Job Discussion Forums

goeastyoung(ish)man! · Joined: 09 Jun 2003 Posts: 139 Location: back in US

I have been trying to get a nice university job in order to experience the least amount of hassles and culture shock possible. However, as another poster put it, I had my eggs in one basket and things aren't working out. I have a couple of other prospects but it is getting really late to a)come to an agreement, b) have the school send an approved invite, c) obtain a z-visa with said invite and d) aquire an airline ticket at a reasonable price with advance purchase.

Assuming none of my other negotiations pan out, I think I will fly to Hong Kong visa -free and obtain a tourist visa there to visit the mainland and look for work. A few questions:

1. Am I better off looking for work in the major cities i.e. Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou? If so which would be better to scrounge up good work quickly? (I will drop my universities-only attitude.) If not those cities, where? I speak yi dianr Mandarin so I was thinking Beijing for more practice, but work is my main goal.

2. Regarding the tourist visa: I found on other threads where to go to find the travel agencies, cheap hostels/hotels etc in HK. Is it necessary to pretend like I'm only a tourist and that I'm not looking for work as a teacher? I was hoping to bring a couple of teaching related books with me and will be bringing diplomas and the like, of course. What to write on the forms?

3. In HK do I need some type of invitation to obtain the tourist visa?

As I said, I still have a possibility to do things the easier way, but I want to research worst case scenarios since I WILL be coming.

Minhang Oz · Joined: 23 Apr 2003 Posts: 610 Location: Shanghai,ex Guilin

If you look in www.thatsmagazines.com you'll find editions for the cities you mention. In the classifieds there are many teaching vacancies advertised. Most are language schools. Pay rates are generally good, though you may have to cobble a few part time jobs together. Corporate work is nice if you can get a foot in the door. I'm getting 250/hour for one gig.

You don't need invitations for a tourist visa generally speaking, unless your nation is particularly hostile to the PRC. Just list some popular tourist cities and put the address of a hotel in the first mainland city you're arriving in. Guangzhou could be a good starting point, or Shenzhen, as there is generally plenty of work advertised. Then the visa run's a breeze. Other cities involve a lot of travel.

If you're after something in Shanghai, PM me your details, and I'll keep an eye out. It's common for new signings to get cold feet and leave late vacancies to be filled.

Burl Ives · Joined: 17 Jul 2003 Posts: 226 Location: Burled, PRC

Cobra · Joined: 28 Jul 2003 Posts: 436

Today there are 35 uni jobs being advertised on seven web sites. What is the exact nature of your problem?

Roger · Joined: 19 Jan 2003 Posts: 9138

Flying to HK is a good option.
You can buy a tourist visa for up to six months, multiple entries, at a travel agency (the Japan Travel Ltd., for instance).
The forms ask stupid questions whose answers no one bothers to read, but you should fill in a bogus address (Guangzhou Youth Hostel, for example!), and a couple more cities on the mainland. Your visa will not list them (unlike a Russian visa!).
Ditto for your profession; no one will ask you questions. Looking for a job is not discouraged from anyway!

The "That's" magazines are great stuff but I doubt the adverts work out so well. There are too many readers out there. There is another magazine 'Guangzhou Today - but this is available as a hard copy only. It has more opportunities but appears only every month.

Anyway, from HK your next place to visit would be Guangdong. This is the province with the most jobs and the most open cities - Shenzhen (just across the border from HK), Dongguan, Shantou, Guangzhou, Zhaoqing, Foshan, Shunde, Zhongshan, Zhuhai, Nanhai, Zhanjiang, Shaoguan; I suggest you avoid Maoming, Dongguan (between HK and Guangzhou).

There may be two reasons why you have no definite offer:
- It's summer holiday season, and most universities are closed;
adverts may run, but no one will answer!
- And then again, each advertisement pulls in several hundred
applications. Being available for a face-to-face interview is an
advantage!

Good luck
Roger