Job Discussion Forums

Rooster_2006 · Joined: 24 Sep 2007 Posts: 984

They give you polo shirts, and jeans are fine. Our branches tended to wear polo shirts on weekdays but totally casual clothes on Saturdays. They weren't super anal on the dress code.

markcmc · Joined: 18 Jan 2010 Posts: 262 Location: Taiwan

123Loto · Joined: 14 Aug 2006 Posts: 160

The fact remains that experienced teachers at Hess can and do make $1,500,000TWD a year. Some make more.

markcmc · Joined: 18 Jan 2010 Posts: 262 Location: Taiwan

Rooster_2006 · Joined: 24 Sep 2007 Posts: 984

My HNST actually told us how much he'd made the previous year. Or at least he "alluded" to it.

He said he'd joined the "millionaire's club" last year -- people who break 1,000,000 NTD per year. HOWEVER, he also does translations on the side, so that 1,000,000 NTD was not 100% from his HNST salary.

HNSTs max out their pay in the low 700s, so I highly doubt 1,500,000 NTD a year is possible for an HNST with no side gigs.

Besides, there's more to life than money. If I had been in Taiwan so long to become an HNST, I'd probably have moved on long ago to a public school or university. I wouldn't still be working at a buxiban.

123Loto · Joined: 14 Aug 2006 Posts: 160

Most of a HNST's pay is still derived largely from their teaching:

Say, 40 hours per week x $750 per hour = $30,000 x 48 weeks = $1440000 + $30,000 re-signing bonus, + $10,000 for return rate bonus, + $8000 for kindy clock in bonus, +$50,000 for HNST pay = $1,538,000 per year

obviously that's a pretty thick workload, and you need to be very motivated to make sure your teaching quality doesn't get hammered but it's reasonably common

but as you say - there's more to life than money!!!

Taylor · Joined: 24 Oct 2003 Posts: 384 Location: Texas/Taiwan

Dear Readers,

I've never met anyone who can teach EFL 40 hours per week--without burning out after 3 months or so.

Considering the weather in Taiwan, holidays, sick kids and so on, earning that much money in TWO years is a lot more reasonable.

Taylor
10 years in Kaohsiung

123Loto · Joined: 14 Aug 2006 Posts: 160

Hi Taylor,

It's not for everyone - but I know several teachers (including myself) who do it and have been doing it for years. One way to go is to teach about 37-38 hours per week normally, and then bump it up on occasion by doing some subbing.

And again, you need to be pretty motivated to make sure your teaching quality doesn't drop.

Perhaps more people head down to sunny Kaohsiung for a more relaxed lifestyle? Just a thought...

By the way, the schedule I'm describing would include 2 classes on a Saturday, and 6:30pm finishes every day of the week except for one, which would be 8:30pm.

Furthermore, you'd need to teach kindergarten, which some people prefer not to do.

123Loto
9 years in Taipei

Clowwwn · Joined: 09 Dec 2009 Posts: 13 Location: Brooklyn, NY, USA

For those of you who supplement your income with private lessons, how did you find people to tutor? I'll be doing language school in the evenings, and wouldn't mind doing private tutoring or language exchange to pick up some Mandarin.

Rooster_2006 · Joined: 24 Sep 2007 Posts: 984