Job Discussion Forums

go_lightly · Joined: 15 Jun 2005 Posts: 27

Hello...i will be teaching in Taipei starting in August (for a chain school) & even though i'm not terribly worried about it, i have a few visible tattoos (nothing offensive) on me. they can be covered up w/ long sleeves but it is hot & humid right now. does anybody have any insight on this? i have not brought this "issue" up to my school yet b/c i don't want to be judged before they even meet me. insight &/or comments anyone?

pcdavid04 · Joined: 19 May 2005 Posts: 19

hey,

this is totally off your topic but we talked before about going to latin america...nixed that idea eh?

also, when are you going to be arriving in taipei? i'm getting there on august 21st.. perhaps we could meet up and have a beer?

i am planning on staying at the taiwanmex hostel...

Ki · Joined: 23 Jul 2004 Posts: 475

Visible tattoos will hinder your success at landing the job. Something to do with their traditional ties with mafia. Most contracts have clauses prohibiting you from having visible tattoos and piercings. That said, the population in Taipei is becoming more open to the idea of tattoos. Outside of Taipei you are more likely to encounter small town mentality. Some schools will be okay with it. Especially if you have all of the other qualities they look for [white, young, degree, experience, etc]. Others won't. Not sure if chain schools would be more open to the idea or not.

Wear a long sleeve shirt to the interview. Don't mention it or say anything unless they ask. Then just wear short sleeved shirts to work. They may even have a uniform shirt for you to wear.

clark.w.griswald · Joined: 06 Dec 2004 Posts: 2056

I agree that it is a bit of a mixed bag. It is unilkely to cost you your job, but you may find some schools may choose not to hire you if they have a choice. So don't give them a choice. Make yourself the most suitable applicant in all other regards!

Sheep-Goats · Joined: 16 Apr 2004 Posts: 527

Wear long sleeves. They really aren't that much hotter and the heat here isn't really that damn bad.

A teaching applicant was visiting our school last week. Canadian, little tatoo line peeping out of his sleeve, wearing a yellow printed T-shirt and shorts. He had more relevant experience than I did and speaks more Chinese, but to be honest he got a pretty cold reception from the staff here. When I showed up the first time I was in a tailored business shirt and tie, which is a holdover from Thailand and probably overkill, but it really smoothed a lot of bumps.

If you were an employer and were running a business that depends on image for its success, your little tattoos would seem much more serious.

zealflyer · Joined: 22 Sep 2004 Posts: 13 Location: Winnipeg, MB

There's a teacher with sleeve tattoos at my school. Management knows that he has them and they don't seem to mind. However, they do make him wear long sleeve shirts - even when it's damn hot.

Ki · Joined: 23 Jul 2004 Posts: 475

Schools do have and use air conditioning. The temperature outside has little relevance to the temperature inside. Wearing long sleaves indoors should be of little trouble to you. It is the getting to and from work which would be more bothersome. My school requires me to wear shoes to work but I have to change into sandels when I get there anyway. So what is the point in wearing shoes at all? I did ask them in all earnest at my interview. They said it was okay as long as I at least wore socks to work. But the co-teachers there never seem to wear socks so maybe it is a foreigner rule. Too many hairy feet maybe.

Piercings are at least removable. Tattoos may be troublesome but yours seem manageable. If you find a nice job then try not to make it an issue until you have been there for a while. If nothing has been said about it then avoid making it an issue until you at least prove yourself as a teacher. If you are a pretty crap teacher then avoid making it as an issue period.

go_lightly · Joined: 15 Jun 2005 Posts: 27

thanks for all the insight & advice so far. long sleeves no problem...but do most schools have formal dress codes? i tutored in a buxiban outside of Taipei a few years ago & all the staff & teachers dressed pretty casually. maybe in Taipei it's a little different. also, having visible tattoos more of an issue for teaching young children (parental concern), or adults (general perception of professionalism)? i'll be teaching for Kojen & i'd like to teach both children & adults. also, i am not a crap teacher, just a teacher w/ some crap, but meaningful tattoos on her arms Wink

Girl Scout · Joined: 13 Jan 2005 Posts: 525 Location: Inbetween worlds

Dress is very casual in the buxiban schools. Clean and tasteful is really all that is required. My school has slightly higher standards, but we cater to rich families whose children wear Why & 1/2 to school everyday. One thing my school openly said they liked are teacher who wear shirts with university logo on them.

scott14 · Joined: 30 Oct 2004 Posts: 50

Some of my students seem to like to show their tattoos off. I have many tattoos, some of which I�ve gotten in Taiwan. The only visible one covers most of my foot, part of the Canadian Tae Kwon Do Team initiation. It�s too hot in the south not to wear sandals. Never had a problem working anywhere in Asia. People here love to hear the stories behind them, especially women. Good excuse to get undressed.

Rice Paddy Daddy · Joined: 11 Jul 2004 Posts: 425 Location: Japan

Taiwanese like tattoos - especially young girls.

You won't have a problem. I don't really think you need to mention it to your school. I know guys with tattys that work in EFL - with kids and adults.

Ink sucks but I still don't think anyone will give you any grief over it.

If this were Japan, then you'd probably run into some problems.

Aristotle · Joined: 16 Jan 2003 Posts: 1388 Location: Taiwan

In the past Tattoos were seen as marks of membership in (men) or ownership by (women) the various organized crime gangs (triads or tongs) on Taiwan.
The style and symbols of these tattoos are quite different from what most people not in gangs would get.
If you are excessively tatattooed on areas that can not be covered by clothing you may have to get work through an agent or work for lower wages at one of the thousands of chain schools.
I have only met one teacher who had a problem because of tattoos and his where Maori tribal tattoos covering a large portion of his face. He did find work but it took a while. I suspect that it may have more to do with the fact that he was of a darker complexion than most racist Taiwanese employers prefer.
Good luck!
A.

Fortigurn · Joined: 29 Oct 2003 Posts: 390

I noticed today at my Kojen school in Shilin, that one of the children's teachers (male, foreigner), has a large tatto almost the full length of his calf, which actually extends from just above his ankle to just below his knee. It's also quite wide.

He wears shorts and sandals. No one seems to mind.

ramakentesh · Joined: 05 Mar 2005 Posts: 145

Half the teachers I see here in Taipei have large visible tattoos...