Job Discussion Forums

[djwheat]

As the title says, which agents are decent to use (if any?)

Trying to avoid scams, seems like a mine field and a headache!

[LeiFeng]

The best agents to use are those suggested as decent on internet forums by strangers.

As an aside, I've worked in China for years and never ran across a scam. Not one. I must be doing something wrong.

[djwheat]

I guess you haven't seen the blacklist.. The fact that China is 30% down on teachers compared to last year due to the amount of people being scammed.. Once you're in one of these contracts, that's it, there is no escape, I'd like to avoid that.

There are surely people who have used one agent for a while who would personally recommend them. Something like that is all I'm looking for.

Which agent do you use? Have you always used the same one?

[LeiFeng]

Sorry if my last reply seemed snarky. What do you mean by agent? If you mean recruiters, I can give the contact details of a few who have been very helpful. If you mean something more, then I'd suggest not bothering with agents at all (since you have seen information that worries you), and looking for jobs through recruiters, or direct-hire positions. I happen to never have used a placement agency, so I can't recommend any.

If you're worried about being scammed, then I would suggest: A) don't pay money for job opportunities, in any form, B) make sure you come to China and start work with valid paperwork, C) verify the actual name of the employer before you accept the job, do a Google search on them, and talk to previous employees to get a feel for what the place is like. If you do all of these things, you are very unlikely to have any problems.