Teaching English Abroad

[Visitor Q]

Ok, I've found a lot of schemes that are basically taxing ignorant students.

However, I've found one that actually seems to pay ok. About £1k outlay, and that gets refunded, and you get your qualification at the end of a year. Two separate 6 month contracts Get about £950 a month while there.

One problem... it's in China

Just on the outskirts of Hongkong, Guandong province and such, teaching the rich kids.

So, what do I need to know about it? Anyone done anything similar? Anyone spent a lot of time in Soviet China? Drugs, Women, Fun? Etc?

Anyone know any similar deals in better places, Thailand/Japan etc? Japan may eat Sharks and Whales, but at least they don't have the political morals of Stalin.
____________________
China traffic/travel bike vid - When I make a sweeping statement, please add the word 'statistically' in to the sentence before you bitch...
From September 2014 to January/February 2015 I will not be using any English, nor reading any. As such, I won't be on here. PM at will, but I won't be checking/posting unless in emergencies. Certainly not for the first couple of months. Please berate me savagely if I break that rule...

[GhostRider]

One of my best mates moved over to Thailand to teach english, never came back, loves it there too much.

Having been there twice it's easy to see why.

The pay doesn't really amount to much when you convert it to english money, but that doesn't matter as you're not paying english prices. He said after the first 3 months he never bothered checking his bank balance, there was no point, he knew he had enough money in there to do whatever he wanted within reason.

I think for the decent agencies over there you have to have some kind of teaching certification that you can get in a matter of months, otherwise you are likely to be lumbered with some cowboys that will fuck you around with your pay and location.

In general I think it's 6 day weeks, 12 hour days, but don't quote me on that.

My friend has a guy he gets all his, ahem, pharmaceuticals off, but as with any other country it has it's risks attached, but it's readily available if your willing to take a gamble.

Women wise, well, it's Thailand.... go figure.

If you want questions answered PM them to me and I'll forward them to my mate.


GhostRider
____________________
I have all the characteristics of a human being: blood, flesh, skin, hair; but not a single, clear, identifiable emotion, except for greed and disgust. Something horrible is happening inside of me and I don't know why. My nightly bloodlust has overflown into my days. I feel lethal, on the verge of frenzy. I think my mask of sanity is about to slip.

[LeeR]

My wife's cousin has been teaching English in Vietnam for about 10 years now, he spends 6 months there and 6 months here usually gigging for bands as a session bassist.

He seems quite happy with it, he has a facebook account and if you do (I don't) I can PM you the link and some contact details, just so he knows you're not a stalker.

They can still kill you for drug offences, but Vietnam has got to be better than China
____________________
My claim to fame: Austin Vince nicked my pen...

[Visitor Q]

I would by far prefer Thailand, but without a TEFL and some experience it's hard to just walk in.

Infact, the more I think about it, the more I feel China would make me sad. Thailand has epic diving, nice people and is very cheap to live. And isn't communist.

But if I teach in China for a year, I'll get the experience and qualification whilst being paid, and China can't be that bad. Then I can defect to Thailand

But if I could find a nice route in to Thailand without a colossal outlay (£1k is fairly heavy as it is) and actually get paid while there, not just get a bed and board type nonsense....

Oh, and would you like a copy of Pihkal in response to spicing my world up? It would probably be fair
____________________
China traffic/travel bike vid - When I make a sweeping statement, please add the word 'statistically' in to the sentence before you bitch...
From September 2014 to January/February 2015 I will not be using any English, nor reading any. As such, I won't be on here. PM at will, but I won't be checking/posting unless in emergencies. Certainly not for the first couple of months. Please berate me savagely if I break that rule...

[Visitor Q]

[LeeR]

Well I was hoping he could tell you how he got started, afterall he had to start somewhere.

I only mention the facebook account as a point of contact, because I have no idea where in the world he currently is, but I know he has web access.
____________________
My claim to fame: Austin Vince nicked my pen...

[GhostRider]

[Clanger]

Bonny, it only takes three months to get your certificate, granted it costs around £1k, and you can do this at a number of places around the world. I did mine at Chichester University.

If you do the Cambridge or Trinity Cert TESOL/TEFL, you will be more employable across the world, if not you might be both limited in your country of choice and pay. A new law has just come out in Thailand and Indonesia, which is that you must have a degree from either the UK, Canada/USA, or Oz/NZ. It doesn't matter what in, but that you have proof.

Most contracts are for a year, they usually pay your flight and Visa, but you are bound in for a year. If you decide it's not for you, then you have to pay back everything the company has spent on you.

South Korea is begging for TEFL workers. China, Poland, and Greece are also easy options. And Vietnam.

Also, whilst I was travelling I met LOADS of TEFL teachers who just rocked up to the school and offered their services, but these types of jobs you end up spending more than you are paid.

If you want to go to a school in Thailand as a volunteer, I have details of such a place that opens it's doors...it'll give you an idea of the sort of work, the environment etc.

(my interview on Monday, was for one such job )
____________________
Be who you are and say what you feel, because those who mind don't matter, and those who matter won't mind - Dr. Seuss

[Carl_steveo]

I've been looking at doing this for quite a while, it's on my list of things to do If I didn't have any reason to stay here, which at the moment there is only one lol.
____________________
Current: Honda Nsr 125
Live: Sunderland
Luke "cant be arsed to read your post, but suck my balls anyway."

[Visitor Q]

[GhostRider]

[GhostRider]

[Carl_steveo]

[Visitor Q]

[Itchy]

You want to teach English here are some pointers :

If you are not white, and I mean pale white forget about it, Racism in Asia is quite heavy, China in particular, S Korea less so, Japan, Taiwan and SEA heavy. They will hire Russians, Polish, etc to teach rather than anybody who is qualified who isn't white. The schools themselves may not be racist but they have to pander to the parents who ARE racist.

Z Visas are a PITA to get for China, and they make you jump through hoops to get them, like making you leave the country every 90 days.

DONOT BELIEVE the near Hong Kong BS things, anybody with any money in China will send their children far away to US/UK or Hong Kong or Beijing. What typically happens is that they will send you to a remote village in the middle of nowhere, I personally know of 8 people who were sent to villages near Turpan or Harbin. Worse than Siberia for remoteness.

110% of employers will change the contract make you work longer.

The children you teach in such schools do not want to be there it is going to be like this
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W3gjg5E85YY

If you want to make decent money you need to go PGCE route AND have experience, Macau and HK offer 2-3 million dollar contracts for such callibre teachers.

Oh and the old crying out for them no longer applies, in that the crash in North America and the UK has meant there are 10000s of people who travel over there to do just this. Each hostel in Korea and China I stayed in were full of English teachers who for the most part were completely retarded. Wages are falling because of this quite significantly.

US accents are prefered everywhere but Hong Kong and Singapore, therefore if an American applies and you apply the American will get the job.


You may well be subject to violence, in that it is a sweet deal in that you go to China and earn 500% more than the local wage, 700% in Seoul. Male unemployment is HIGH in asia and anger has grown over recent years they see people who are LESS qualified than themselves come and get good paying jobs. Seoul police will ignore beat downs and deport you instead.


If you have ANY criminal record, cautions etc you will be denied a work visa.

you have to do it right, the Americans in Seoul spend their time drinking and partying, and return to the US and are COMPLETELY unhirable as nobody will hire them to teach English in the US at the level of experience that will encounter doing TEFL, therefore to do it right means you have to study at the same time, which costs lots and makes the deal look unsweet.


Also don't buy into the one year of experience = sorted elsewhere, many schools don't count hagwons as real experience,
____________________
Spain 2008France 2007Big one 2009 We all die. The goal isn't to live forever, the goal is to create something that will. In the end, your life will flash before your eyes. Make sure it is worth watching.

[Clanger]

Yeah they need photocopies of everything, your degree, modules, passport, references...

I have heard of many many people working in Korea, some really love it, some really hate it. I guess it's down to you what you want from it, gain from it.

There are lots of online forums of teachers in such places. It's a great way to explore a country and learn new skills - like scuba diving!
____________________
Be who you are and say what you feel, because those who mind don't matter, and those who matter won't mind - Dr. Seuss

[Itchy]

[Visitor Q]

Damn you Itchy, your bonfire urination made me sad.

I must admit, this wouldn't be a career. Just a distraction and a way to get some travelling done. I want to see Asia dammit.

Clanger, I'm a DM Need to get on to the paperwork for that. I have all the bits to sign off my DM, just not the Rescue (and IANTD Nitrox). Mmmm.... Nitrox. Epic hangover cure.
____________________
China traffic/travel bike vid - When I make a sweeping statement, please add the word 'statistically' in to the sentence before you bitch...
From September 2014 to January/February 2015 I will not be using any English, nor reading any. As such, I won't be on here. PM at will, but I won't be checking/posting unless in emergencies. Certainly not for the first couple of months. Please berate me savagely if I break that rule...

[Itchy]

[Visitor Q]

[Itchy]

[Imonster]

My brother's been in S. Korea for five months, and is having a ball. He had a philosophy degree, then did TEFL (incidentally, he reckons that getting the TEFL was 10x harder than gaining his degree). Perhaps no surprise given his choice of degree

He reckons he can save an easy 10k a year while he's out there and is planning to stay for two.

Contrary to what was said above, he does have a caution for a minor, erm, pharmaceutical offense, but hasn't had any problems arising from that - it did bar him from joining the police as he originally planned. He's made a lot of good friends while he's been out there, and the fact that his fiancee came out with him and is doing the same thing probably makes it a lot easier - they should have a 40k house deposit when they come back to England. Can't be bad...
____________________
Those who make peaceful revolution impossible will make violent revolution inevitable.

[mistergixer]

It's been a while since i was in S.Korea (about 10 years), but during the time i was last there i noticed that virtually all the westerners i bumped into were either a) American G.Is or b) people doing TEFL.
Whilst Seoul is an interesting city, my advice would be to try and get out into the provinces a bit more. I wouldn't expect too much on the diving/watersports front however, all the beaches had a good dose of barbed wire and machine gun nests just in case the North decided to send more submarine commandos (again).


____________________
Space Monkey #7
Don Eladio is dead. His capos are dead. You have no one left to fight for. Fill your pockets and leave in peace. Or fight me and die!
Mistergixer's videos on YouTube

[smegballs]

[Hetzer]

The teaching-bubble burst a very long time ago, A few years ago NOVA went bust in Japan (their recession) and there were suddenly hundreds of westerners out of a job and desperately looking for new employment before their visas were cancelled/expired (no job, no renewal). It hasn't recovered. The late eighties/early nineties were as good as it got in Japan, after that it was a slow decline until NOVA finished it off.
____________________
"There's the horizon! Ride hard, ride fast and cut down all who stand in your way!"