Job Discussion Forums

[SydGirl2]

Hi there! Can anyone give me a rough idea of salaries in study centres and language schools in HK? Also is an accommodation allowance usually offered? The main reason I am asking is that some ads ask for all the usual details plus"expected salary". I would like to be realistic when giving a figure. Thanks.

[hkteach]

Study centres and language schools don't usually offer an acoommodation allowance. They pay your salary (maybe!!) and that's it.

Many of these jobs are part-time and pay perhaps HK250-300 an hour.
Some of them will sponsor teachers re. a workvisa (but many won't because the salary they offer,esp. for part-time work, is not good and will cause immigration dept to ask a lot of questions re. how a foreigner could live here on that salary). I don't know the minimum that immigration considers ok, but many centres are reluctant to sponsor workvisas.

Most language centres require teachers to work on Saturdays. Some require evening work. Most of them want teachers to teach phonics (sometimes to 3 year olds!!!!!!)
Many of them place their teachers into schools as ELTAs (the owners make a lot of $$ but pay the teacher a small amount of this total.

Use caution with language centres - many here have been burnt by working for centres who didn't pay them (if you do a trawl through these posts, you may find the threads).

[Smoog]

$20k a month is the most you could hope for in a tutorial centre.
Working hours would be mostly afterschool, from 3pm up to 9pm weekdays (some morning work as well) and all day Saturday (9am to 9pm). Some are now open Sunday as well.

They'd expect either 5 1/2 days a week or 5 days with Sunday and a 'discretionary' day off during the week. Discretionary means the manager can call you in at any time, whenever he feels like it, to cover. If you're not available during that discretionary day off when he calls, you're in breach of your contract and they can fire you over it.

Most arrange inschool courses with local public schools (usually drama or speech). So you might also be expected to travel anywhere in HK, KLN or NT to do a 1 or 2 hour lesson during school hours then back again. Travel nor travelling hours of course wouldn't be paid for.
I once worked for a centre in North Point and was made to do a 2 hour drama course in Tuen Mun. I had 1 lesson inhouse at 9-10am, had to immediately leave in order to get to Tuen Mun by 11.30am for the drama course, then run out of the school at 1.30pm in order to get back to NorthPoint by 3pm when I had further classes. My first real break was at 5-6pm, and I had 2 more classes after that. Boss of course saw it differently: Between 10am-3pm I only taught for 2 hours. The fact you can't eat on the MTR wasn't his fault/problem.

[roset]

a language school will offer around 12k ish. i worked in one for a year and thats all i got. my accomodation was paid for but not bills or taxes. working hours were six days a week, 9-6.30, two days were half days. It was long and tiring and a lot of work. i knew a lot of people on the NET scheme and was thinking of changing, never did though and managed to stay the year.

12k was (just) enough and i didn't starve, but hearing from others i know i could have got more. still, i had a great time, and no regrets.