Job Discussion Forums

[Yu]

It seems there are many of us out here with the same questions...
So for those of us looking to teach in Shanghai in Fall and planning to move there, I think it would be useful to discuss where we are with this confusing process.

My situation is that I am moving to China with my husband and son. We are putting our house up for sale Friday.

I want to have a job offer/contract before I sign papers to sell my house.

How can I get this to happen?

I have a "offer?" from Donghua, that is satisfactory with me.
5000 RMB/mo
3000 RMB housing allowance (or campus housing)
1100 travel allowance (for two times)
One way airfare

Teach 16 periods (looks like I will be teaching pronunciation)

The terms are ok, but I am not a big fan of teaching pronuncation (speaking and listening are ok) I prefer teaching writing.
They initally offered me 3600 RMB, I sent a letter saying I was selling my house and wanted to know more what the status of my application was and then they e-mail me back a salary increase.

I am also looking at Shanghai Jiaotong University

The university will provide the following.
a monthly salary of RMB4000;
a RMB400 utility allowance;
free accomodation and medicare;
one-way airfare (economic class)
Teaching at least 12 hours a week

I prefer to teach at Jiaotong because my husband went to the school, and I know it has an outstanding reptuation. I have also visited 2 of the campuses so I know where it is located. I am not sure if I would be teaching at Minghang or the one located downtown. I also do not know where the housing is located.

I have not received anything but e-mails from these schools. I don't know when I am supposed to see an actual contract.

I also send some questions to both schools, but I have not received any reply from either school.

How about you other job seekers out there. where are you with this process. Are the offers the same if it is related to the same school. Any more negotiation happening?

[Clancy]

Both offers are reasonable under current market conditions.

Beware that utilities can run 1,000 rmb per month. The 400 will not go far enough. That is why they give you an allowance rather than pay it themselves like most unis. They are in the forefront of finding a new way to shift the financial burden to the foreigner.

3,000 housing allowance sounds good but Wall Street offers a 6,000 housing allowance. Why? Both schools are in Pudong.

Both offers have their secret little traps for the first timer!

[Kurochan]

When you say Dong Hua do you mean East China Normal?

If so, you're getting offered a better deal than I was -- they told me 7500, or 4500 if I lived on campus. They didn't offer any travel money, and said they couldn't tell me which classes I'll be teaching yet.

[Yu]

From Donghua (I don't know if it is the same as East China Normal-- it seems my husband would have done this translation for me if this were the case). They did not tell me the classes I would be teaching, but from the information they sent the purpose of my teaching was "To assist college-level students in improving English pronunciation and fluency
by drawing on various activities and exercises." which sounds like I would be teaching pronuncition. It certainly does not seem like I will be teaching any writing.

My first choice is still Shanghai Jiaotong. Does anyone know exactly which campus teachers are housed at, and is it possible to opt for a housing allowance from there?

[eion_padraig]

Dong Hua is not East China Normal University. East China Normal University is Hua Dong Shi Fan Da Xue or usually abbreviated at Hua Shi Da. Dong Hua is just Dong Hua Da Xue.

I can't believe they would have you teach 16 hours of pronunication. I bet they are listening and speaking classes.

I guess I don't understand your concern about having a job and contract signed before you come. It's quite easy to make it all happen when you get here. It generally gives you more room to manouver and negotiate. Granted, if you want a university teaching job, there are usually less options if you wait (though they would still be jobs in the Fall).

Whatever your main job is, if your schedule is good then you can easily do side jobs that make you considerably more money. Granted it is technically not allowed, but it's not something that schools worry about if you're doing your job correctly at their school. If you are willing to work about 30 hours a week, 16,000 to 20,000 RMB/month is very possible. If you have a specialty or are really savy, I'm sure it could be even higher. The problem is that some of these jobs would be tutoring and thus unrealiable at times.

Then again who wants to work so much? I spend my first year working 16 hours a week, being tired, adjusting to life here, learning Chinese, watching movies, going out to explore Shanghai's night life. I don't think I could have worked these same hours last year and been sane.

There is no way anyone would be paying 1000 RMB for 1 month! I can't believe it. If you were running all your air conditioning or heating all day, you could have that for a two month/three month utility charge. I forget exactly, but water, gas and electricity get paid every two or three months here, not monthly. In fact, usually you pay two months rent at a time here too. It makes cash flow a bit difficult at times. There are other ways that renting here is different too. There should probably be a sticky for this topic, "Finding/renting an apartment in China".

Good luck Yu.

[Klamm]

Wow. It's good that some people are wise and helpful on this board. Needs be careful with some of the advice given here. I've lived in China for three years now (Guangzhou). Talked to people who work in Shanghai...yes, 1,000Rmb for electricity is outrageous. 400 is plenty. You might get to 1000Rmb if you leave the air condition in your house 24 hours (and do the whole house) and leave huge 1000 Watt bulbs on constantly on, too. Otherwise, no sweat.

I'll also advise on the salary. 2,500 Rmb in Shanghai...Come on People. Help her out. Whoever wrote that may have another motive. The legal minimum for ALL China is 2,200 a month. In Shanghai...please. 4,000 is a minimum and bargain for higher or look elsewhere. If it doesn't matter that much, that's fine, too. Just don't let them convince you you're on the "higher" end of things there. It could be alright if you really like the school, students, living space and whatever else comes with the deal. But I might suggest that that is probably very near minimum for native speakers with a BA teaching in Shanghai. I'm sure there are some 3,500 schools but that has to be the minimum for said qualifications in Shanghai. Just giving you the heads up.

Good luck.

K

[struelle]

[Clancy]

In the bigger cities, the norm is the more famouse the less pay. They have far too many willing to work for so little so they can have the prestige on their resume.

You can not eat prestige. Back home no one knows one China uni from another.

[Yu]

Well,
We have bought our plane tickets and will be in Shanghai on August 19th.
I am still waiting to hear about a job, though I am not thinking about it too much as the May holiday just finished.

I received this e-mail today from a recruiter, I think: Not that I am intersted in using a recruiter to get a job, but I am not completly opposed to it.

The offer is for Shanghai BangDe College.

4500-5500 RMB per month... etc.

Has anyone heard of this college?

[Yu]

Thanks for the information.
My husband did some checking into the school, and told me it wasn't even a school.
I am still waiting to hear more from Jiaotong. They sent me an e-mail saying they were finalizing decisions, and that I should reply to them if I could accept their offer. I said that I could accept it, but that I also had a few questions about the campus and the possibility of working some additional hours.
My husband's friend did some checking for me (she is working at Jiaoda), and she said that the average salary is 4500 RMB, they "offered" me 4000, should I reply back saying I would like to make that much money? I do not want to offend someone because I really want this job. Any advice?

[bluey]

[laodeng]

Yu . . .

Perhaps the answer is buried somewhere in this thread, but you might want to ask whether the job in question is at their main--i.e., Huashan Lu--campus or out at their Minhang campus. Big difference.

[laodeng]

Sorry . . . talking about Jiao Da. If the job is at Minhang, then they're probably going to want you to live at Minhang.

[Yu]

Thanks for the information. I have been trying to get them to tell me the campus I would teach at. My husband spoke to some of his contacts and they thought I would probably teach at both Minhang and Shijahui campuses. Visited both campuses last summer. Minhang is in the middle of nowhere, and not a desirable place to live. Some of my husbands friends who teach at Jiaoda live in shindong? (I only hear him talk about it, and my pinyin is not good). Anyway it is the place where the subway stops on the way towards Jiaoda. We are giving some thought to living there. His sister also wants to live near us, but she is working downtown, so it would not be convenient for her.
I also just found out they give a whopping 2000 RMB housing allowance (mind you we will be needing a 2 bedroom and I think rent is gonna be between 2500-4000 RMB per month.) My child is also going to have to go to a daycare of sorts, which will be another 1200-2500 RMB per month.
On the up side they pay 100 RMB for every class hour above 12 per week.

I am assuming these would be standard pay, and from what I hear I will not get far negotiating.

[Syndrome057]

I just left a job in Shanghai earning 12,000 for 30 hours a week. Do not accept then 6,000. Especially if you have a family to think about.

Peace,
Safari