Modern China’s development is so rapid that it’s amount of opportunity can be likened to that of America during its own period of swift development. It is becoming the new “land of opportunity” This is especially true for English teachers. There are many jobs to be had (although you’ll want to seek out the best). I will speak on both English and non-English speakers jobs.
NATIVE ENGLISH SPEAKERS
If you’re looking for a job as a native English speaker, you need not look for more than 5 minutes to find schools desperate to give you a visa and a livable (by Chinese standards) salary. If you have more credentials as a teacher, you can let these basic offers fall by the wayside for two reasons. For one, those offers will always be there and there will always be more just like it. Recruiters of English teachers are like used car salesmen, they will say whatever they can to convince you, but the numbers ($) and product aren’t changing. You’ll want to select the job that best fits your lifestyle. If you like structure, select a job with many hours that pays well. If you prefer to work on the side and have extra free time, you should aim high for the sought-after university jobs. Landing this kind of job (know to be the best type of teaching job economically speaking) requires planning and control, as well as some credentials. The ratio between hours worked to salary earned is nearly unmatched, so it is to be sought after.
Now, speaking on how to actually find these jobs, you should be employing multiple strategies to have the highest chance to get a good offer. For one, post your CV on Dave’s ESL Café. This is known to be THE place to find jobs or teachers for language instruction. Find it at http://www.eslcafe.com/.
Next, visit Dave’s job boards daily. New jobs are posted daily, so you should be the first to see them (and hopefully) the first to send your CV to them. The job boards list a diverse range of places, but you can CTRL F and search “China” if you want to minimize your search time.
Also, using Wikipedia to find lists of schools in different area of China is a great way to stockpile a list of school emails to which you can send your CV and credentials. This is more of a professional tactic and can put you one step ahead of your job-seeking peers.
Other well-known websites in the expat community are:
– EChina cities
– SinoJobs
– China Jobs
– Learn4good
– ESL job lounge
– Echinacities
–SeekTeachers Education Consultancy
NON-NATIVE ENGLISH SPEAKERS
Finding a job as a non-native will be more difficult, but still fairly easy. China’s education system is desperate for fluent speakers to educate their population. You can land nearly any job that a native speaker can, but you’ll have to be a little more lucky and decorate your resume.
Be sure to post your CV and actively search for positions on the job boards. Even as a non-native speaker, you should STILL APPLY to positions that are listed as “native speakers only” especially if you have strong credentials. You never know how desperate a school will be to fill a position. Also, using Wikipedia to find additional schools to email will only help your chances.
SPANISH TEACHING JOBS
Finding a Spanish teaching jobs in China is a bit harder than finding an English teaching jobs. But it is still possible to find great positions, but you will have search longer! We have a whole post about it in Spanish right here.
EXTRA TIPS
- Obtaining a TEFL (Teaching English as a Foreign Language Certificate) will bump you above most applicants. It is highly recommended you complete this. You can do this online through one of many companies.
- A Bachelors degree or any sort of higher education is nearly a must-have.
- Make sure your CV is perfect and ready to send at a moment’s notice.
- Dress professionally even for Skype interviews. Chinese culture highly values imagine, so this really helps.
I’VE JUST GOT A JOB OFFER! NOW WHAT?
Send you CV as soon as possible and set a date for a Skype interview. During the interview you should try to get as much information as possible: airfare allowance, schedule, location, rent, salary during the holidays, etc!
Once you get a contract, don’t sign it too soon! Read it carefully and make sure everything seems alright. We assure you most companies will try to make profit out of you, so let’s try to minimize that from the beginning! 😉 After signing, you’ll have to start working on getting the visa. But that’s a whole other story! We are preparing a post with detailed steps on how to do it, so keep checking the blog!
Last piece of advice: It might be difficult to get good job offers at the beginning, but don’t give up. Finding a job abroad is not an easy process, and you shouldn’t let that discourage you… Remember the Chinese proverb:
A journey of a thousand miles, begins with one single step.
Lao-Tse, VI BC