Job Discussion Forums

[chryanvii]

Okay...the first month has passed, and it went well...but now the chronic complaining has set in.

I have transitioned from 3 years of working university jobs in to working full-time at a training center. As much as I understand the reasons why I have come here to another city in China all by myself, and the reasons why I have also signed up for a training center, the transition is rough. I am already severely burnt out.

Schedule changing every day, very short lunches, working weekends, not being able to meet new friends because I'm in the office all the time, apartment fees, etc...

As much as I thought it was suitable for me as a first-year position in China, I now feel after 4 years of being in China as if I am beyond this.

I have now become a chronic complainer. As much as I want the complaining to stop myself, unfortunately I have always been a very vocal person. It tends to die down after about 3 months and getting settled in...but...by that time, I have a feeling that I will have driven all of my colleagues up the wall..

Should I try to find a university job, and fast, or should I just accept the fact that I am here, that it's entirely too late to find a university gig, and that I need to "go with the flow"?

[johntpartee]

It's never too late to get a university position, particularly after vacations (lot of expats decide they want to stay home).

[Non Sequitur]

Find out where the local unis and vocationals are in your city.
Take a Chinese friend if needed and front in person to the FAO.
Right away you've taken the big problem out of the equation. They don't recruit YOU sight unseen.
Make sure you tell the FAO all of the restrictions you might face in making a shift. The Chinese can be brutal to people whom they feel are inferior and the uni will feel that about your training centre.
Normal cautions apply ie see a class schedule and your apartment, dining halls etc.
I bailed from my first gig after one semester and got offers from 2 of the 3 local unis I fronted.

[chryanvii]

My apartment is entirely too noisy. RIDICULOUSLY noisy. I hear really loud karaoke at night from all the bars. I hear drunk people shouting and screaming. And to top it off, there is a terrible smell coming from outside when I try to keep my windows open.

I can't even leave my windows open at night to get fresh air, because I hear construction workers, people shouting...at all hours of the night.

Am I really going to have to bear this for a year? I have toilet paper in my ears and it is not working very well. I just want to relax. I guess it's my fault for deciding to come to one of the fastest developing cities in all of China.

Did I mention that I am the kind of guy that just wants peace and quiet? I often don't even watch TV...I just surf the internet with no music or anything playing. They are destroying my peace!

[johntpartee]

[choudoufu]

earplugs, bro. these are awesome.

i can often sleep through the basketball below my bedroom window
at 3am plus the screaming drunk freshmen returning from the ktv.

http://item.taobao.com/item.htm?spm=a230r.1.14.43.fMNdjO&id=22377447156

[Bud Powell]

[chryanvii]

[PBirm123]

[NoBillyNO]

Loud drunks prevail, same when I lived in Miami, didn't matter how much the rent was ... often a crack head or druggie would get their 40 winks on my front stoop with a recently purchased bag of chips for a pillow. Now I live in the 9th floor..... the sound stays down.

[Professional TEFLer]

It sounds like the schools that "pay" for the TEFLer's apartment, puts you guys in dirty, noisy, redneck areas. Why not find an apartment on your own in a nice, quiet area, and pay for it yourself? Just curious.