Job Discussion Forums

[seamlessvoid]

I was wondering if anyone could answer a few basic questions about thelife in Shanghai. I hold a university degree and a TESOL certificate with 6 months teaching experience in Hanoi.

There seems to bo loads of teaching jobs in Shanghai. True?
What can I expect to earn by working 25 hours per week.

What can I expect to pay for an aparment and are decent apartments easy to come by.

How about day to day expenses. Food etc?


Is there a lot to do in the city aside from drinking, you can drink in any city in the world. Are there a lot of day trips or weekend trips you can take outside the city.

Your help is appreciated

Cheers

[jg]

There is currently a comprehensive thread about apartments in Shanghai in the off-topic forum, and Shanghai has jobs galore. Places of interest within 6 hours roundtrip of Shanghai include - Suzhou, Hangzhou, Nanjing, Ningbo, and Shaoxing. Wuxi is also within striking distance but hardly a place of interest. Many of the aforementioned cities are along the Great Canal, which is interesting in and of itself.

I eat breakfast and lunch for less than 30 RMB (together), but thats mostly breads, bakery goods, dumplings, the occasional piece of fruit and a carton of yogurt. The bus is 2 RMB, the train never more than 5. Of course if you want there are restaurants and shops that will charge you up the wazoo.

There is a bit to do besides drinking, but its best to do it after you've been drinking, or before. Shanghai is not what its made out to be, except as an experiment in enormity. You can make money here though, thats for certain. Come get some.

[bigroh73]

GEtting a job here isn't that difficult - quite easy. Find a good job where you aren't screwed over is a bit more challenging, but certainly possible if you're cautious and don't jump in the deep end too quickly. Don't believe everything you here.

20-25hrs teaching is the normal FT load here. Universities/schools will pay anywhere from 4,000 to 6,000rmb/mth plus apartment - make sure you get that on top.
Private places these days are going for 7500-10,000/mth as the norm at the moment. Once again - be careful about the place - do some research and make sure you ask all the right ?s about the job - and ask other people abt it before you sign up.
If you want a FT gig, make sure the school arrange your Z-visa BEFORE YOU COME here to SH.

Once you've been here a few months, you will be able to work out how to earn 10-12,000/mth quite easily if you're smart about it, do a bit of private tutoring or extra weekend work, etc.

Assuming U R not sharing with others, a 2 bedroom apartment (if you like the extra space) ranges from 1500/mth (very chinese style in the suburbs) up to 3,000/mth for a good acceptable standard. Most "normal" apartments range abt 2200-2800/mth. If you want to live in central areas like downtown, then that price will only get you an older-style apartment. But shop around, coz you can sometimes get an older apartment with a good quality interior for that price downtown too.

You will want to limit the amount of time you spend in a western bar here in SH. Too bloody expensive, unless you get into the local ones, which can be ok, sometimes. Living on 50-70rmb/day would be plenty for food and transport (bus/train). I sometimes spend up to 500/week at Carrefour, and that allows me to eat very well at home.

The daytrips, or even the occasional weekend, out of Shanghai 3-4hrs away are certainly well worth doing. Plenty of students are happy to be your free tour guide (you pay their expense) to anywhere you go, so they can practise their english.