Job Discussion Forums

[breacan]

Hello everyone,

I am considering a job offer from this university; has anyone heard of it/any thoughts? 5500 RMB/month, 2 bdrm apt, flights and medical paid. Everything I've been able to find out about it has been fairly positive.

It seems ok and I'm thinking of going for it, but just wanted to double-check here.

[igorG]

It seems too low, although if you've got inadequate qualification and experience it may not be as low. Remember that it's not easy to get by on such money in China anymore.

[dean_a_jones]

Hours? Past experience teaching? Degrees? For the very basic information you have provided, it sounds like it might be OK, but depends on a few other things. Apartment on campus? Curfew? Size of class? Office hours? Who pays for RP etc? Travel allowance? Holiday pay? Summer pay if stay on? Keep apt for summer?

It is pretty easy to get by in Wuhan on that money (and that is generally about the average for 12-16 hours teaching a week at university here), but not sure about Guangdong.

[igorG]

Guangzhou's expensive. 5,500 will get you a pretty low standard of living. Also, most unis in Guangzhou offer more than what OP has been offered.

[breacan]

I have a BA and MA (somewhat unrelated - history/literature), but this would be my first experience teaching full-time. 16 teaching hours per week. They provide a winter travel allowance and summer if I sign on for the second year. There are 3 campuses so I believe apartment location varies, but they appear to be on the campus where I would be teaching. No office hours - teaching is the only responsibility. They provided me with a contact for a foreign teacher when I requested it (just received it this morning). They have promptly answered every question I have put to them.

Let me know your thoughts?

ETA: I forgot to add they pay utilities and internet, provide a computer, and 5 bottles of water per month for some reason.

[igorG]

The foreign teachers that are provided by the schools as contacts often aren't to be trusted. Perhaps, the school should have a list of email addresses of all its teachers currently or previously working there, which would allow chosing the contacts freely. That way would offer a lot more reliance on any info about the school.

As for the offer, now i can tell the OP that 5,500 Yuan is little for his qualifications. MA in any field should offer quite a bit more in Guangzhou, however, there seems to be a regulation where 2 years teaching experience is required for a work permit. This may as well be one of the reasons why they would like to underpay such an individual as our OP.

[breacan]

igorG: then what is the best response in that situation? There's no way I can find out who worked there aside from posting here.

[igorG]

I'd ask for more contacts of FTs that have either worked or still working there. Nowadays, it's pretty tough to get stuck with one lousy employer. The regulations are tougher for FTs here and obtaing another work permit after quitting or having an awful year is more and more difficult.

[xjgirl]

i'd say go for it

u can easily supplement ur income at the weekends


if u cause a lot of waves at this stage in the process, they'll dump u and go for someone who will accept that salary.

[breacan]

I'm kind of with xjgirl - there is being prudent and cautious, but there is also the possibility of losing the job.

[xjgirl]

the starting salary is low, but think of it as a sacrifice to crack the lucrative guangzhou esl market

[igorG]

Lucrative? Hm. Depending on where you are. Traveling here could reduce one's chances and the possible profitability.

[Non Sequitur]

Taking all of the info provided by OP over several messages, I would say it's an OK start point for your China career.
Get over there, get settled, see if you can teach/survive and then assess your options.
The only odd thing is the fact that a state college/uni is recruiting now.
Best

[breacan]

Non Sequitur - thanks. They weren't actually recruiting, I was just sending applications to universities I found online. They wouldn't want me until March or September.

I also don't want to contribute to low salaries by taking a position, so that is a concern for me. I'm still deciding, but will keep you posted.

[Non Sequitur]

I don't think you could be accused of 'rate busting' at that combo of salary and other benefits. What you've mentioned is about right for that type of school.
You may get lucky and find a spring semester start, but much better pickings for September start.
Still nothing wrong with starting conversations with schools now if you can get them to reply