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bluetortilla
Joined: 18 Apr 2006
Posts: 815
Location: Henan
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 Posted: Mon Dec 28, 2015 2:53 pm Post subject: worry worry worry time again |
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Long story but because of a passport expiration I could only get six months R.P. of a year's contract. Everything was re-written and my FAO assured me I'd get an extension when the time came (NOW!!). Well, nearly three weeks ago I gave her my expired passport and the new one I got. She said she'd have the extension done within December, but hey- t's now almost January and it won't be long before everybody takes off for vacation. My R.P. expires Jan. 31st.
It seems no matter where I'm at in China extensions, renewals, etc. always turn out to be nail biters. How can I just relax, drink my tea and keep cool?
If something does indeed go very wrong, how do I go about staying here? I mean, I know I would probably have to make a visa run and all that, but how do I find public uni's who are will be looking for replacements for teachers that didn't work out or suddenly created positions? What are my chances of finding work in my local area and how could I inquire about that? The last thing I'd want is a mill job but I'd take it if that was my only choice (Plan X). Is it as easy as the job board looks to get such a job?
Ah well, don't know if I'll get much comfort but hopefully some of you are in or are occasionally in the same boat. Basically my FAO is a friendly, good sort of person but mighty slooooooooooooooow. So you never know, something could go south (hopefully not me). |
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OhBudPowellWhereArtThou
Joined: 02 Jun 2015
Posts: 1168
Location: Since 2003
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| Posted: Mon Dec 28, 2015 4:23 pm Post subject: |
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Maybe I'm naive, but I'd go to the PSB before they come to you.
Less drastic would be to go to your city FAO.
Caveat: you will be calling your employer's bluff, and if your employer isn't playing by the book, you may get caught in the middle. |
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7969
Joined: 26 Mar 2003
Posts: 5782
Location: Coastal Guangdong
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| Posted: Mon Dec 28, 2015 4:32 pm Post subject: Re: worry worry worry time again |
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| bluetortilla wrote: |
| It seems no matter where I'm at in China extensions, renewals, etc. always turn out to be nail biters. How can I just relax, drink my tea and keep cool? |
If this is always happening to you then I don't think the problem is with the schools. In this case you probably should/could have renewed your passport earlier, or done it before you took a new job. Some countries will renew a passport anytime within the last year if you have a good reason. Looks like you're kind of stuck with this school till you get the new RP back now. If you're school's legit then they'll probably get it done. |
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bluetortilla
Joined: 18 Apr 2006
Posts: 815
Location: Henan
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| Posted: Mon Dec 28, 2015 5:25 pm Post subject: Re: worry worry worry time again |
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| 7969 wrote: |
If this is always happening to you then I don't think the problem is with the schools. In this case you probably should/could have renewed your passport earlier, or done it before you took a new job. Some countries will renew a passport anytime within the last year if you have a good reason. Looks like you're kind of stuck with this school till you get the new RP back now. If you're school's legit then they'll probably get it done. |
Well, to be fair it's only been two colleges, so I hope I've just been unlucky. Both are accredited, average ranking, and have good relations with the PSB, local party, etc. My colleague also had a hard time, and as I remember only got his docs a couple of days before teaching. I've not been unhappy with my schools in any way or they with me, and nothing seems shady; I just think the FAO's swamped and is probably putting off my file, figuring she still has time. I don't have a reason to think that my contract is not going to be extended, but the longer my FAO puts it off the closer we get to the break and the higher the chance of something going wrong. I guess I'll just keep on politely asking her when it's going to get done.
I'm a pretty easy-going mellow type but this last minute R.P. just in time stuff is always unnerving. And I have not been able to see a way to hedge bets with other schools because any school will demand a lot of commitment and paperwork well beforehand, making it hard to back out. It's pretty much set up as one school one visa deal as we all know.
Yeah, all my own fault with the passport. I didn't occur to me that if your pp will expire during the contract period, it ain't going to work out. Well, learned that lesson. I guess that should help me see the things that face my FAO better. She deals with hundreds of pp's maybe (mostly Chinese students getting ready to study abroad). For all concerned, most governments advise you to renew six months ahead of expiration, but if you work abroad like us, make that a year plus. |
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The bear
Joined: 16 Aug 2015
Posts: 483
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| Posted: Mon Dec 28, 2015 10:57 pm Post subject: Re: worry worry worry time again |
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[quote="bluetortilla"]
| 7969 wrote: |
Well, to be fair it's only been two colleges, so I hope I've just been unlucky. Both are accredited, average ranking, and have good relations with the PSB, local party, etc. My colleague also had a hard time, and as I remember only got his docs a couple of days before teaching. I've not been unhappy with my schools in any way or they with me, and nothing seems shady; I just think the FAO's swamped and is probably putting off my file, figuring she still has time. I don't have a reason to think that my contract is not going to be extended, but the longer my FAO puts it off the closer we get to the break and the higher the chance of something going wrong. I guess I'll just keep on politely asking her when it's going to get done.
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I'm curious when people say this, how do you know they have good relations with the PSB/government?
My passport was due to expire in October 2016, so when I was back in the west last summer (July 2015) I got a new passport. Didn't want anything unexpected to happen when/if I changed jobs in the summer. Or have to go through the process of transferring a visa/RP.
To be honest, if I remember your username, you've got good qualifications and experience so finding work shouldn't be a problem, even in the Spring. May be more of an issue finding work in a specific city, depending on that city. But that's if your university doesn't pull through. |
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bluetortilla
Joined: 18 Apr 2006
Posts: 815
Location: Henan
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| Posted: Tue Dec 29, 2015 2:07 am Post subject: Re: worry worry worry time again |
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| The bear wrote: |
I'm curious when people say this, how do you know they have good relations with the PSB/government? |
Well, ha, sure- who knows really? And things can change quickly I'm sure. I just say this based on the observation that she knew everyone at the PSB, all smiles, etc., and the fact that she's a party member, which must mean something or why else would people work so hard to get membership? But no, it's just conjecture. Maybe when people say that they're just being hopeful...
| The bear wrote: |
| My passport was due to expire in October 2016, so when I was back in the west last summer (July 2015) I got a new passport. Didn't want anything unexpected to happen when/if I changed jobs in the summer. Or have to go through the process of transferring a visa/RP. |
Hopefully I won't have to do all that, but not renewing my passport early caused me and the FAO extra legwork, paperwork, and headaches. I should have taken care of it of course, but even so with everything in order many or most of us still have to go through the renewal ordeal every year. I haven't been able to find a way around it yet. I'm working on it.
| The bear wrote: |
| To be honest, if I remember your username, you've got good qualifications and experience so finding work shouldn't be a problem, even in the Spring. May be more of an issue finding work in a specific city, depending on that city. But that's if your university doesn't pull through. |
Thanks for the encouragement. It's not for a lack of positions that I worry, and no, I'm not picky anymore about location so much (I used to be and that landed me in a dead end in Yunnan- work for mills or leave the country for a while- I left), it's just all the trauma of having to go through the whole long arduous process again, getting used to new faces, new ways of doing things, etc. But in the end I'm always happy just to have a job (for me that means in a uni.). Besides, this is a great school, nice mellow area and I'd like to stay here for some years if I can. Actually I just texted my FAO and she texted back asking me to come to the office later to sign the contract. So it seems you just have to be persistent here- polite, but persistent. Otherwise they might forget all about you and lose you in the mortar dust!  |
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bluetortilla
Joined: 18 Apr 2006
Posts: 815
Location: Henan
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| Posted: Tue Dec 29, 2015 2:07 am Post subject: Re: worry worry worry time again |
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| The bear wrote: |
I'm curious when people say this, how do you know they have good relations with the PSB/government? |
Well, ha, sure- who knows really? And things can change quickly I'm sure. I just say this based on the observation that she knew everyone at the PSB, all smiles, etc., and the fact that she's a party member, which must mean something or why else would people work so hard to get membership? But no, it's just conjecture. Maybe when people say that they're just being hopeful...
| The bear wrote: |
| My passport was due to expire in October 2016, so when I was back in the west last summer (July 2015) I got a new passport. Didn't want anything unexpected to happen when/if I changed jobs in the summer. Or have to go through the process of transferring a visa/RP. |
Hopefully I won't have to do all that, but not renewing my passport early caused me and the FAO extra legwork, paperwork, and headaches. I should have taken care of it of course, but even so with everything in order many or most of us still have to go through the renewal ordeal every year. I haven't been able to find a way around it yet. I'm working on it.
| The bear wrote: |
| To be honest, if I remember your username, you've got good qualifications and experience so finding work shouldn't be a problem, even in the Spring. May be more of an issue finding work in a specific city, depending on that city. But that's if your university doesn't pull through. |
Thanks for the encouragement. It's not for a lack of positions that I worry, and no, I'm not picky anymore about location so much (I used to be and that landed me in a dead end in Yunnan- work for mills or leave the country for a while- I left), it's just all the trauma of having to go through the whole long arduous process again, getting used to new faces, new ways of doing things, etc. But in the end I'm always happy just to have a job (for me that means in a uni.). Besides, this is a great school, nice mellow area and I'd like to stay here for some years if I can. Actually I just texted my FAO and she texted back asking me to come to the office later to sign the contract. So it seems you just have to be persistent here- polite, but persistent. Otherwise they might forget all about you and lose you in the mortar dust! |
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