Best Orgs/Companies to go through for jobs?

[raiinzen]

I hope you guys might be able to give me a few specific suggestions?

I will have my Bachelor's Degree in English in only a few months. I will also hold a 120 hour TESL certificate by the time I choose which company / organization to go through.

I am currently looking at many different programs.

Here is what I am looking for ideally.

• Public school or university
  
• Any area; small community is fine.
  
• Someplace within reasonable traveling distance of Shanghai and/or Beijing because I would love to explore those cities a few times.
  
• 1-2 year contract.
  
• Flight Reimbursement (at least one way)
  
• Housing provided (I don't mind if all of the utilities aren't paid, but of course that would be ideal)
  
• I don't care about how small the dwelling is.
  
• Ideally around 5,000 RMB / month +. (If you think that I'm setting my expectations too high do let me know, but it sounds like that is the livable wage from my research.)
  

Am I better off going through a company such as TeachAway, Teach in Tianjin, CIEE, or am I better off looking for opportunities directly through a university or public school?

Thanks very much in advance for any suggestions!!

[Chinadoog]

the best way is to apply directly to schools. university gigs are probably the best. just go to uni websites and look for the contact information.

if you have free housing and 5,000 rmb a month, that's more than enough to live on in pretty much any city other than the big 3 expensive ones. it really depends on how often you go to bars/clubs/expensive resturaunts. most university salaries are a bit less than that, but you will only be working 12-16 hours a week and can potentially find a second job if you want more money.

imo, the most important factors are living conditions, location, and being with a school that wont try and screw you over. to avoid being screwed over, just ask the school to give you the contact info of 2-3 other foreign teachers at the school to make sure it's all good before you go.

[GaHanna]

raiinzen

I used an agency and got a very good job in a couple of weeks. You can see my reply to the "Teaching Positions in Universities" thread a few rows below your thread. My only concern for you is that many institutions require actual teaching experience. I did a quick google and:

“The foreign educational expert should hold a minimum of a bachelor's degree and more than two years of experience."

But as the writer suggests, "should", might depend on where you find the university. That is why I thought that it might be useful to also go through an agency and let them do some hunting for you as well.

http://www.transitionsabroad.com/listings/work/esl/articles/teaching-english-in-china-is-degree-work-visa-needed.shtml

[MLively]

Does anyone have any recommendations for good agencies? It seems like its hard to find ones that are reliable and trustworthy

[aroberts42]

We went through Buckland International Education Group and have been really happy with them every step of the way. It also meets everything you are looking for from pay, including apartment, and airfare reimbursement. I did a lot of looking around online at several agencies and could find nothing bad about Buckland. I should get paid for how many times I endorse this company, lol. But I wanted the support of someone to go to who knew all the answers and would be there if we had problems. I know not everyone likes using agencies (you can make more money on your own), but for our first job, this was the best choice for us.

Good luck!

[cherrypie]

If you have both a university degree and a certificate for teaching, and you want to go to a big city, you should be paid a lot more than 5000RMB a month. In a big city, you can be paid around 9000-12000 depending on the job type.

As far as companies to work with. I would not do it! You will encounter problems with the contract. It is better to work directly with a school, otherwise the schools will sometimes say they cannot afford certain accommodations because they are also giving money to the company.