Job Discussion Forums

[VietCanada]

I've worked about 5 years in both countries.

There is no money in VN.

There is no reality that you can save $15000 in one year in Vietnam with a BA and CELTA and no prior work experience in VN.

You would be inhaling rarefied air to even gross that much in a year.

There is no money in VN.

Bottom line is that the land of K-pop offers a steady monthly income, a salary along with paid flight and housing. You can save money if you can plan and stick to a budget. VN is not that. Your income is variable. Money comes and goes, expenses come and go. They rarely match up. One simply cannot say with any accuracy or credibility whatsoever just how much another worker can save or earn here. Assume the worst and hope for the best and you'll get along just fine if you like living in VN.

There is no money in VN.

China, Taiwan, Japan, Korea are all vastly superior destinations if your goal is to save money. Maybe even Thailand. Those destinations offer a steady income to a simple BA holder. The CELTA/DELTA/TEFL train is only for VN and only to prove to the local government that you are not a backpacker, nothing to do with whether you can teach or not.

There is no money in VN.

[cb400]

Right.

2000-2200USD a month for full time teaching positions. 3000-4000 a month if you 'push' it, working a lot maybe 6-7 days a week.

Small apartments/rooms for 300-400 USD a month.

Budget options for food, drink and entertainment.(this is variable of course)

Right, nothing left to save.

Anyone that thinks there is money to save in Thailand loses all credibility and is not informed. Please read the 'Thailand' section of this forum.

[VietCanada]

I thought you were talking about VN for a few sentences. I said maybe because of what I've read on this board. I would say it's worse than here based on accounts from people I've met who've worked there. Just enough money to pay the bills is what I hear.

But what I've read is comparable to the same old couple of posters on this board implying one can save $15000 a year here with no experience in VN and rather pedestrian quals (BA and CELTA whatever).

[cb400]

[VietCanada]

Then we'll just have to agree to disagree. I've subscribed to a few sites that send out mails for jobs in Asia. I've never seen one from Hanoi offering any more than the typical VN low low hourly wage and a promise of hours.

I have seen no reasons on this board, or heard any reasons first, second or third hand to believe that Hanoi is any different than HCMC except for the fact that you pointed out that people like living there even less than HCMC.

Even tourists I've met hated it.

[Ramen]

[1st Sgt Welsh]

[vabeckele]

I certainly feel that the 24 dollar an hour jobs with all resources etc...start to dry up, sorry, to have been that way for a while now, at least in Hanoi.

I could walk into any centre a year or so ago and demand 25-30 dollars an hour, and get it. When I taught content based courses at universities I was offered as much as 60 - This is no more. On top of this working conditions have worsened. Okay, if you work at the foreign language mills things are going to remain pretty much the same: not all that but some security. Except now they have also bought into the 'let's put teachers into the public school system' because we can make as much as 70 percent of their earnings.

Take a look at any Hanoian teacher job board at the moment and try to find the 40 mill full-time jobs on offer or the 25 dollar an hour PT - Very few and far between.

Just lately, I found out one sneaky kant asking teachers to bring in materials for IELTS classes and do demo lessons. This bugger is setting up his uni mates for free lessons just on the back of demos and what materials to use on the promise of 30-35 bucks an hour - This job has never appeared but the interviews and demos continue. Okay, granted, I am only finding out how sneaky this game is, but with the current conditions, even newbie teachers are going to catch them with their asses waving in the wind.

In regards to Thailand. I have just come back from there thinking it would save me from Hanoi. I had, what I thought to be, a good contract with all of the benefits a real teacher to have at a private school. Little did I know the salary of 1200 bucks doesn't go very far in Bangkok. On top of this the micro-management of teachers was so great they had surveillance cameras in the classrooms. To teach in Thailand you must have QTS status and work in a true international school. And only a handful of universities will pay a content lecturer a fair wage commensurate with qualifications and experience. Looks can be deceiving; I thought Bangkok to be a modern city and I tell no lie when I say the Vietnamese are better students however much it pains me to say it.

Perhaps Vietnam is trying this model and it will fail because it just doesn't have the food, the women, the atmosphere...there is no way a teacher will put up with a grand a month here (well, not for long). I CAN see why many do in Thailand. But for me, in a city like BKK 2k is the absolute minimum for living comfortably. And if you like to party, 3k.

I have two solid offers right now, one in Qatar and one in China. Both are in real schools with real money - In terms of salary and benefits they both put Thailand and Vietnam to shame.

Oh sorry, we have RMIT. Mustn't forget that.

[1st Sgt Welsh]

Thanks for the reply vabeckle. In regards to what it was like 'back in the day', well, that was in the past and things change. If you are saying that $24 hour jobs are hard to come by these days then, OK, I guess I'll just have to take your word for it. I have not actively been job hunting for some time.

So, lets compromise. Instead of the $24 I was earning for 18 hours a week, let's put it at $20 an hour and 20 hours a week. To me that sounds like a fairly 'garden variety' entry-level language mill gig. There is maybe a pre-tax difference of a hundred dollars or so a month, but, don't forget, the language mill teachers often get 'completion bonuses' and paid holidays. In short, not a huge difference and, of course, the outgoings remain the same.

[vabeckele]

[1st Sgt Welsh]

[Tigerstyleone]

[vabeckele]

Jeez, Tiger, you are high maintenance.

Perhaps, more involved is the wrong term. A better usage of understanding the ins and outs of the life of a teacher in Vietnam would be better.

I will not name names as it would be wrong. But I know of one chap, while not a complete fresh grad (a year in another Asian country) working at, or was working at the Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology (RMIT) in Vietnam. While guys with 10 years of experience are being rejected. I don't know why, but I have my own thoughts on this.

I hope this clarifies your inquisitive mind, Tiger.

[ExpatLuke]

[ExpatLuke]