My wife and I are 28 years old and we live in Los Angeles (IDK if this matters but we are native English speakers and white, but it seems to come up on these forums that it’s beneficial). After my wife finishes her Master’s Degree next Spring, we want to move to Taiwan to teach English. I have Bachelor’s degree in English Literature and two years of substitute teaching experience (but I work in retail right now). I also have a 120-hour TEFL Certificate. My wife holds a Bachelors’ in Education, soon to have a Masters in Education Technology and 6 years of teaching experience (full time teacher 3rd & 5th grades).
We want to get jobs teaching English in Taiwan and ideally only will work part-time but I suppose full-time is not out of the question. We both want to do this for the experience and the traveling. Also, I have been studying Mandarin for 2 years and want to increase my fluency so working part-time would be good for exploring other interestes, I think.
Basically, I just want to know more about how you all found teaching jobs, living situations (ideally we have 1br apartment for the two of us, no roommates). I have done some research on jobs via CIEE, Teach Abroad, Uproot, and Language Corps but from what I read on these forums is that it might be better to use something like TeaLit.com or Dave’s ESL Cafe to find teaching positions.
Do you recommend getting the job locked down before we arrive or conducting the search after we are in Taiwan? Also, is NT$660/hr a good wage to look for? And how will we be paid, bi-weekly check or direct deposit? Can we haggle for a higher wage, given our experiences? What is the difference between buxiban, private, and public schools?
Thank you for all your help. I am doing this research well in advance of our departure (June-August 2019) so there is enough time to figure out details.
EDIT: Sorry this post is extremely redundant. I did not realize how good the search tool is on this forum.
My wife, as of right now, is looking forward to taking a break from full-time teaching. However, she works herself to death at her current school often working 60 hours per week. But, she is an extremely dedicated teacher and kind of perfectionist. I have talked to her about Uni or International school jobs but she seems to want to only have to work in that 15-25 hour range.
How much better are the University or International School jobs ($$) and where would I find them? I remember she applied to a handful of International Schools in Taiwan and Mainland China about ~2 years ago via websites and did not hear a peep from them (not even a “thank you for applying but we have chosen to go in a different direction” courtsey email). Maybe she would re-consider applying to the International Schools again.
As for myself, when you say 14 hour buxicon job and explore options, does that mean I could leave the buxicon easily if I found something better? Basically, contract free and easy to exit.
Choose where you want to live and then look at the websites of the unis nearby. The top unis in Taipei may well be looking for PhD holders, but elsewhere she should be fine. There are currently a staggering 164 unis in Taiwan, although that figure is in decline.
Southpaw, you both are coming over with more than enough credentials to be able to pick and choose your lifestyle. Come over, don’t sign any contracts until you are here and find a nice place. If you’ve $2000+ in your hand, see the island and arrange interviews as you go. The rail system is great to hop on or off at your whim.
You don’t really have the right post TEFL experience, but you might want to chance your arm with the British Council. They offer 18 hour contracts and the best cram school working conditions.
Thanks for all the input. Sounds like I will continue to do research mostly at TeaLit for positions for both my wife and I, but will be open to the possibility of finding that job once we are there. We have plenty of savings to hold us over if that is the case.
@southpaw328, if your wife is looking to just relax and get away from the 60-hour work-week, perhaps you should think of other cities besides Taipei. Yes, it’ll have all the luxuries of a big metropolis (transport system, western food, etc.), but it’ll feel like the same rush-rush of LA area. Maybe think of Taichung, Kaohsiung, or Tainan. Kaohsiung also has an MRT and international airport (on MRT line) to major cities throughout Asia. Downside sometimes is the air, but huge upside is savings in costs.
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Thanks @CTaitung for the advice. We are definitely not locked into staying in Taipei and happy to work in one of the other cities on the island. We enjoy being frugal so it sounds like one of the cities you mentioned is more likely to be our final destination anyway. Do you agree that we should look for our teaching positions once we are there or should secure them before we arrive? I have been using TeaLit extensively to search for openings at private schools as well as cram schools. Still over a year of research time ahead of me though.
You guys are in an interesting situation. If your wife wanted to teach in a public school she would have an easy job but would need to sit at her desk from 8 to 5. She would get vacations and a decent salary (over 70,000nt a month). Your situation is different. You would be working nights for buxibans. The work isn’t hard but teaching effectively can be a challenge. You could work illegally at a kindergarten and take the tiny risk of being deported. i hope you guys know what you are getting in to. Also, there are a few facebook groups that have job postings every day. They are even better than Tealit.
If she can get it, the University jobs are the way to go. It has a much more relaxed atmosphere, and it has very little of the marketing type, sales focus of the Buxibans, which she won’t like at all, I think.
