Suggestions: Agent or no?

Hi,

I’m trying to complete the patchwork quilt that appears to be a common method of teaching English here. That is to say, a piece of this, and a piece of that, and all together, full-time hours.

I have something for the evenings that I think will work out OK. I’d like to add something during the day, mornings preferably. I have a CELTA, MBA, and very limited EFL experience.

I’m at the point where I’ve exhausted the Tealit.com choices, and now am wondering about another method. I’m in the Beitou area, and would like to work closer to home for the daytime stint (defined as Shilin to Danshui). I’m a little hesitant to wander through the “neighborhood” knocking on kindergarten or buxiban doors, mainly because I speak so little Chinese.

So, thoughts about using an agent? Know any decent ones?

Other suggestions or methods?

Thanks in advance for the tips,

Seeker4

Stay away from agents as far as possible. However, if you already have a steady source of income, it wont hurt to use one. I haven’t met an honest agent yet and I have been here for a very long time.

Another way of making extra income is proofreading documents or thesis. I once helped a friend with her thesis and since then more and more work has come my way.

Well that makes perfect sense :homer:

Knocking on doors is really going to be the best method. Remember that these places are English schools and therefore there will more than likely (no guarantees) be someone there who will be able to help you.

It is pretty stupid to suggest that ALL agents are bad. Of course there are some good agents out there, but regardless you don’t really need one. Bear in mind that what you are looking for technically constitutes illegal work and therefore any agent that took on your case is unlikely to be the sort of agent that you want to deal with.

In fact this could be a good way to size up agents. Ask them about illegal work and if they oblige you will know that they aren’t any good. If you find one that shies away from the almighty dollar in favor of protecting your ass then surely that has to be an agent that you can trust!

Brian,

Can you clarify your comment please about “illegal work”? In my case, the evening work already provides an ARC.

Did you assume no ARC, therefore illegal, or are you saying that any work other than your ARC-sponsoring workplace is illegal?

Seeker4

[quote]are you saying that any work other than your ARC-sponsoring workplace is illegal?
[/quote]
That’s right. Although it is now legal to work at more then one place, as long as both places are named on your ARC.

I guess that I may have been jumping the gun a bit in my earlier post. While I stand by my comments that it would be illegal to be working in two seperate workplaces under one ARC, I guess that I did overlook the possibility that you may have been here on an APRC which may give more flexibility in this regard.

Can anyone confirm that is now possible to have two legal employers? I have seen the posts about it.I have seen the stuff on Tealit. I even understand how the process works in theory, but has anyone actually done it? Is there anyone who has two employers on their ARC (let’s leave APRC’s out of this if we can).