Job Discussion Forums

[rbos]

I'm planning on coming to Taiwan to look for work on a 60-day tourist visa, as I've heard that you can transfer it into a work permit, ARC, and Resident Visa once you're here and find a job. Since I'll only have 60 days to look for work, I'm a bit confused (and worried) about the timeline for transferring from a tourist visa to a work permit, etc.

My questions are:

-First of all, how likely is it for someone like myself with a Bachelor's degree (unrelated-Political Science, and almost a fresh grad, with limited work experience) and no ESL teaching experience or certificate to find work in the first 30 days, or 60 days while in Taiwan? What are my odds?

-Do I actually really have less than 60 days to find a company to hire me, since I'm sure it takes some time for the Taiwan government to transfer the tourist visa into a work permit, etc.

-How many days will I really have to look for work before it would be too late to for a company that wants to hire me to transfer the tourist visa over?

-What is the process from start to finish that I would need to fulfill in this 60 day period to be able to legally remain after the 60 days is up? In other words, do I need to get a work permit fully processed (which I've heard takes ~2 weeks) by the Labor Office? What else would I need to do in this 60 day period? Do I also have to have an ARC and resident visa fully processed and approved within this 60 day period?

Please help-I'm confused.

Thanks

[yamahuh]

Dude - chill...

60 days is plenty. If you have your work permit paperwork in process by the time your visa runs out you are fine and will be granted a stay until it is completely processed. At least this is what I have been told countless times in the past.

(Persons in the know please correct me if this isn't true)

If you are really worried about the time constraints apply for some jobs while you're overseas and still not completely committed. Arrange Skype interviews; send resumes; set up 'in person' interviews for when you are 'in country' so you can hit the ground running with interested prospective employers. Take the initiative.

My wife and I are in our 40's and have arrived in Taiwan without jobs a few times in the past 5 years (after extended S.E Asian vacations) and had offers within days .... In reality there's no need to worry within the first month - 6 weeks. It's still plenty of time to get paperwork processed.

[mTm]

I am in exactly the same position as rbos.�

With regards to the teaching (or lack there of) qualifications, is this a problem in Taiwan? I have a degree in Mechanical Engineering but no teaching qualification or experience.�

I plan to go there in August to look for work teaching English/Maths. Does August fit in well with the school term/recruitment times, and are they interested in people with no related qualifications?�

I've considered doing one of the 'intense training' TEFL courses - I'll not have time to do a full month-long certificate as my job finishes in July. Another option would be to do the month-long TEFL course in August then get to Taiwan in September - would this be too late to get a job (and subsequently a sponsored visa) at a school?

Thanks.�

[yamahuh]

Lack of teaching qualifications / experience isn't a problem at all so long as you are OK with working in Buxibans, teaching predominantly children.

Non-related qualifications are also no issue. You don't have to have a related degree - I've met people here teaching English with degrees in History, Geography, you name it... no worries.

Re: your plan to do one of the 'intense' TEFL training programs - I really wouldn't bother unless you are really worried about your first few hours in a classroom. A TEFL course won't make you any more attractive to potential employers - unless you need it to back up a College Diploma for your work permit they could care less if you have one or not. What's more it really won't prepare you for the realities of teaching kids in Taiwan e.g tests that kids aren't allowed to fail ( a fail is often considered less than 80%) because mummy and daddy might be annoyed and take little Johnny to a Buxiban that will allow him to pass, even though he is dumb as a bag of hammers... curriculums that focus more on the kids' enjoyment of being in an English speaking environment (i.e you play games) than on actual language acquisition... I could go on but I can't be bothered.

August is a pretty good time of year to be looking for a September start after the dreaded summer camps are over...