Job Discussion Forums

[Kiwi303]

Hmm, is this a good sign? I emailed the contact the FAO at the uni gave me and asked a bunch of questions, they usual stuff like does the pay arrive on time, are the apartments habitable, does paperwork like the Z visa letter get done on time and the Residence Permit get submitted on time... etc, etc.

The gist of the response I got back was "Those questions sound like you want my job, I'm not helping you take my job away from me. If I don't get rehired next term, I'll answer your questions Then, but not now..."


So since the current teacher wants to stay on and get rehired... that's a good sign isn't it?

[dog backwards]

I would run away from any school whose FTs responded in any way which resembled that in nuance or otherwise. I've worked with insecure turkeys like that. It wasn't fun.

If you're in China, your best bet is to visit the school.

You may get pretty good feedback from current FTs solely because they'd prefer twelve hours to sixteen hours. Been there, done that. It was h3ll. You're almost better off going in blindly.

[burntout]

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I have been contacted in the past by prospective teachers, and have my reservations about this practice. If you want to continue where you are, then you wouldn't want to say any bad words that could be repeated to the foreign office, even if such were not said in a malicious way. If you don't want to stay at the school, there could be valid reasons why. But, a Chinese practice is to forget or lose interest in you once you say you are leaving anyway. It's possibly prudent to ensure all monies are in hand before saying too much.
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[Little Tiger]

Maybe you will be taking his job and he just doesn't know he isn't being re-hired yet

[Kiwi303]

There are 5 FTs at the uni according to the FAO, so I may not be being eyed to replace that specific FT From what I read between the lines of the FAOs emails, it seems liket hey want to expand the FT run english courses more, so I'd be more likely to be supplementing rather than supplanting the current FTs.



I am thinking along the lines that if a FT likes it there enough to want to be rehired, then it must be a decent enough place, otherwise the reply would be more like "Are you interested in my job, sure, come on over, I'll start packing, you'll love it here!"

[lee_barttwater]

[Priesty]

I contacted a foreign teacher at my school before I was hired and he seemed to enjoy his job and having an altogether pleasant experience.

I would be cautious of anyone who seems insecure about their job. May lead to bad experiences with your fellow peers.

I've now been asked to give my email to other teachers who are thinking of working at my school and they told to me to be as un-bias as possible. But there isn't really any need for that, since I like my school and they have been extremely accommodating.

Any information you can find on the school helps, just be careful how you read in between the lines...

Edit: Also I feel it would be the other way around. Why would the school put a prospective employee in contact with a teacher that they are going to get rid of? Wouldn't it be better for the school to put the prospective employee in contact with a teacher who is doing good at his job and seems to be having a happy experience, instead of worrying if the teaching will say something bad about their school?

[Kiwi303]