Job Discussion Forums

[clayrview]

I've been scouring the net for the last couple of weeks, and seem to be coming up with very little in the way of good paying jobs in China.
I'd be happy to settle on a smaller income, but unfortunately have big student loans to take care of!

I'm a licensed Canadian primary school teacher with 1 years experience teaching in Korea, and one year in England.
Is it still possible to find higher paying jobs (8000-12000 with housing/some flight paid) at this time of the year, or will looking forward to January be my only option?

I'd like to go somewhere as soon as possible, as my boyfriend (from England) is also a teacher looking for work in China, and we're getting sick of being stuck in separate countries.

Any advice would be great!

[happigur1]

Since you are a certified teacher, you should be looking into international schools- the pay is higher. Are you looking on your own? Have you tried looking through search associates? But even then, it might take you awhile to set up an account through them. Even though it is pretty late, there are some openings as schools realize either (1) enrollments are too high or (2) teachers are not showing up/quitting. If might be tough, however, to find a job at the same place with your boyfriend.

[nobleignoramus]

Those better-paying positions have mostlygone during the past hiring exercise; those still available may be open all yearround dueto high attritionrates.

[alter ego]

With a teacher's license from your home country you can apply for the higher-paying jobs that require this credential, and from what I've seen most of these jobs are in Taiwan rather than the mainland. There are international schools (also called bilingual schools) in most if not all of China's major cities that would also hire you.

From my experience, international schools tend to pay a few thousand more for licensed teachers, and generally offer a housing allowance rather than accommodation. Some of these schools also have on-campus dorms where teachers can choose to live rent-free.

There seem to be a lot of older, semi-retired expat teachers at these schools, with a few young guns in the mix. You could certainly find a job in the salary range you mentioned but as others have pointed out these schools do most of their hiring during the summer breaks.

[underthesky]

I'm also in the same position as the original poster.

I'm scouting Guangdong at the moment and it seems very difficult to find a reputable school that pays well. Better keep trying though.

I've got a BA and CELTA but no experience.

[Renegade_o_Funk]

The questionable chain schools in every big city are always hiring. More than likely you will have to come over on a tourist visa or some nonsense like that. The advantage of the tourist visa is if you find a new job, you can just walk away & they cant really complain.

[Sinobear]

Since you have big loans to pay - give China a miss, anywhere, any time. So sorry, but China IS NOT THE ANSWER TO YOUR PROBLEMS, whether personal or financial.


Do enjoy!

[Renegade_o_Funk]

China can solve both of those problems. Personal - come to China and get a slender girl friend if you are lonely/get away from the government or the Mob if you are on the run for one reason or another, whomever you made mad probably wont find you in China.

Financial - come to China and your check's are magically no longer getting garnished/your relative spending power compared to your pay back home has increased quite abit. It is best to plan ahead though, get a good job lined up for the spring semester rather than gambling with a chain school/the tourist viisa.

With both you and your boyfriend working, you should easily be able to pay at least several hundred canadian dollars worth of student loans every month.

[underthesky]

I came here mainly on a fellow ESL teacher and friend's advice that it would be easy to get a good job here, even at this time of year. However, I did feel that whatever job it would be, it would always be a gamble given that it's China. But I thought there would at least be half a chance the school could be good. I've yet to see this 'half a chance' so far, but maybe it'll come.

So far the various ones I've found seem almost 100% shady based on research. Given that I'm already here, should I accept the chain school and HK visa runs and then hope that sometime better comes in the Spring or sooner?

Unlike the original poster, I'm not short on money, but I like the idea of making more or breaking even for while. I can travel around for another few months (already done nine though) and then wait for something good. But I feel guilty for not having worked in so long, and I feel I need get something on my CV soon.

So I've got three immediate choices:
1. Risky chain school in Guangdong
2. Travel around Asia even more
3. Go to somewhere like Vietnam and look for work

Any advice?

[alter ego]

[Renegade_o_Funk]