Ladies and Gents of Forumosa -
I’m a recent college grad and considering the possibility of coming to Taiwan to teach English to learn Chinese. That said, I’ve got a few reservations, with the reputation being foremost among them. Plenty of reasons for this (people coming over with little/no certification or bad certifications, people half-assing the job, the way teaching is done - all of this I have read about, admittedly), but I’m a bit worried about my prospects for jobs after leaving. I don’t plan to teach English my whole life.
I do intend to study Chinese pretty heavily and definitely want to develop professional-level fluency and know I can, as I’ve already learned German to a professional level and am resting around a HSK1/2 from independent study on my behalf in the USA. All that said, I’m looking to eventually return to the USA or Germany/Austria to work, at least for a bit, as professional work culture in Taiwan is seemingly reminiscent of that in Japan and I ain’t got any interest in that long-term. Given that I just graduated and studied during COVID, I don’t really have any relevant work experience for most of the roles I’m applying to - I’ve only really got a BA in History, German, English, and a smattering of other skills, none of which have really had a workplace application yet.
Have any of you done this before? Did the Chinese language proficiency prove relevant and useful? I’ve got German proficiency at the moment and it sometimes doesn’t feel like it’s particularly useful in the USA - is Chinese much the same? Is there any way you can prove to an employer that you didn’t just laze about? And what are the odds of finding a proper entry-level job within Taiwan, maybe after a year or two here, which will let me develop a bit of work experience to make myself a bit more marketable?
Otherwise, one other question: what are the odds I could work in some logistics capacity for a year in the USA and then find a job with Maersk or Evergreen or what have you in Taiwan as an opportunity to do this very same thing and have the opportunity to live in Taiwan (or China, if it gets less crazy with the lockdowns) for the same reasons?
TL;DR how are the growth opportunities in other careers after going to Taiwan to teach English for the purpose of learning Chinese?
A lot of broad questions, I know, but any and all help will be appreciated.
Best,
Cdn1234