Job Discussion Forums

[alisonvcartwright]

i'm trying to figure out my plan of action.

i want to go to china, and i think the best way possible would be to teach english.... do you need a TEFL certificate to do this in china?

i'm a photographer, currently living in New York, but i want a change and a new life experience for the next year or so. i will always want to make pictures... and i can also do that anywhere on the side....

i'm a big city person, and i love to photograph urban areas, so i figure china is a place to go in the world. but i'm split between going to a remote area in the west or sticking to a larger city in the east, where maybe i could find some freelance photo work or int'l press work as well.

anyone have any ideas?

and yes i've been reading some travel lit. i'm just feeling indecisive about all the immense possibilities.

[Spiderman Too]

Your question, or I should say the answer to your question, is so very subjective Alison.

The most important factor when considering living & working in China is location. China is a very large, very diverse country. Life can be heaven or hell depending on your chosen location.

Generally speaking, I think it is much better to live in most, but not all, provincial capitals (in China).

I started my tour in a small village, 40 minutes by bus from a small city, 3 hours by bus from a big city. For me, the novelty of experiencing the �real China� was overtaken by boredom and frustration after 4 months into my 6 month term; no nightlife, no western food restaurants, no English language TV, internet access only via the school�s network, (very slow, monitored and frequent down-times), 10:00 pm curfew (the time at which the gates to the school�s compound were locked) + the last bus back to the school departed at 7:00 pm everyday, and deprivation of day-to-day groceries and the like (mouthwash, dental floss, cheese, butter, margarine, beef, to name a few). And then there's the relentless staring, the spitting, the pushing & shoving.

You don�t need a TESOL to teach in China but you do need a university degree ( to be 100% legal, but there are some exceptions), which can be in any field.

[amandabarrick]

Shanghai has some great urban areas for photographing.
Remember, whether you decide to live and work in a big city in the east or a remote area in the west, you can always travel to the other for photography purposes as English teachers frequently have holidays and vacation time, at least that has been my experience in public schools.
Being it your first time in China, I would suggest a big or moderately big city in the east with at least some western amenities, decent public transportation, entertainment, access to daily necessities, etc...

[Babala]

I agree with both other posters. I would say definately choose a larger city for your first time here. As Spiderman says, going to small remote city may sound good but the novelty wears off quickly. You can do a search for threads on good cities to live in, there's lots of info there.

[HunanForeignGuy]

[Spiderman Too]