Does anyone have experience or information about teaching and living on the East Coast? Is it possible to find work in Yilan, Hualien, or Taitung?
I’m moving out this August so any ideas and advice helps.
Thanks
A fair number of people want to live there and I hear that there aren’t many jobs.
For reference, the Ministry of Labor says there are only about 350 ‘foreign professionals’ with work permits in Yilan, Hualien, and Taidong combined. That includes English teachers and missionaries who make up about half of the foreign professionals in those areas.
The National Immigration Agency says there are 81 foreign teachers in Yilan, 57 in Hualien, and 29 in Taitung who are residents or permanent residents. I suspect a good number of those are either married or permanent residents who do not need work permits. If so, the number of jobs with work permits is probably pretty small and declines the further south you go.
However, most resourceful foreigners who come to Taiwan usually find a way to make it work. I suspect that if you have the funds to hang around for a few months something would eventually come up. Be careful not to work illegally in these areas. The police have a bad reputation for going after foreigners there and these are small places where everyone knows everyone else.
Good luck!
I would have said Yilan is your best bet and Feiren’s stats just back that up. I had a buddy who taught in Yilan for a year or two back around 2010-11.