Job Discussion Forums

[hochhasd]

MOD EDIT let me re-word what I am looking for concerning a country. How is working for a public or private school in China compared to other Asian countries? Especially, the one with spicy food

[robotmonkey]

How do glaring syntax, punctuation and even geographical (China is most definitely an Asian country itself, see the subject of the thread) qualify someone to teach English, anywhere?

[The Great Wall of Whiner]

Notwithstanding the above personal and ironic insults hurled towards the OP, I'd simply suggest that you stay in the major cities and look for something over 10K given your education and experience in spicier locations.

I was in a spicier location myself for over 4 years before coming to China. Before that, I was on a roll with raw fish for sis months and did a lot of bowing to everyone instead of shaking hands.

Shenyang has a large ethnic spicy enclave, and being able to speak a spicy language even a little would go along way in helping you adjust into non-spicier areas.

Some other locations that are a little spicy include Qingdao, Dandong and Dalian. Yantai or the Yanbian area are both VERY spicy, but good jobs are hard to come by. Tumen also has a lot of spice.

Careful of getting suckered into low paying jobs. Always have a look at the contract before you sign up, and put your foot down when things start to get hairy or the bosses will walk all over you.

Private schools will pay far more, although there are some public institutions that have decent enough salaries.

At the high end, I have seen jobs for over 20,000 RMB a month for full 30 hours a week. At the low end, jobs are out there for around 3000 RMB and these are best to be avoided for oh-so-many reasons. There are a lot of people in China with dodgy (ie, fake) credentials and they tend to keep salaries lower than they should be.

Decent schools in Shanghai and Beijing and Shenzhen will check your degree, but the trade off will be a higher salary. People will tell you I am full of clap for saying that there are high-paying jobs in China. But there are. They are right here on Dave's ESL's job board itself. There are jobs for 12k, 14k and more.

As for other high-paying jobs, there are many spicy international schools all around China that have kids staying with their spicy parents who work here in China.

My wife herself is spicy (though she hails from a more northerly spicy location) and the opportunity to eat spicy food the rest of your life without the disturbings that are encouraging you to look at China are worth it.

Things are cheaper here than other spicier locations, but the prices in China are starting to get too much.

I now pay over 3 dollars a pound for beef here, whereas back at home (a hockey playing maple leafy northerly area) you can find beef on sale for about a dollar a pound on good days.

Because China is now full steam ahead capitalism, there is mass price gouging. Taxis are an example, who simply might refuse to use the meter and all end up acting like an unofficial union who demand a large set fee which you are forced to pay because they all stand firm. They do this during times of bad weather, holidays (even Valentine's Day!), and special occasions (final exam times).

Outside of major cities, people will not only look at you, but stare at you, openly talk about you, point at you, laugh at you, and perhaps even force you to drink large amounts of baijiu (which is soju at 56%!) and disgusting.

I think you can save more money here than your previous spicy location but there will be a trade off. I don't know your lifestyle at all, but I can tell you that unless you are in Beijing or Shanghai, there is no "going off to Eat Ay Won" for a Subway sandwich or grabbing some decent western groceries.

And I don't know if you are male or female, but if you are female, say bye bye to tampons.

At any rate....

If you have any specific questions, shoot away and good luck in your investigation into working in China.

[Thandos]

[hochhasd]

[askiptochina]

In Korea and Japan, you work 5 days. In China, 6 days. You get a higher salary, with Korea being the best. Sushi, green tea, and non-spicy noodles (like udon) are the best in Japan. As for regular dishes, Korea has the best meals (spicy or non-spicy). China has hot pot, hot pot, and hot pot. If you don't like hot pot, I am sorry, but the dumplings won't be a good substitute. Korea has better dumplings too.

The main advantage I see in China is that nothing is fixed. Every day, the Chinese start from scratch. So, you can always negotiate your way. This might be good or bad, depending on your style. In Japan and Korea, they have a system in place and you can't change it. In China, you can expect "no" to your requests and if you don't persist, they will never turn into a "yes". Likewise, when buying things, you can't just counteroffer once to get the best deals. You have to haggle and be persistent. Otherwise, you will be taken advantage of.

[wailing_imam]

I worked in China and only ever worked four 0r five day weeks.

Personally, I think Korean food is crap and has nothing on the regional varieties of China, though in truth I am much more of a Southeast Asian fan myself, where the food is properly spicy unlike that stinky mess known as kimchi.

[cormac]

[Mr. Kalgukshi]

If the Korea focused comments continue, there will be sanctions per the locked Announcement found at the top of this forum:

http://forums.eslcafe.com/job/viewtopic.php?t=85563

[TexasHighway]

cormac wrote:

[Non Sequitur]

Texas
Were your 3 or 4 day weeks negotiated, in the contract or just turn out that way?

[The Ever-changing Cleric]

[TexasHighway]

Non Sequitor wrote:

[cormac]

[TexasHighway]

cormac wrote: