Job Discussion Forums

DosEquisX · Joined: 09 Dec 2010 Posts: 361

Pretty much everybody know about the two major cities of China, but I'd imagine that it would be tough to get a job there that allows you to save cash due to the higher cost of living. Plus, the competition for those jobs are higher.

Naturally, it would be easier to save and the competition would be lower in smaller cities due to the low interest from FTs and lower cost of living. But I don't want to be bored out of my mind in a smaller cities like I was elsewhere.

What places would you guys personally recommend to fit this category?

living&learning · Joined: 26 Feb 2008 Posts: 245

Xiamen.

cormac · Joined: 04 Nov 2008 Posts: 768 Location: Xi'an (XTU)

Xi'an. Although the salaries are fairly low. But a fun city if you're not bothered with pollution.

Old Surrender · Posted: Mon Dec 13, 2010 4:14 pm Post subject:

Qingdao and Dalian. I might return to Dalian after my current contract is up. I'm also going to look into Qingdao.

Zhengzhou is a place to avoid. Bad air, gridlock traffic. The entire city has kind of a brown tint to it.

Keifeng, a smaller city in Henan, seems to be nice for its size. (about 700,000 people). Fun night market. Lot's of Chinese cultural stuff to take in.

In the end, though, what do you want from a city? That will help us help you pick one!

MisterButtkins · Joined: 03 Oct 2009 Posts: 1221

kev7161 · Joined: 06 Feb 2004 Posts: 5880 Location: Suzhou, China

Normally I would say Suzhou, but with all the road and subway construction these days, I say it's not a nice living area at the moment. The projection for completion is "sometime next year", but I wouldn't hold my breath.

DosEquisX · Joined: 09 Dec 2010 Posts: 361

The Great Wall of Whiner · Joined: 29 Jan 2003 Posts: 4946 Location: Blabbing

I'll just make a list of cities that I know of and let you pick at them:

Dongying, Shandong: Wealthy oil city, and has a large divide between rich and poor. Lots of foreigners (both friendly and non-friendly) but salaries tend to be on the lower side for such a wealthy city.

Qingdao, Shandong: A fair number of higher paying jobs but these are international schools and you'd be teaching regular classes mostly. Load of foreigners, and prices are a bit cheaper than say Beijing or Shanghai. nice in the summer.

Dalian, Liaoning: Lots of 'wai di ren' (economic migrants) who keep certain things like veggies cheaper in the market areas. These guys really know how to get value for their money. Dalian has a lot of foreigners, is a modern city, and you can easily find a job for over 10k a month there. Transportation is also good as their is rapid transit rail system.

Shenyang, Liaoning: Things are creeping up in prices there. Though lots of foreigners exist, they come in all sorts of various backgrounds. You can live cheaply there if you shop around.

Dandong, Liaoning:

Cheap items from North Korea can be found if you speak Korean which I imagine you can speak at least a little bit. Salaries are low though and the city is not really foreign friendly I found.

Panjin, Liaoning:

Same as Donying in Shandong as both are wealthy oil cities, except here you are able to get a decent salary. Things can be cheap if you know where to go. There is a small community of foreigners who keep in touch, and all are helpful, friendly and most speak near-fluent Chinese.

Yingkou, Liaoning:

You can find cheap things here, but salaries are at the low-end. A lot of the foreigners tend to keep to themselves.

Jinzhou, Liaoning:

Pretty much the same for Yingkou, except there are a lot of Affrican students here that pretend to study there then work in schools thus keeping the salaries lower than they should be.

Qiqihar, Heilongjiang:

A sizable foreign community, you will be mistaken for Russians. Winters are boring, though. The local foreign affairs officer at the police station can speak English but pretends she cannot. Her assistant can speak Korean and also pretends he cannot. A ruse?

Harbin, Heilongjiang:

Lots and lots of college and uni jobs here, also lots of private schools. Salaries tend to be low-ish, but there are lots of foreigners here. You will not be treated nicely at times, as people will often mistake you as Russian.

Changchun, Jilin:

Loads of foreigners here and there is a huge German and South Korean population living here. Salaries range from ridiculously low (4k a month) to the highest I saw was 11k in an international school teaching Korean kids. I personally like the city and would live there if a decent job comparable to the one I have now came along.

Old Surrender · Posted: Tue Dec 14, 2010 5:44 am Post subject:

Trifaro · Joined: 10 Nov 2010 Posts: 152

Zhuhai is nice. You can walk across the border to Macau, take a 70 minute ferry to either Hong Kong or Shekou and it has a good number of laowai for you to socialize with.

I noticed that BNU-Z is seeking help beginning next term. Contact Martin, but don't tell him I sent you. Do what they say and don't question anything though, unless you're free like me.

living&learning · Joined: 26 Feb 2008 Posts: 245

Blingcosa · Joined: 17 May 2008 Posts: 146 Location: Guangdong

Qingdao
Yantai
Dalian
Zhuhai
Yangshou
Kunming
Chengdu
Weihai
many many many others

Xiamen? I was keen on that place too, until I read a post on Daves (try to search for it - I can't be bothered) which said that Xiamen is the only city in China where he felt poor. Loads of wealthy locals and expats, overpriced etc.

living&learning · Joined: 26 Feb 2008 Posts: 245

MisterButtkins · Joined: 03 Oct 2009 Posts: 1221

littlec · Joined: 15 Dec 2010 Posts: 16

[quote="The Great Wall of Whiner"]I'll just make a list of cities that I know of and let you pick at them:

[b]Shenyang, Liaoning:[/b] Things are creeping up in prices there. Though lots of foreigners exist, they come in all sorts of various backgrounds. You can live cheaply there if you shop around.

[/quote]

I have a job in Shenyang starting next March but am really worried about the cold weather. Can you tell me how bad it is please - I've been living in the tropics for the past 7 years and not sure I can deal with really cold weather.