Job Discussion Forums

[nmdunkel]

This is my first post; I've been lurking for awhile, trying to glean as much info as possible before I open my mouth and ask the exact same questions you've all answered a hundred times before.

I will be as specific and direct as I can about my situation/questions.....I know we all appreciate that.

I am 28, male, caucasion, and very attractive by western standards. I attended one of the best private high-schools in the country, with a heavy emphasis on grammar/lit. I've spent 3 years as an infantry soldier in the US Army. I've lived in almost every region of the United States. I have some college completed, but I've lost a lot of interest as most of the first two years of college are general courses that I've already mastered in my private schooling. I presently work for a public service institute at a university.

Please don't reply telling me how important it is to get a 4-year degree, or how I should finish it before I teach conv English in China (I see these replies a lot). I know it's important. I'm doing it anyway. College is easy and I can finish it anytime; furthermore, I work with autocad so I make a nice living being an intelligent layman without a degree.

I would like to teach conversational English in China, preferably in a smaller, more remote city that has a harder time attracting EFL teachers. ([i]All you teachers with great credentials can have the nicer spots/cities.......that's the benefit for spending all that extra time/money on your education, I'll stay out of your way[/i]). In my opinion.....it's the Chinese kids in the out-of-the-way regions that suffer the worst teachers. That seems to be where the need is greatest.

Here are my questions:

1) Assuming I am a bright, self-confident, entrepreneurial young man......am I more likely to land a better position by simply plunking down in whatever Chinese city I choose (with a bit of a financial safety net, of course) and finding my own job? Or is this too much of a risk, as I don't speak Mandarin and would have that much harder of a time negotiating.
*Personal experiences would help me the most here

...which leads into

2) Z-vista. I really don't want to work without one....I probably could, but I'm not willing to risk it. Am I better off getting one before I go, or after I'm already there? I know China is still kind of hazy with the BA requirement.......what else do they look at?

3) I love baseball more than almost anything else. I would love to help teach baseball along with English. I know baseball is not particularly popular there, but I'd appreciate feedback from anyone that has seen any opportunities helping out with athletics.


Sorry about the length.....thanks for reading/answering, guys.

[naturegirl321]

Problem might be in CHina, that you don't have a degree, ut things are more flexible. In CHina, anything could happen, so you picked the right country, I'm trying to get there too.

1. DO NOT go to China and get a job. YOu have to , in theory, get your Z visa before you enter CHina. Again, in theory. (I entered twice on an F visa, but lucked out and got the Z visa, still I wouldn't recommend it ) Still I'd try to do that. There are tons of jobs that pay about 5000 RMB a month.

2) see above.

3) I'm sure you could put together a team at your school

[Glenski]

If getting the degree is so darned easy, why not do it? You'll be so much more marketable (and legal).

[nmdunkel]

@ Nature girl

Thanks....I'd heard of people getting by on F-visas for awhile, but I've also heard how risky it is. I'll take your advice and get my Z-visa beforehand. Starting a team at the school would be fun, I could leave something culturally accessible behind me, and it may help with guanxi.

@ Glenski
Thanks for you reply. I hope I didn't sound too arrogant.... I have two years left on my economics degree, but as I am working/going to school part time, I'll be in my early thirties before I complete it. I'd rather teach for a year now, and then come back and finish it. I have the flexibility now; in two years my situation may change, I might be not be able to leave for a year because of work/relationships, etc. Furthermore....I am getting the feeling that in China (very much like in the U.S.) who you know is probably at least as important as what you know.


BTW......Anyone know anything about FengHuang?

[Glenski]

You didn't sound arrogant to me, but it's hard to fathom why you would want to work just a short time when you could work far longer with a degree.

As far as I know, China DOES require the degree, by the way. Never been there, but that's what it seems many people post. Confirm.

[nmdunkel]

@ Glenski

"........it's hard to fathom why you would want to work just a short time when you could work far longer with a degree."

Like I said.....I know autocad. I'll never have a problem getting a job with good pay in the States (autocad is THE engineering program, but of course you already knew that), and I'm not looking into teaching more than a year (or two....who knows?). In my opinion, and from what I've seen, most degrees do nothing except help you break into your field or (cynically speaking) raise you into a higher tax bracket when you're 45 and the company you work for needs you to fill a degreed management position. I've worked hard to make myself marketable in an area that has flexibility and good pay without the red tape and classism that academics may create.

I'm not doing this 'cause I'm out of options.....quite the opposite.....because I HAVE options, I CAN do this.

BTW....China DOES NOT explicitly require a BA to teach simple conversational English. Not even for the Z-visa. Fact check me.....the wording is SHOULD (and many have). Now THAT'S flexibility.

P.S.......talked to a MBA from Beijing that works in the foreign lang dept at my university....already have a contact at a Changsha university and some backing from a native.....that's how you do it, yo. ;)

Thanks for the help guys.....maybe I'll be helping newbs out in here someday.

[jpvanderwerf2001]

About baseball: I saw that China fielded a rather competitive team at the World Baseball Classic. Perhaps that means the sport is growing there, so you should be able to find interest. I would think the biggest challenge would be to find an appropriate field. I tried teaching baseball to youngsters in Ukraine, and it was tough without a playing field; us Americans take for granted that flat, spacious playing fields will be around every corner. This is especially a concern since you want to go to the "boondocks".
That contact in Changsha, perhaps I know them. Are their initials JB?
Best of luck!

[Glenski]

[Tainan]

Just try! Go to the China forum, where there's a thread called Xinjiang--there's a link there to a website with jobs all over China, listed by province. First decide which province you'd want to go to and then look under that. See what the various universities require, and if they say they require a degree, write to them anyway explaining your situation, and see if they write back.

If you are serious about teaching in China, ESPECIALLY if you want to be in one of the remoter regions, I urge you to begin studying Mandarin now. Unless you have an extraordinary gift for languages you'll have to study for at least three or four months before it will even begin to pay off. And if you are in China without knowing Mandarin your life will be very circumscribed indeed. You don't have to become fluent but definitely learn enough to converse!

Good luck.

[johnson430]

Sir:
May I suggest you download one of these gems before you go.
If you don't know, Pimsleur is the "stinky stuff" when it comes to language courses.
FYI, Amazon sells the same course for $345US each.
Let me see? $1035US to Amazon or download for FREE.

If you have a demonoid account you can get Pimsleur's Mandarin 1-3:

http://www.demonoid.com/files/details/1830327/26619096/
(^^^^^^^^^^^^This has been stated as a good quality recording)

If you do not have a demonoid account, go to Pirate Bay:

http://thepiratebay.org/torrent/3411873/Pimsleur_Mandarin_Chinese_1-3_Complete
(This is stated as having some audio issues)


I am using Pimsleur's Spanish 1,2,3 right now and love it.
Unlike Rosetta Stone, Pimsluer repeats the words and sounds them out over and over and tells you what you are saying in English repeatedly so it gets ingrained.
Me gusta mucho!

Yes, there are Pimsleur courses for all languages for all you "lurkers."

[nmdunkel]

@ Johnson430

Sonova......nice. Really nice. Lot to be said for free source....thanks

[Mexicobound]

Rock on with the free source goodies.
I would be running a full Ubuntu 8 OS if Netflix worked for Linux. (I'm part'ed 60% XP and 40% Ubuntu on my desktop HD)

Anyone else here familiar with Ubuntu?

http://www.ubuntu.com/

If you are tired of Windows and all the crap associated with Microsoft get Ubuntu. A friend of mine in south Texas had his XP system crash and he installed Ubuntu and loves it. The only complaints I hear: no iTunes or Netflix.
And no gaming as DirectX is MS software.


ps: Ubuntu is a wonderful OS for laptops. Check Dell website, most of their new 9,10,12 and 15" laptops have the option for Ubuntu as the OS and you get a discount on the price too.

[Tainan]

So--any development? Have you managed to find a univ. or other job that will hire without a B.A.?

[DoubleDutch]

[Mexicobound]

Off-topic but good information nonetheless.
Thanks for the heads up about Wine.