Job Discussion Forums

littlelauren86 · Joined: 20 Sep 2011 Posts: 94 Location: Korea

Hi,

I am currently deciding on positions at international schools for myself.

However, I have a boyfriend that's going to follow me to China. I'm not sure which city yet, but I've been considering positions in big cities and smaller cities.

My concern is, how difficult would it be for him to follow me and secure a position? He has an online TOEFL and more than a decade of teaching experience in EFL. He does not have a teaching license, so we aren't considering the same type of positions.

I'm not looking to support him financially, and I've seen many low salaries advertised in China. Do you think it's safe for him to follow me? Would he be a competitive candidate for jobs with a decent salary in China?

hdeth · Joined: 20 Jan 2015 Posts: 583

What's a decent salary? How much is he willing to work? What type of school does he want to work for?

littlelauren86 · Joined: 20 Sep 2011 Posts: 94 Location: Korea

He can teach elementary all ages and adults. Just no kindy. He's willing to work, just not for a pittance. $2k US at least would be ideal. I just wanted to see if such jobs were hard to come by, or if we should just stick to the biggest cities.

hdeth · Joined: 20 Jan 2015 Posts: 583

That's probably doable in most cities....really, if he was on your Z-visa he might be quite attractive....no visa process to go through, no fines to pay...plus he could teach entirely private lessons if he wanted to. Probably housing provided through your job?

The jobs that pay peanuts are usually uni gigs that have very low hours.

littlelauren86 · Joined: 20 Sep 2011 Posts: 94 Location: Korea

Is it that easy to put someone who isn't your spouse on your z visa?

Son of Bud Powell · Joined: 04 Mar 2015 Posts: 179 Location: Since 2003

littlelauren86 · Joined: 20 Sep 2011 Posts: 94 Location: Korea

Deats · Joined: 02 Jan 2015 Posts: 503

Ignore the advice about your boyfriend being able to come on your Z visa and work. If you aren't married, then he can't come as your spouse. End of story. So he could get a 1 month tourist visa which is absolutely no use.

In most of the big cities and quite a few smaller ones I'm sure your b/f could secure a job paying $2000 a month - especially if you share your free housing with him, as he could get a stipend instead of the free house that most places offer. So he would only need a job paying 9000Rmb + 3000rmb stipend. Easy. With 10 years experience, native speaker and TEFL, it should be simple. 9000Rmb really isn't much.

He really should apply for jobs BEFORE leaving, as he would have to return to his home country to apply for a Z visa, so this is a waste of time/money if he goes to China first then looks for jobs. Most companies will hire out of country anyway.

If I were him I would start applying immediately to jobs in the cities where you have offers and see if he strikes it lucky.

You could also ask the international schools if they are interested in him. Quite often institutions will take someone with lesser qualifications if it means they can secure someone who they really want. It's worth a go. If nothing else, sometimes schools will have contacts in other schools who employ natives and need a teacher and can put you in touch with them.

Your bf should begin asap as hiring season is coming to a close.

Bear in mind, even if he takes a job paying a little less than 2k but with low hours, he may end up making more money than you as he could pick up a lot of high paying private students in his free time. It's not unheard of to earn in the region of $3,000 a month from private lessons alone.

Son of Bud Powell · Joined: 04 Mar 2015 Posts: 179 Location: Since 2003

littlelauren86 · Joined: 20 Sep 2011 Posts: 94 Location: Korea

Thanks for the information Deats. We don't know much about China, so I wanted to ask and make sure that he would have opportunities to earn a living before I make a decision. As soon as I do, he plans on applying for jobs in the same city.

Markness · Joined: 30 Dec 2009 Posts: 738 Location: Chengdu

Lauren, you're coming off in a way that isn't that pleasant and you're being rather vague. Who are you trying to bring with you? Is he a native English speaker? 10 years of experience teaching where? Your initial post indicates you want to live in a small city in China but you've never been, are you ready even? China is not the same as Korea. You have got to do your research, and if you've got loads of international schools calling for you then why don't you take the plunge? You can let your BF "follow" you to wherever you go but he has to get his own visa. If you aren't married then you can't do squat about it.

Good luck!

nomad-ish · Posted: Wed May 27, 2015 3:12 pm Post subject:

Wow, people are just a little condescending on this thread. i think it has to do with the OP mentioning she's choosing between international school offers. i've spent 3 years in korea and 3 in china, and honestly, while china is a bit rough around the edges, if you've been fine in korea, you should be just fine in china.

OP, i'd suggest you ask the schools you're interested in if they need an EAL support teacher with <insert his credentials here>. like another poster mentioned before me, oftentimes an international school will be able to offer up some kind of work if it means securing a certified teacher for a post they really need. at my international school, spouses have been hired on as EAL support staff, as well as teaching assistants and SEN aids (by a parent). if he's hired on by the school then they'd obviously provide a Z visa for him as well since a spousal visa wouldn't be applicable in this situation.

best of luck!

buravirgil · Posted: Wed May 27, 2015 3:50 pm Post subject:

Son of Bud Powell · Joined: 04 Mar 2015 Posts: 179 Location: Since 2003

Buradude,

I was responding in kind.

Something that hasn't been defined here is what constitutes a small city. A city of 2.5-3M (or smaller) probably won't be able to support any school or mill that will pay the equivalent of $2K (12,400rmb) per month. That's my observation. Anyone who will prove me wrong with a live job offer will go a long way toward helping the OP (and ME. I'm back on the shelf and looking).

Second, the OP's boyfriend's online credentials MAY limit him. Anyone who has spent any time doing job searches will notice that the bar has been raised for FTs. Even if the OP's boyfriend can find a position that pays 12,400rmb ($2K) per month in a small city, would he qualify for it?

I know, there are lots of exceptions. I've seen them myself:

NO EXPERIENCE NECESSARY! NO DEGREE OR CERTIFICATION NECESSARY! FRONTAL LOBES OPTIONAL! The trick is to find a low- requirement school in the same city as the OP's chosen city.

The proposition is backwards. If the couple wants to live and work in the same city. The OP's boyfriend needs to find a job somewhere, then his beloved would have to find one in the same city.

Now, there's the problem of finding an "International" school in a small town. Unless there's are a lot of foreigners living in said small city, one will not find an international school. One may find an exclusive school that caters to the very affluent Chinese and calls itself "international".

One good thing that has resulted from this discussion: the OP now knows that she and her boyfriend must apply for their Z visas from their respective home countries. That's a basic fact. (Yeah, yeah, we all know someone who went to Hong Kong yada yada yada...).

hdeth · Joined: 20 Jan 2015 Posts: 583

Sorry, for some reason I thought I read you were married. Total brain fart there.

Still possible to get a job paying that much. If he likes hussling a bit then a uni job at first might be better. Once he's been in China a year more options will open up. The salary listed on job advertisements is highly negotiable for most places.

Just saw a uni gig in Weihai paying over 8k rmb. Add some private lessons and that could be a pretty sweet deal.

http://jobs.echinacities.com/jobchapter/1354479478