Job Discussion Forums

[The Great Wall of Whiner]

Has anyone noticed that the job market is much less than a few years ago?

I remember putting out my C.V. back in the mid 2000's and my in-box would get swamped with offers.

Now it's hardly a trickle!

Is it because schools are looking for inexperienced, F.O.T.B. teachers who are "naive"?

Or is the economy truly that bad that the jobs are less and there are more teachers to choose from?

[Zero]

Could it be that a few years ago, you were applying for more entry-level type jobs where they respond to everybody, and now, with experience, you are applying for higher-scale jobs?

[ttorriel]

It's basic employment, economic, and developmental expectation.

Simply look at every other countries use of native English speakers as so-called teachers.

Where is the surprise? The market, changing politico-economic situation make it hardly unexpected.

Look at Japan, Korea, etc.

[sharpe88]

The market became saturated with overrpriced, under-delivering product for customers. So many of them went belly-up and continue to do so.

[rogerwallace]

I understand the esl mills for kids are hurting and thus only want to pay the least amount but colleges still have to funtion. The quality of their foreign language depts. have been run by the same types that are only in it for the money. There are no education majors running schools. These are the same people that think they can do better for less $$$ than the round eyes can.
There are still many universities that do understand that Foreign Experts can help their programs, that are degreed and have experience.

[The Hungry Yeti]

I keep being told I need 2 years teaching experience in China to be considered.

[platinum peyote]

It's gotten a lot tougher, I'm in China now looking for work, have a lot of experience, and getting NO bites at all. This is really bad.

[TexasHighway]

It seems the older and more experienced you become, the less marketable you become. It seems that in Shanghai, which is flooded with foreigners nowadays, rather than being more selective, schools literally grab teachers off the street. At my university, they hired a 19 year old exchange student from UK. He was younger than most of his students and an absolutely horrible teacher. All he did was sit in the front of the class and chat with some pretty girls. They also hired a a Brasilian and a French-Canadian guy whose English were worse than the students'. They also had zero interest in teaching and only cared about hooking up with some pretty girls. Years ago, when FTs were in shorter supply, schools seemed to put a higher priority on choosing qualified teachers.

[platinum peyote]

It is off the charts - Nanjing is flooded with foreigners, too. Oh, why couldn't I have been born young and with blond hair instead of, uh, instead of quirky!?

[waxwing]

Well I guess nobody can know for sure, but if the anecdotal evidence in this thread is actually representative, then .. I called it one year ago:

http://forums.eslcafe.com/job/viewtopic.php?p=719641#719641

I can only guess how bad the teaching market is nowadays in Tier 1 cities. The only thing I would add to my earlier prediction was about the "murkiness" of the demand side - it looks like the Chinese government, whether it wants to or not, is continuing to blow massive bubbles, especially in propery (for goodness sake do NOT attempt to buy a house in urban China right now!) and so the economy is "healthy" - healthy in the way the US economy was healthy in 2007 ...

Please do let me know why this is all complete drivel .. the "debate" is what makes this site interesting

[kukiv]

With the doom and gloom of recession fading in many minds there seems to be a take-off again in certain sectors of the tourist market - China, with all the attention in the world's press - has suddenly become a has to be seen location. Youngsters - just pre- or post-university - have always been a bunch of backpacker explorers - so the chance of supporting a backpacking holiday with a little work could seem an attractive prospect.

I'm guessing those groups - back in the west - who have been worse hit by the recession and unemployment never made up the major numbers in the exotic travel game. I'm pretty sure very few ppl. take to China or any other foreign country to try and carve out a new career in the face of economic adversity (apart from cases of economic catastrophe and mass economic migration where the migrants form a community within a community) - most folk are far too conservative for that.

[waxwing]

Yes, kukiv, I can see what you mean. One could reasonably argue that being in China now is a bit like being in Japan in the late 80s, early 90s, it's just the "in" place right now. Whereas 5-10 years ago it was just too "out there" for most people to contemplate.

On the other hand when I reflect back on all the foreign teachers I've met since I got here 5 years or so ago, the vast majority were people who don't have great prospects back home. Not the very lowest income group, something more like mid to low income, the sort of people who can consider travelling abroad but don't have a huge array of options, in terms of career, either at home or abroad. Sometimes a lack of top notch education is a factor in coming to China rather than trying out for a teaching job in another area of the world.

The flexibility of mind that it takes to consider coming and living in China is getting lower; life in the cities is not quite the terrifying prospect it used to be for the average Westerner. I think it's the combination of that factor with the changing economic circumstances which may be bringing in a lot more people; the "China option" must be looking a lot more inviting post-winter 08/09 than it did pre-.

[LanGuTou]

The market is becoming flooded with agencies that are able to churn out recent graduates wanting a travel adventure that provides a basic income. These teachers want and expect little.

As the white face and keeping students entertained are the only criteria used in the selection process, schools and universities are happy just to save money.

I think the bubble is starting to burst for the FT explosion in China. Governmental controls will limit the influx, the schools and universities will grab anything that is available.

[rogerwallace]

I too have seen the change over ten years, but I think this is happening all over the new world order(which china is a part of). The teaching profession in the us of a is being gutted, break the teachers unions, cut the ed budgets, up the class size, only hire the cheapest and the next wave of global-fiat-currency-collapse(including rmb). I mean if Amerika continues its downhill slide/spending, they can't pay back the debt to china,etc. When the US government pulls in the gold again(like in 1933) whats going to happen? Who is paying for all the new building in china? They too have spent 1/2 T on subsidising the economy, with the exports to the us coming from us based corp. , its a malstrom of decent into a world wide collapse??? Teaching is just a part of it all here or there...

[kukiv]