Arriving in July, looking for advice and tips

Bio/Credentials in brief
30 year old white male (apparently the white part is important)
4 years teaching middle school math (tough schools)
1.5 years substitute teaching at all grade levels.
Taught English in Madrid for 3 months
Getting TEFL/TESOL certified before I leave.

Planning on
Flying in July 12th
Teach in or around Taichung

In reading through this forum it seems there is a lot of pessimism and negativity about teaching over there. Then again there is a lot of the same thing here in the States. My primary reason for moving to Taiwan is to learn Mandarin Chinese, with a secondary goal of attending a university for cheap. Then of course there is experiencing a new culture, travel, etc… I have no problem working hard and I don’t need much to live on. I’d like to have my own place and be able to support myself with the possibility of putting a little away. I should arrive with enough funds (minus investments stashed away) to get me through a 8 months to a year without work if I wanted.

Questions

  1. Is the market right now really as bad as people say it is?
  2. How useful are teaching credentials?
  3. How is teaching in the Taichung area?
  4. With my teaching background should I be more assertive about pay and such?
  5. Should I consider working in a ‘suburb’ or more rural area?
  6. I’m contemplating contacting an agent before I go (read posts on this previously). Yes or No? Should I just pound it out while there and go through the hassle of passing out resumes and such?
  7. Where can I find a nice temporary stay for semi-cheap while job hunting? I’d like to live somewhat close to where I end up working.

Anything else I should know for that first few months? From getting a phone, place to live, etc…

Thanks.

[quote=“blip”]Bio/Credentials in brief

Questions

  1. Is the market right now really as bad as people say it is?
  2. How useful are teaching credentials?
  3. How is teaching in the Taichung area?
  4. With my teaching background should I be more assertive about pay and such?
  5. Should I consider working in a ‘suburb’ or more rural area?
  6. I’m contemplating contacting an agent before I go (read posts on this previously). Yes or No? Should I just pound it out while there and go through the hassle of passing out resumes and such?
  7. Where can I find a nice temporary stay for semi-cheap while job hunting? I’d like to live somewhat close to where I end up working.

Thanks.[/quote]

  1. Yes it is.
  2. Quite, unless you work in places like Hess, Global Village, etc… then White is perfect.
  3. Not too bad.
  4. No… you taught maths and only English for 3 months. Plenty more qualified people out there.
  5. Both ok.
  6. Agent is so so but if you want to look for yourself, bring start up cash.
  7. No idea.
  1. The market is pretty bad at the moment, however, it’s also pretty fluid, meaning spots open and get filled all the time.

  2. Your teaching credential is not as important as your college diploma unless you try for one of the more prestigious gigs. (See #6 for more detail).

  3. Teaching in Taichung, from what I hear, is a little better than Taipei right now. I don’t know why. Taichung housing and living is much cheaper than in Taipei. Salaries may also be lower. You won’t want for nightlife in Taichung. More laid-back than up north. Also consider Kaohsiung.

  4. You can try to be more “assertive” about pay but don’t expect to be successful right away. Experience in TW = better pay in TW.

  5. You could teach in a rural area but prepare to be bored stiff.

  6. Contacting an agent or recruiter is always a good idea because it will give you (A) an idea of what the market is like and (B) some background on the TW cram school game. However, many people chose to go solo. In my experience, the good gigs come through connections you make after you’ve been here a little while. Also, keep in mind that the first gig you come across is most likely going to be the first gig in a series of gigs. (See #1)

  7. Check out TEALIT tealit.com for info on housing. Craigslist also has listings but hasn’t really taken-off in TW.

Good luck.

[quote=“blip”]Bio/Credentials in brief
30 year old white male (apparently the white part is important)
4 years teaching middle school math (tough schools)
1.5 years substitute teaching at all grade levels.
Taught English in Madrid for 3 months
Getting TEFL/TESOL certified before I leave.[/quote]
All in all that sounds solid. You’re more than qualified, over qualified even.

Financially you’re more than set, and you should find something that will enable you to study and support yourself without too much hassle.

[quote=“blip”]In reading through this forum it seems there is a lot of pessimism and negativity about teaching over there. Then again there is a lot of the same thing here in the States.

Questions

  1. Is the market right now really as bad as people say it is? [/quote]
    Overall it’s still pretty grim, especially when compared to five or more years ago. That said, you should be able to find an ARC school and you could supplement that if necessary with privates and other schools (just remember you need a work permit for each school you work at and your hours aren’t allowed to exceed 32 hours a week).

They can come in handy, but without being cynical it seems that in order of “importance” it’s more important being, 1. white (sometimes being female is more of a trump), 2. American or Canadian, 3. young (twenties are trump), and 4. specifically qualified (B Ed, teacher’s diploma or TESOL certified). But being a westerner (white…) from one of the English speaking countries (US, Can, UK, Aus, NZ or SA) with no experience and a BA would be enough really. You have teaching credentials and experience, and if you’re from any of those countries (especially North America) you’ll be more than good to go.

Can’t really comment here, but I imagine it’s not that bad.

You could try, but even if you had ten years experience and a PhD the local buxiban owners will still try and sign you for as little as possible. NT$500/hr is fairly common, NT$550 - NT$650 is average, and NT$650+ is doing well.

Depends on your personality and needs. The rural areas may illicit more stares and comments, but you’d be closer to nature etc. There aren’t really suburbs as we would define the term, but that would put you closer to nightlife and other amenities like unis where you could study Chinese etc.

I think you could try both routes and see what you come up with, especially seeing as you aren’t pressed for cash. But be wary of agents.

Again, not much help here, especially considering Taichung. However, if you get a job before you get here (like Hess or even some buxibans), they’ll help you find accommodation before you arrive.

[quote=“blip”]Anything else I should know for that first few months? From getting a phone, place to live, etc…

Thanks.[/quote]
I need to go work now, but if something pops into my head I’ll post an update later. Do check out the boards offering work like DavesESL cafe, the bulletins on Yahoo, Taiwanted etc.

Good luck.

Thanks for all the advice! It sounds like even though the market is bad, which it is in the States as well, anyone willing to put in the work should be fine.

Bismarck why do you think they prefer women? I have seen a lot of ads for jobs saying female preferred. That is crazy.

Traditional “family” values - they think women are better with children, and children can relate to women better. I heard once (from a female Taiwanese teacher) that female teachers were a catch for men, because they’re good at staying home and looking after the children…

I think in a lot of families here men just don’t spend time with their children. If so, I can understand a predominant feeling growing in a culture that “women are better with kids.”

[quote=“ice raven”]Traditional “family” values - they think women are better with children, and children can relate to women better. I heard once (from a female Taiwanese teacher) that female teachers were a catch for men, because they’re good at staying home and looking after the children…

I think in a lot of families here men just don’t spend time with their children. If so, I can understand a predominant feeling growing in a culture that “women are better with kids.”[/quote]

That explains it then, thanks for that I just didn’t understand why I seen a lot of ads with females preferred.

[quote=“Shearersheed”][quote=“ice raven”]Traditional “family” values - they think women are better with children, and children can relate to women better. I heard once (from a female Taiwanese teacher) that female teachers were a catch for men, because they’re good at staying home and looking after the children…

I think in a lot of families here men just don’t spend time with their children. If so, I can understand a predominant feeling growing in a culture that “women are better with kids.”[/quote]

That explains it then, thanks for that I just didn’t understand why I seen a lot of ads with females preferred.[/quote]
Yep, that’s basically what I was going to say. But it’s just perception. I cringe at how some of these women (locals and foreigners) scream at the kids like banshees.

Does anyone have any advice on how a credentialed teacher like the OP would start looking for a job in the schools instead of buxibans? I don’t mind my buxiban job but it seems that with his credentials/experience he doesn’t need to settle for a buxiban jobs. And the pay and benefits (like actually having vacation time) are better from what I understand. Or there are always the international schools. Unless of course you have your heart set on teaching English buxiban style.

And I forgot what the name of the schools that teach half in English and half in chinese. I met someone that taught at one outside Tainan. These are a possibility and you could teach Math or possibly the sciences.


And here are some general comments about your questions and coming to Taiwan

I’m a 31 yr old white mechanical engineer that is teaching English in Taiwan for 3-ish years before returning to the states to get a math teaching degree (and a couple of years experience) and then hopefully into an intl HS in South America (and traveling). So I saw a lot similarities between us (except you have the credentials).

I wouldn’t pick an area to live (you mention Taichung) from overseas but instead come to Taiwan and travel for 2-4 weeks. I did this and found that I liked Kaohsiung so much that I never made it to Tainan and Taichung. If you want to do a university program you might be limited to the 4 big cities (and living in the city). But there are options to study Chinese in the rural areas and smaller cities.

The teaching market might be worse than it has been for awhile (or ever) but I got a job in 2 weeks after passing out 6 or so resumes. And I think I misremembered my phone number on a couple of the resumes. Average pay (600NT/hr) and so far there are zero problems with the school/boss/coworkers.

Regarding short-term housing - your best bet is finding a hostel thru a travel guide or online site. it should cost 200-500NT/night with a possible discount for a longer term stay (>week). I have a recommendation in kaohsiung (ifc house) that is the nicest hostel (let’s say 2nd nicest, one hostel in Ecuador was amazing) I’ve ever stayed at.

I don’t see the big benefit of using an agent. Accepting a job from overseas w/o visiting the school, meeting your boss or visiting the area where you would live seems like a recipe for a possible disaster. The only benefit is that you have the job security before you even move overseas but you have enough cash that you can take the risk I think.

I’m not sure getting a TEFL cert is worth your time or money. Especially since you have a teaching background. I can’t imagine it will help you land a job so it would only be for your development. I had considered it and I’m glad that I didn’t.

On another topic it might be worth to arrive in late June for tax reasons. If you spend <180 days in Taiwan in a calendar year you pay 20% tax rate. If you spend >180 days in Taiwan you’re tax rate should be 6-10% (it’s a progressive rate tax IIRC).

You can buy everything you need in taiwan but you might have limited selection on a few things (like deodorant). Your basic cellphone costs 1500-2000 dollars but I’m sure there are places you can get one cheaper. And it’s easy to get a pay as you go sim card. It’s possible that you’re US cellphone might work here after you get a sim card but I don’t know how to check. I wish I had brought mine instead of leaving it in a box at home.

Sure. You walk up to a school with your American Teaching Certificate and degree, and ask for a job. Or contact the Bureau of Education.

That easy. You just need to be a qualified teacher in your own country, that’s all.

Then you can enjoy stable hours, plenty of work, class sizes of 30-60, crappy books, and no air conditioners. Enjoy!

Oooo…sounds tempting…

[quote=“ice raven”]Sure. You walk up to a school with your American Teaching Certificate and degree, and ask for a job. Or contact the Bureau of Education.

That easy. You just need to be a qualified teacher in your own country, that’s all.

Then you can enjoy stable hours, plenty of work, class sizes of 30-60, crappy books, and no air conditioners. Enjoy![/quote]

So you think the buxiban route is better? Or do you just think that all teaching jobs in Taiwan suck?

It seems that with the OP’s teaching certificate and experience he should be able to get a better job than a normal run of the mill buxiban (likely a chain school).

Depends. I think a lot of bushiban work sucks, but some are much better than others; and also some people are better suited to it than others.

I taught at one (private) high school for a year, and it was exactly as I described - however, there are many schools. He could probably get a job in a reasonable school if he tried. Mine was in the countryside…

Having said that, large class sizes are the norm, and there is a very common problem in the English classes, which is instead of the normal bell curve of ability there’s an M curve. So if he teaches to the middle, half (who went to bushibans) will already know it and be bored, while the other half won’t understand anything as they didn’t understand anything the year before or the year before that. Once fallen behind, they can’t catch up.

Thanks for the advice everyone.

I’ve been looking at all the different cities and every one of them has its problems as well as benefits, so I’ll take the advice of traveling around before I decide. I have the time and the money which is a good thing.

I’ll also probably take the first semi-decent job that comes my way and make the best of it until I get my feet wet. I’m not a picky person and have already put up with a lot of crap at previous schools so I’m not worried.

[quote=“blip”]Thanks for the advice everyone.

I’ve been looking at all the different cities and every one of them has its problems as well as benefits, so I’ll take the advice of traveling around before I decide. I have the time and the money which is a good thing.

I’ll also probably take the first semi-decent job that comes my way and make the best of it until I get my feet wet. I’m not a picky person and have already put up with a lot of crap at previous schools so I’m not worried.[/quote]
Good attitude to have. You’ll do fine. :thumbsup:

Good luck, and don’t forget…enjoy yourself!

I suggest you go for a buxiban, but a smaller one(not a big chain) because your objectives are to study. A buxiban job would give you the most flexibility to pursue your studies. I’d be happy to help you get sorted if you choose Taichung city. The smaller towns , or countryside is a good option for learning both the culture and language. I spent my first 2 years in a very small town, not a single pub. You can find one that is close a uni too. I don’t know what your party requirements are, but Taichung has enough happening. I mean how many pubs does one really need?

[quote=“Abacus”]Does anyone have any advice on how a credentialed teacher like the OP would start looking for a job in the schools instead of buxibans? I don’t mind my buxiban job but it seems that with his credentials/experience he doesn’t need to settle for a buxiban jobs. And the pay and benefits (like actually having vacation time) are better from what I understand. Or there are always the international schools. Unless of course you have your heart set on teaching English buxiban style.

[/quote]

You can get a job in a Taiwanese high school but they probably will only want you to sign a 10 month contract thus no paid summer vacation.

But the OP needs to go to a city big enough to offer Mandarin classes for foreigners.

[quote=“blip”]

Anything else I should know for that first few months? From getting a phone, place to live, etc…

Thanks.[/quote]

I would avoid working in a junior high until your Mandarin skills are good enough to speak to the children in Mandarin. In most junior high schools you would have no chance of controlling the students by speaking English. Many of them would not understand you.

I split some posts and parts of posts here: I'm glad many Taiwanese are still learning other languages