How to get a start teaching in China? Part 1

[Hypiereon]

Getting your foot in the GREAT WALL
PART ONE

This question seems the most valid as most people do not know the first thing about what to do or what to expect if it is their first foray into the land of the rising sun (sorry, that's Japan) OK, the land of the setting sun.

Here’s the skinny short of it – get educated about the schools, and be prepared for anything.

Most of the heartache seems to come not from getting things wrong and bumbling and doing all the stupid foreigner things – that’s what makes it all fun! The heartaches come from disappointment with schools, broken contracts, fear of the unknown, and fear of being taken advantage of by recruiters or bad schools. There is a better way!

I’ve given this advice to one person and thought it might be useful to everyone else.

Here’s the long of it. If it’s your first time, stick with the capital cities of the more populated provinces. (Excepting Beijing, ShangHai, and Hong Kong which are their own special economic zones.) That would mean going to KunMing in YunNan Province, WuHan in HuBei Province, JiNan in ShanDong Province, ChengDu in SiChuan Province, etc. Reason for this is that you are going to be near an airport to get yourself out in a hurry if need be, there’s a greater likelihood of finding foreigner (also called western) conveniences in the city, and more options for other schools if your school should absolutely tank for whatever reason. So, limit your search to the capital cities of the major provinces and you should do fine on many other areas, such as contracts.

Don’t worry about getting a contract signed over the internet – it’s not valid anyway. Get some good offers in your back pocket, and be sure you’re applying to schools and not businesses that are offering after school programs. NEVER deal with recruiters. Seems to me most of the heartache I hear about comes from stories that begin with “When we arrived the guy took us to another location other than where we thought we were going to work.” And there is a 100% chance they were working with a recruiter. Look, not to say that there are not any good recruiting agencies out there, but why bother? The reason why bother happens to be your own insecurities and ignorance of this country – so get educated and gain some confidence and you’ll be fine.

Here’s how. Find some good schools. A good school is defined as one that has absolutely no bad postings against it (you can argue that some foreigners just want to bad mouth a school, and that’s fine, but if it’s your first time, why take a chance? Let those who work in those cities go check it out for themselves – this thread is for people who have NEVER been abroad before, so we’re going to stick with the safest route possible.). No bad posting is only the beginning. Find a school with someone willing to say something good about it by asking the school for contact information from previous teachers – preferably ones that are currently working there. If you can find two teachers that have worked at the school for more than one year (have renewed their contracts at least once) then the school easily becomes a safe bet. Your next step is to try to find someone in the school that is currently working there and likes it.

This will be the person you can get contact information from regarding the school’s hiring face. Contact the hiring face through e-mail because it is far easier for him to understand you, and for you to understand him through e-mails. Phone calls are good so that he knows you are indeed a foreigner. I am an American with no discernable accent, and they fairly drool at the thought of hiring me. The hiring face will ask for recent photo or passport copy (front page copy with your pic is what he’s after) a copy of your documents such as high school diploma, college diploma, TEFL certificate, and anything else. (Best way to provide this is to take a digital photo – something in the 400-600 pixel range works best – of all your documents then send them as attachments) If it’s your first time, you’ll not have any worthy job references he’ll be interested in. Your experience teaching at other schools is what buffs up your resume.

If he likes what he sees he’ll give you an invitation “We welcome you warmly and sincerely to teach at our school!” and make you an offer. The offer will usually be vague with the minimum details of hours per week / salary per month / and airfare reimbursement. Tell him it sounds good and when does he need someone. He’ll fairly pee his pants at how easy it all seems and ask you to come on a certain date. Mark it on your calendar then say, “OK. See you then.” Whatever correspondence follows just go along with without commitment. Don’t worry about the “Z” visa at this stage either. You don’t want to get tied to a school right now.