Job Discussion Forums

[Tomjonesman]

Anybody ever heard of or worked for Beijing Normal University in Zuhai, Guanghzo (southern China)? If so, any news would be appreciated.

[Super Mario]

Heres a link to the BNU homepage, which may lead you somewhere.
I remember being offered a position at the Zhuhai campus when it was starting up around 4 years ago. From memory it was a sort of prep course for senior high school students, but things are probably different now.

http://www.bnu.edu.cn/eng/

[Ariadne]

I worked there for the 2004-2005 school year and loved it. The uni is quite a way from downtown Zhuhai, but bus service is pretty good. There is a nearby village, Jin Ding, with a great pizza place run by a very nice English guy. Classes were usually around 30-35, but most of them met only once every two weeks for two hours. The apartments on campus are very comfortable. They used to pay a per month salary, but now they pay by the hour only, which means no pay for holidays. I worked for the Faculty of Foreign Languages, but there were several different programs on campus with different salaries and responsibilities. Macau is just across the border from Zhuhai and it is a wonderful city. You can get to HK easily by ferry from Zhuhai or Macau.

.

[Mosley]

Ah, how fortuitous that this topic should appear-for now I can make the post that should've been available to me & other potential victims a year ago. For BNU-Zhuhai...i.e. the Faculty of Foreign Languages(FFL) provides perhaps the worst EFL contract in all of the PRC(if not all of E. Asia).
If you choose to work for this outfit, be warned-you'll be working by the HOUR which means that you aren't paid for holidays! Nor are you paid for marking, lesson planning, etc. Even more insulting, you are not paid for English Corners, speech contests, special lectures & staff meeetings. But get this: if you miss any of those, you are liable for a salary deduction! Every term, 20% of your pay is withheld to make sure you're a good little boy who won't complain about the BS you've been sucked into.

Alright-here's the nitty gritty: a 10 month contract netted me Y67,578. Sounds OK "for China"? Well, keep these tidbits in mind (1) 16000 of that total wasn't paid until the last week of the contract!(2)That last total INCLUDES your airfare reimbursement(3)By a convenient coincidence, 16000 was the cost of my initial investment in taking the job: return airfare, 2 visas, health certificate, apartment deposit & barely enough to live on till the first payday-2 mos. after arrival. So really I made 51,578-an amount that was wildly distributed over the contract term. Bear in mind that I did little travelling/shopping during the contract, but only broke even on the deal. Sound like a worthwhile place to spend a year of your life?
Other reasons to avoid this contract:
1)You'll work for atrocious management-a Chinese dean who you never get to talk to & a Western "director" who defies description of incompetent leadership. It would take a psychiatrist's conference research paper to properly describe this guy. Suffice it to say that not only does he not care about you, but rather, he holds you in utter contempt, especially if you're a good teacher and/or dare to complain about anything. His meetings have 2 purposes: to give him lesson ideas & some semblance of a social life.
2)You are given zero for curricular support. OTOH, if a student or spy(aka "monitor") complains about your lesson(s), your a-- is grass.
3) Two fine foreign teachers(IMHO) were fired from FFL for no other reason than they were dedicated & didn't put up w/s---. 'Nuff said? And no, I wasn't one of them-though I'm sure I'd've been turfed if I'd been silly enough to ask for a 2nd contract.
4)I was promised a 16 hr. wk. which soon became a 20 hr.wk. & then 24-the latter in direct violation of the contract.
5) No printer in the crappy computer room. No A/C in the classrooms.
6)The campus is very isolated w/lots of construction noise-very demoralizing.
Sigh. I could go on & on . Let me just finish by saying that the FFL teachers I worked with were, despite some personal differences, a fine bunch in 2005-06. FFL didn't deserve them.

Don't work for FFL. And if you do, rage against the management. HAND

[southern bluefin]

Hi Mosely
I appreciate your detailed comments about the money, etc.

I am interested in going to Zhuhai. Out of interest, if someone were to live in the campus accommodation, would RMB$2,000 per month [with the rest to be saved] be a realistic budget? I don't mind extra hours.

This may be a silly question - do you need an apartment deposit if you want to go into the campus accom?

Did fans in the classroom make the topical conditions bearable?

Thanks for any insights you can provide.

[Horizontal Hero]

Are you referring to the United International College there? There have been positions advertised for this new campus. I went there a few weeks ago. If this is what you are talking about, forget all the other advice offered. The pay is the best in China for a uni: 12 000 -18 000 per month, and paid right through hoildays.

[Mosley]

I'm not sure about the outfit that Horizontal is referring to-but if it's on the level it's definitely worth checking out.

S. Bluefin: As far as a realistic budget goes, keep in mind that w/FFL @BNU-Z you will average something like 5000-5500/mo. With FFL that is NOT paid every month...during holiday periods you get paid squat. You can live OK...but forget about saving much unless you're a monkish hermit.

I had to pay 500 quai on my first day on campus for an apt. deposit. I got most of that back 10 mos. later & was basically made to feel guilty about getting that back! If you are silly enough to ask for a 2nd contract, get this: for the 1-2 mos. between contracts you will be charged rent for the contract break period! Unheard of, as far as I know....

Fans in classrooms? Forget about it...w/o A/C you'll sweat like a banshee....

Bottom line? Give FFL a miss...a wide miss....

[HunanForeignGuy]

To all of the previous posters,

I am in GZ and I can assure you that Mosley's advice on this is very, very pertinent and on the mark. Something is going on down there -- that is for sure. They have been recruiting throughout the academic year for teachers on an ASAP basis, which, in Guangdong in any case, indicates trouble.

I have an acquaintance who went through the process but declined them and his comments quite frankly are very similar to those of Mosley.

I once had the "pleasure" of working for a "white foreign overseer" in China who treated the rest of the foreign teachers as if we were plantation staff and thus I can readily understand what Mosley writes.

There are numerous jobs in Zhuhai. Do a site google on www.eslteachersboard.com under the China job section and you will find them.

This is an "avoid-at-all-costs".


HFG

[southern bluefin]

Hi all - thanks for those posts. Horizontal H. - can I just ask you to clarify if you don't mind, your advice to 'forget all you heard'. Are you saying the bad points are not applicable in UIC as it is a completely different and pleasant working environment, or do you mean that the bad points are still applicable but the money makes up for them?

If the negative aspects are universal on that campus, then that's sad and probably has put me off going there. Looking at the campus (http://www.bnuep.com/english/picture.htm), and the accommodation (can anyone confirm whether or not this is what teacher's get to live in?) http://www.bnuep.com/schoolpic/DSC00610.jpg, [url] http://www.bnuep.com/schoolpic/DSC00614.jpg [/url] - this appeals to me.

[englishgibson]

sorry to pop in, but why do they call sooo many schools in china "NORMAL"

peace to normal, subnormal or abnormal schools in china
and
cheers and beers to all the hard working teachers in

[HunanForeignGuy]

[abusalam4]

...seems to be place where the management makes money on the back of foreign teachers. Paying by the hour - what a "wonderful" treatment!
My advice: Forget it and do not work for them, DO NOT GO THERE!
They are still looking for teachers, hopefully they won't find any!

[Mosley]

If I understand the current FFL ad on Dave's, now they expect teachers to have at least a Masters???!!! Good grief....

[A'Moo]

I am always amused at the qualifications some of these outfits are requiring.They should be enthralled with a 12 year old Czech boy teaching,with the renumeration they offer.Oh,sorry,I have forgotten,they offer so much more...."Come and experience the legendary area of ----zhou,birthplace of the culture of the zhan/pan/flan/orangutan dynasty,home of the super happy lucky shiny seven seas auspicious dragon temple,where famous chinese poets wrote "in the sky,there is God,and on earth,there is ----zhou"...."Please keep in mind,3800y is more than a doctor makes here,so hop on that high horse that you have dreamed of since childhood,and tell all friends and acquaintances that getting into medicine in China is for fools!!!!You will be teaching CCP members kids,who were too lazy to get into a real school,20 contact hours per week,and another 50 hours per week telling said CCP members how truly brilliant their offspring are...feign a lack of Chinese,to keep your sanity.You will greet these kids everyday,meet them in front of the homage to the legendary martyrs statue in front of the school-look for the 2006 Lexuses pulling up,the ones bought on that 4000y CCP salary.Take your job seriously,Obi-wan,you are their only hope.Those parents will either be in Australia in two years,thanks to your studious efforts at teaching,or will be feeling the wrath of red punishment...."

[mondrian]