Job Discussion Forums

[yogurtpooh]

Do you guys think 1 grand a month, without a housing allowance is too low for 25 hours a week for someone who is just fresh out of college (history BA) with no prior teaching experience but with a 120 hour TESOL certification with no plans to stay more than a year? (This was the average salary that my TESOL training program guy mentioned for Vietnam, which sounds like a huge rip off when rentals probably cost 300-500 dollars)

How many of you out there work more than one job in order to have sufficient funds?

[TimkinMS]

[[email protected]]

I think it is a bit low, though the pay is still more than what the average local gets paid every month. To calculate it $1000/month for 25hrs. of work a week works out to $10/hr. I think you could get a lot more than this. Most teachers out there are getting at least $15/hr. Some as high as $25/hr. maybe even more. There are many stories out there of people who come here with absolutely no experience and at most no degree and get paid higher than what you are getting. If I were you apply to as many places as you can and demand a higher pay or that of equal to other foreign teachers that may work at that center. Just a question that may be off topic, but are you getting paid at this rate because of your looks or just lack of experience.

[I'm With Stupid]

Since it was your TESOL trainer who said this (presumably not based in Vietnam) I'd suggest he just doesn't know what he's talking about, rather than trying to scam anyone. A new teacher can expect somewhere between $1600 and $1700 gross a month based on a 24 hour week. You should be looking for at least $17 per hour before tax if you have certification (assuming it was a practical TESOL and not online).

[yogurtpooh]

Thanks a lot, now I'll have a basic salary amount that I can negotiate around.
The trainer made it seem as if I already had a job thanks to his "services" and "contacts", which I think are legit and not necessarily a scam, but like a few of you mentioned, he just wasn't aware of the actual salaries. Or... his contacts are rip offs. Either way, it's good to know that if his services don't pan out then, I have other options. I'm a little picky though- I don't want to live in Saigon, but I would like to live near it in the smaller cities, such as Da Lat or Vung Tau or even Can Tho, which ultimately is very limiting on employment opportunities.

[TimkinMS]

[Jbhughes]

Honestly, this sounds a bit dodgy and I'm going with timkinms.

IF I understand this correctly, he said you had a job lined up before even arriving in SG/VN?

"The trainer made it seem as if I already had a job"

Alarm bells also ring there IMO.

What 'services' and 'contacts' does he say he has?

[tonyjones01]

Get a little money and come find a job on your own. That whay you can shop around, see what's out there, and get the best deal for you.

FYI A member recently made a post about someone looking for people in Vung Tau.

http://forums.eslcafe.com/job/viewtopic.php?t=85606

[yogurtpooh]

He claims that he has "contacts" in Vietnam or schools that lets him know when job vacancies open up first before they are released to the general public. They sort of come to him and his network of TEFL schools. He claimed that he sent several hundreds of people overseas already. The school that he runs is pretty legit though and I have spoken to a few graduates who have gotten jobs in Korea and Taiwan. Maybe he was trying to get a cut, I hadn't thought about that. But maybe he's simply not too informed about Vietnam in general. He pretty much confirmed that I could get a job easily after getting the certification and to not worry about possibly not finding work. It was pretty automatic- he didn't explicitly say that I had a job before I set foot in Vietnam, but he made it seem as if he would get me a job first and then I'll go to Vietnam. Of course for a mere grand a month, I can pretty much guarantee that I'll get hired. Either way, I won't rely on him solely, but it's a good way to get my foot in the game instead of just showing up and applying to the major schools, which might be more beneficial- though maybe not as practical under my budget. Ideally, I want to work in a setting where no one is breathing down my neck all the time and away from the larger cities. Oh yeah, and I'm concerned about finding work at a reasonable wage because... I'm Vietnamese American.. and we all know the potential benefits and negatives of that.

Hey Tony, thanks for the link, but I still have quite a few months away from this. I won't graduate from university until May and plan to leave in June for at least six months... and longer if my situation and living conditions are fair.. or until I master reading and writing the language.

Btw, if I taught kids exclusively, elementary school age or those under 10, would I still expect the minimum to be 1400 or so?

[ajc19810]

A grand a month would be difficult to get by on in Phan Thiet (coastal city). Schools here are still offering that kind of wage to some teachers $10/$11/$12p/h

For a grand a month you would probably find yourself living more like a local than you may want. 2 maybe 3 years ago a grand would be no problem, but it's getting expensive now.

[haller_79]

Really bad contract, and I bet it gets worse once you enter their front door.

[Oh My God]

[VietCanada]

$10 an hour? Ridiculous. That's way too low. You would feel like an idiot meeting all the people who get $15 or $18 and much more. I don't know every VK here in HCMC but the lowest starting wage I've heard of is $12 an hour. That was a couple years ago. I think you need to put your resume up on the board and see what offers you get. Do your own survey of the market in this way. I would expect if your English skills are native you should not get less than $15 an hour. But check for yourself. That's important.

[yogurtpooh]

I appreciate all the replies. One of the main reasons I want to work in Vietnam is to be close to family, but none of them have air conditioning, so I can't really rely on them too much. Though, they will definitely be an optional support. I've been to Vietnam a total of three times and the latest time by myself, so I am somewhat familiar with what I'm getting into in terms of culture and merely existing there, but I am very ignorant on working there in general. Maybe I won't get ripped off on the streets as the next white guy, but locals have a sure way of telling me apart when I speak. Even though my dialect is pretty accurate, my syntax and mannerisms are well... not very Vietnamese. Last time I was in Hoi An, I went up to a ticket booth to buy the typical tourist walking tour ticket and the lady behind the counter asked me if I was Vietnamese and I said I was from Bien Hoa and she said that's a lie. It wasn't my accent or anything, it was the fact that when I walked up to her, I greeted her by saying, "Chao Co." Apparently the local Vietnamese never greet ticket sellers.
Another downside is that I'm a huge meat eater and every single time I've eaten pho or banh mi or anything, I always ask for double or even sometimes triple the meat. I get a lot of weird return stares and a much higher bill. I've been spoiled by westernized Vietnamese food! So a grand wouldn't be sufficient for me at all, even though I don't party or drink, but the day to day expenses of xe oms and big eating will add up...especially if I do some weekend trips, which I plan to do as often as possible.
Thanks a lot