For teachers considering working in China choosing a school can be a frustrating (and daunting) task. Private language schools have a reputation for being rip-off artists, and horror stories about them are easy to find. Even public schools have their fair share of horror stories.
Because of this it can be a sort of nervous, ulcer-inducing experience to find a “good” school–here are some tips (things I did and wish I’d done) to ease the process.
1. Talk to as many foreigners at the school as you can. Ideally the school will have a foreign manager or someone else who serves as a liaison between the foreign faculty and the Chinese staff/administration. Talk to that person to get a feel for what the school’s like.
Ask for e-mail addresses of teachers that are currently employed by the school. If they’re not willing to let you talk to current employees, stay away.
2. Read the contract before you accept any job offer. Have it emailed to you, read it through thoroughly, and make sure that anything that isn’t defined is explained in writing and added to the contract. For example, if the contract includes a bonus, make sure the conditions for payment of the bonus are listed so you don’t wind up with a nasty surprise at the end of your contract.
If it isn’t specified in the contract, find out how many days per week you will be asked to work (it’s not uncommon for language mills to ask you to work six days a week) and if your schedule will remain static throughout the year or whether it can change each week.
When you read through the contract you assume that any “worst case scenario” clauses will be exercised regularly. So if there’s a clause stating that teachers may be required to make-up (without overtime pay) all classes canceled for vacation, assume that will happen.
3. Research the school using Google, blog posts, and forum posts, but keep in mind that usually it’s only bad experiences that motivate people to write about where they work. See how long the school’s been in business, and make sure that the owners are able to get the correct visas for their teachers. The school should provide you with a Z-visa and a Foreign Expert Certificate.
Don’t even consider teaching for a school that is shady with visas.
Good online resources for researching schools include Dave’s ESL Café, Raoul’s China Saloon, and the China Blog List.
4. Sign the shortest contract you can. If you don’t like the place you don’t want to be stuck there for a year.
Once you get to know people other job opportunities will come your way. If you like where you’re teaching, you’ll be given a chance to negotiate a better contract.
5. Research salaries and don’t be afraid to dicker. Once you have a job offer from a school in a certain city, look around to find out what other schools in the city pay. (Aston and EnglishFirst are ubiquitous, they’ll serve as a good starting point.)
See what sorts of hours foreign teachers at other schools are expected to work, how many days off they get per week (don’t assume you have a two day weekend–or any days off–unless it’s stated in the contract), and what their living conditions are like.
Use this knowledge for leverage in negotiations with your school.
If you do all these things and stuff still goes wrong, remember you can always leave the country. (Bringing up an obvious “tip”: DON’T GIVE UP YOUR PASSPORT!)
Have any other tips or advice people should consider? Leave a comment!
Good set of comments sir. Apply across the board, I think.
Thanks for the kind words. I know those all should be common sense, but what they say about common sense not being very common is spot on–I only did one or two of those before I went to China…I was lucky it worked out as well as it did. (-_-)
Hey, Raoul.
Oh yeah, I’m certainly not intending to say that Aston, EF, or (horror of horrors) Kids Castle are sure-thing great places to work. Instead, I mean that they’re easy schools to find, and you can always shoot them an email to see what they’d pay. Armed with that knowledge, you can better negotiate with whatever wonderful school’s given you a juicy offer.
Much wisdom in this page!
I’d only quibble with the bit about recommending chain schools like Aston or EF. The chains generate a lot of complaints, and in general offer lousy deals. Most people can do a lot better!
Regards,
Raoul
Raoul’s China Saloon
Hi , your blog is very interesting, especially since i am now considering a career in Changchun. I am still at the research phase about the school. They did provide me with a teachers email but that email does not respond. Anyway, i also noticed from the details, that you used to teach in the same exact school that is interested in me. If it will be possible to enlighten me regarding to how safe it is i will be happy.