This has probably been asked before, but have any of the female, overseas born chinese people on this forum found it difficult to find work? I am thinking of going to Taiwan to teach English, however some friends have said that it is difficult for people like me.
That’s an understatement. You can find several discussions on the subject by either using the “search” function on the top right of your screen or scrolling through the many pages of threads in the “Teaching English in Taiwan” section. Here’s one prior discussion:
forumosa.com/taiwan/viewtopic.ph … 95&start=0
Wecome to forumosa.
I’m a Taiwan-born, American-raised female. Employers don’t really make a distinction between “ABC” and “MIT”, though some find it more convenient (I think, more hassle-free) for their company that I have dual citizenship.
I found a high-paying job with a company that treated me as fairly – salary-wise and all other repescts – as any of the other ‘foreign’ teachers within a week of arriving in Taipei. This was after I immediately sent out resumes upon arrival, and was calling companies and interviewing at the rate of 2-3 schools per day.
The company that I finally signed with has had good experiences with ABCs. Most parents don’t really care too much. Bottom line is they want a good teacher. I am as dedicated and hard-working as they come, even if I don’t necessarily provide the ‘thrill’ that a non-Asian foreign teacher can provide.
The major downside is that I have to pretend I don’t understand a lick of Chinese, and I can NEVER speak Chinese neither to my students nor their parents. It’s an image thing – you feign total ignorance of Mandarin so that they’re forced to accept you as an English teacher and so that they’re not tempted to lapse into Mandarin to explain difficult terms. This approach has mixed advantages. Over time, however, I have been forced out of hiding by some parents and they often seem relieved that they can communicate their concerns about their students with me in Mandarin… but I still respond in English.
I can, however, speak freely in Chinese with my Chinese co-teachers, and especially when I was teaching the younger kids, this ability to communicate made things go much, much smoother.
I think I’ve had it pretty good. I can think of other overseas Taiwanese females who have had vastly different experiences though, never really landing a full-time job because they could not stand to be shafted on pay rates. And no, you don’t have to stand for that. You shouldn’t stand for that. But realize that you’ll have a little more to prove than the average Caucasian foreigner who walks into an English school looking to get a contract offered on the spot. Everybody has different experiences. A good attitude and persistance will get you what you want, in the end.
Menghsindy,
What certification/degree did you have under your belt?
I have a bachelor’s degree from the University of Michigan. Asian Studies and Communication. That’s all.
Try to think of it this way. If an overseas born Chinese has a 1% chance of finding an ESL appointment in Taiwan, you’ll get a job in about 33 days of arrival if you apply for 3 jobs/day. That’s assuming that you get equal treatment (salary, schedules, etc.).
Actually, You’ll probably have a better chance of finding employment than me. I wasn’t born in an English speaking country and I’m not a female.
hi there,
yes, it is true that abc’s will have harder time finding a job just because so many schools want foreigners. but there are also lots of schools nowadays who only hires abc’s. i do recruiting and if you like you are more than welcome to contact me with any questions i can help you answer:
i’m julie (yes i’m abc as well. and yes, it was harder to find jobs when i was teaching)
asiarecruiters@yahoo.com
+886 958 282 693
i’m always in need of good teachers so please do not hesistate to contact me!
hope to see you in taiwan,
julie :bravo: