Job Discussion Forums

[inchinanow]

I have worked a total of two years in China. When I first came to China in 2007 I earned 6000 RMB a month teaching English. Now I have signed a contract which pays me a total (salary + apartment allowance) of 21,000 RMB per month. I work at one of the International Schools. I prefer not to say which one or where I am located.

I often feel like returning to the USA, but when I think about the economy in America, I feel like 21,000 RMB a month is a pretty good deal in China. What do you think????

[JGC458]

Yes, it's very good.

Thanks for sharing that.

I was wondering how much you earned.

Now I don't need to ask you...

[kev7161]

I guess with my free housing and other free benefits plus my after-tax salary, my standard of living here is quite nice, thank you. BUT, I'm still going back . . . for awhile and see what's really what. I mean, I'm a teacher. The world always needs teachers, right?

[ttorriel]

[thefuzz]

Nah, it ain't "a pretty good deal" to me, sorry. I make 42,000 RMB per month, get a free luxury apartment smack in the middle of town (with free utilities + all the beer I can drink) and free use of the school Mercedes-Benz S600 during weekends so I can go cruising for chicks...if you're making JUST 21,000 better pack your bags and return home, grasshopper.

[The Ever-changing Cleric]

[Molson]

21,000 RMB a month isn't much. I make the same. Truth be told I made more in Korea a month. I find it funny when people rant how cheap it is to live in China and how much they can save. For saving, Korea is way better any way you cut it. International School teachers have a higher salary there and NO TAXES...all paid by the school. I don't want to rant on the money thing though, I know a lot of ppl on this board make less...and I can see why you stay in China. It is an experience. I find a lot of the everyday things interesting, and I love where I teach. I too work at an International School, and I thought it would be worth the pay cut to come for a year and check out the country and the people. I've been scammed quite a bit in the month I've been here. Then again, I have met some really great Chinese people!

[Zero]

Are you a certified teacher?

Everything is relative. Compared to most non-certified teachers in china, it is quite good. Compared to people on expat packages and people in business, it is much less. It is about 37k US a year. Quite good for China. Not going to allow you to go buy a couple of BMWs outright, or a jet.

What more do you want to know?

[Hansen]

Considering that you are working as a teacher, am I correct in assuming that you have at least a master's degree and teacher's certification from a legitimate western school?

Certainly better than most FTs are making; however, many of us are simply burn outs from other fields or liberal arts majors who lacked insight when we chose our majors in college.

An acquaintance of mine makes around 75,000RMB/monthly in Shanghai. Obviously, he's not a teacher but a businessman. He said he needs that kind of money to live decently in Shanghai.

[sharpe88]

Really ? Even with the won the way it is ? I thought it's one of the worst places to save money at the moment.

[alter ego]

It's all relative. You're probably making around 18K salary (plus 3K for housing allowance) and for that you're probably working a standard International school schedule, something like 8:00 AM to 5:00 PM, with a 5-day, 35- to 40-hour work week including around 20-24 classes.

Just my opinion, but that's a grind. International schools are way overrated. It's very similar to teaching back home, with office hours that include preparing class materials and tests, marking, grading, meetings, and other related busy work. It's almost like working in a factory. Punch in, work all day, punch out. Timed and scheduled lunches and breaks on the factory grounds. Punch in and out almost the same time everyday. Punch in, stay all day (not allowed to leave campus without an excuse), punch out. Not much fun, freedom, and flexibility in that kind of work life, is there?

And in this factory you get to deal with students of various ages in all their glory: loud, silly, spoiled, obnoxious, tired, cranky, moody, lazy, rebellious, bored, self-absorbed kids with short attention spans who'd rather be doing anything else than sitting in your English or Math or Science class.

Sure, a handful of your students will be cute and clever and bright and funny and curious and interested in everything you do and say, but it won't make up for the majority of kids who secretly make you cringe at the thought of babysitting them for one more day.

So, for all this extra time and work along with the sheer pleasure of spending five routine days of your life every week with someone else's kids who either leave you feeling uninspired or wanting to pull all your hair out, you make 18K a month. That's 4.5K a week. That's around 200 RMB per class, give or take a few Yuan. And you think that's a pretty good deal?

Well, maybe for some teachers it is. Not to me. Even if I had the credentials (an M.A. or PhD. and a teacher's license) to make that kind of salary, I wouldn't be making it banging my head against the wall at an International School in China. Why? Because there are much better deals to be had elsewhere. Places where you don't have to teach school kids for one.

Even without those credentials, while in China it's better to teach around 15 classes a week at a college, university, or polytechnic and do outside teaching to bring your monthly income to a respectable level. What's respectable to one teacher might not be respectable to the next, but a take home salary of roughly 12K to 16K is enough to keep me happy.

I now do corporate training on the side. I teach adults, and while working with this age group has its own challenges, I�d much rather work with adults than kids any day of the week. I make 200 RMB per hour and usually teach around 10 extra hours per week. You can do the math. I don't make as much as you do, but for me it�s still a much better deal.

I'm glad you're making that kind of money, though, as it ups the ante for EFL salaries in China across the board.

[happigur1]

[kev7161]

I teach and am certified to teach elementary, K-8. I already have job offers for when I return home but right now, I will simply substitute. I have been offered a long-term 3rd grade job while a teacher takes her maternity leave so that's a relief that I will have several weeks without many worries. A leader in another district in my home (Kansas) has also offered me a permanent job should I want to just . . . stay home when I return but I'm not certain about that as of yet. So yeah we'll see what's what first before I jump headlong into anything.

[inchinanow]

The purpose is not to brag, but to discuss salary, which is something that is often on people's minds. Yes, I am a certified teacher. I also wanted to let people know, they can improve their salary in China, if they make an effort, it is possible.

Instead of ridicule, do something productive for yourself.

[killian]

i saw a posting for a western butler the other day in china offering 500,000 rmb per annum.

most of my western friends here are in the shipbuilding game and are pulling in approx 1.5 million rmb per annum.

yes, most foreign teachers here are woefully underpaid.