'disappearing'; it would be an agreed period. |
Sorry, that's what I meant, that your employer(s) would know you were only teaching for six months before "disappearing", as we all do, when we finish a contract or term of employment. No disrespect intended.
From my experience, pay and conditions in China vary according to the school or employer, and most of the better schools and employers that provide residence permits might not agree to hire you for a 6-month period. One year is the standard length of employment.
Of course, if you're as well-qualified as you say anything is possible, with pay between 100 to 200 rmb per class and conditions fair to excellent. |
No offence intended, but I know that the standard hiring period is a year. Having said that, some organisations may hire in the new year to finish off an academic year, and I have seen a few of these situations advertised. I just haven't known what was a reasonable amount to ask or accept. With regards to qualifications, I have more than one degree, although none of them relevant to TEFL; CELTA; post-CELTA, I have one year's part-time experience teaching multilingual classes, and one year's full-time experience teaching Russians. |
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The Ever-changing Cleric

Joined: 19 Feb 2009 Posts: 1523
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Posted: Sun Sep 27, 2009 6:46 am Post subject: |
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coledavis wrote: |
I have more than one degree, although none of them relevant to TEFL; CELTA; post-CELTA, I have one year's part-time experience teaching multilingual classes, and one year's full-time experience teaching Russians. |
i also have more than one degree, but that's irrelevant unless they're advanced degrees. Do you have an MA or a PhD? three BAs are worth as much as one BA in ESL. and even then an MA might only be worth RMB500-1000 more per month (but that can vary).
you can probably find a job for after the chinese new year if you start scouring the job sites around november or december. |
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coledavis
Joined: 21 Jun 2003 Posts: 1838
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Posted: Sun Sep 27, 2009 6:54 am Post subject: |
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1 x BA and 2 x MSc. |
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The Ever-changing Cleric

Joined: 19 Feb 2009 Posts: 1523
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Posted: Sun Sep 27, 2009 7:05 am Post subject: |
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coledavis wrote: |
1 x BA and 2 x MSc. |
you can squeeze an employer for a bit more with that i think. |
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coledavis
Joined: 21 Jun 2003 Posts: 1838
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Posted: Sun Sep 27, 2009 7:12 am Post subject: |
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Thanks, folks. |
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alter ego

Joined: 24 Mar 2009 Posts: 209
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Posted: Sun Sep 27, 2009 10:25 am Post subject: |
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Sorry my advice was so basic. It sounds like you could easily teach English in China, it's just a matter of finding a school that would hire you for six months for the right pay and conditions. Good luck! |
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coledavis
Joined: 21 Jun 2003 Posts: 1838
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Posted: Sun Sep 27, 2009 11:22 am Post subject: |
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alter ego wrote: |
Sorry my advice was so basic. It sounds like you could easily teach English in China, it's just a matter of finding a school that would hire you for six months for the right pay and conditions. Good luck! |
Yes, but do you think you could tell me what would be, in your opinion, reasonable pay and conditions for someone in my position? |
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jamesmollo
Joined: 26 Apr 2007 Posts: 276 Location: jilin china
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Posted: Sun Sep 27, 2009 12:55 pm Post subject: teahing position |
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Hi there. I don't think it is realistic to get a high paid teaching position for 6 months, you can get a residence permit for 6 months, however. Who wants a teacher that's only going to stick around, while sight-seeing, for such a short time?
You might as well come on a business visa and teach privately, gives you the freedom to travel when you want. |
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coledavis
Joined: 21 Jun 2003 Posts: 1838
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Posted: Sun Sep 27, 2009 1:01 pm Post subject: |
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I just wondered what would be a reasonable salary to ask/expect, not whether or not I would get rich, nor whether or to set up a business. Simply, how many thousand of them thar Chinese roubles should I expect per month. |
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The Ever-changing Cleric

Joined: 19 Feb 2009 Posts: 1523
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Posted: Sun Sep 27, 2009 1:27 pm Post subject: |
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coledavis wrote: |
I just wondered what would be a reasonable salary to ask/expect, not whether or not I would get rich, nor whether or to set up a business. Simply, how many thousand of them thar Chinese roubles should I expect per month. |
coming in mid year and sticking around for 5 months, probably not much more than average - 4500-5500. |
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