Job Discussion Forums

[jaemaej]

Hi,

I am an ESL professional in the US, where I teach English at a collegiate level. My family (husband and young kids) would like to spend a few years in China.

Are there any recruiters that are to be recommended? I'm after not only a decent job for myself, but an agency that could offer some relocation/language/culture assistance.

Thanks for your help and comments!

[dean_a_jones]

[toteach]

A point to be aware of is that recruiters will get a fraction of your pay (or sometimes a lump sum) from the school they place you with. Often as soon as they put you into contact with the school they will abandon you entirely, and you'll not hear from them again.

The assistance your family will receive will come from the school's FAO (Foreign Affair's Office) or similar. In theory they are there to aid in your transition. In reality you'll likely be left alone unless you hound them about your problems/concerns.

Husband and I have found that one salary in China--even a low one--is enough to live on. Supporting 4 people on a run-of-the-mill salary shouldn't be too difficult if you're out of the urban centers.

[anguyen]

I also have a spouse and child and we would like to move to China for a couple of years. I am planning to home-school my son, so a school for him is not a question we are considering. For many reasons - housing, teaching hours, benefits a university position is best for us.

The question I have not seen answered is how to find one if a head-hunter or recruitment agency is not the best way to go?

[toteach]

I have used recruitment agencies to secure jobs in China in the past.

Don't get me wrong--they DO put you in contact with schools. Just don't expect anything more than that! They all offer about the same services, but none of them are more outstanding than the next when it comes to what they offer. (Personally I like to look at Angelina's listings rather than the sentence-long descriptions that many other recruiters offer).

Unless you're already in China, I do think that using a recruitment agency is the easiest way. Once you're there, you'll learn about other schools, and you can pop in with your application package.

[Trebek]

I found a list of all the Universities in China (wish I still knew where that was), and waited till hiring season and sent out CV's and my resume to about 70 of them. Within a couple weeks I had 5 or 6 solid job offers and many enquiries. I was under the impression that most Uni's don't do through recruiters. The main time to search for University employment is from March thru June; although there is a bit of hiring during December thru January for 2nd semester teachers.

If both you and hubby were working, you should be able to manage. Lots of free time, and China is pretty safe for kids (except crossing the streets).

[The Great Wall of Whiner]

Below is a list of all the trustworthy recruiters that I have assembled after almost a decade teaching in China:

[thefuzz]