A non native English speaker wants that Job !

[H33]

Hii Guys, I'm from Cairo, Egypt..so obviously my mother tongue is not English , its Arabic .... BUT the thing is that I believe that I am a fluent English speaker and I've been studying English for 14 years now , and I'm still working on getting a teaching certificate from the British council in Cairo !

Now ... I've been told that I can have that job for a couple of months in the next summer vacation (July 2012) , and I Wish i could know for sure that this is true cause of many many reasons ! First, I will be able to meet my girl friend finally again , cause i can't see her since she left Egypt and I really need to be with her cause i can't wait till I finish my college in 2013!!

Second I am a Mechanical Engineer student and that would help me soo much if I can get training in any factory in China! (Would be a great thing to add in my CV)

Third , I would have the awesome opportunity to be a teacher ( I love to be a teacher ) , to visit China (I'm in Love with this country ) and to at least earn the money I paid in the way to China ... if U know what i mean !

So if anyone can help me know more about that , and if that real offer or not ? Or any thing else , please share ..Pleaaaaaaaase do it , cause I need this soo much !

Thanks for reading! Waiting for the comments

[jbradfor]

I've read this through several times, and honestly I have no clue what you're asking.

Are you asking if it is possible for a ME student from Cairo to get a job in China? I don't see why not.

Can you get a job in a factory? I doubt it.

Can you get a job teaching English? It might be a bit more difficult for you, but probably.

But something tells me you're not asking any of these questions.

[anonymoose]

There are lots of dodgy schools that hire dodgy teachers in China, so I'd say you have a reasonable chance.

[WestTexas]

I knew a guy who was from Egypt who worked here as an English teacher. His English was really, really good. He went to an international school in Egypt, meaning, he was educated completely in English for like 15 years. He read novels in English for leisure. Anyway, there are sketchy companies that will hire practically anyone, if you really want a job here that bad. BTW this guy worked like 30 hours a week and made 3.5k a month, which is a terrible salary.

[H33]

@jbradfor ..... I asked about the probability of doing so ...and If U have any other comments on that ... But U r right , I don't have a particular question in that post

So If U please tell me what kind of papers Or preparations i should do if Its available like you said ? Should I go search in China Or look for that on the web ? NOTE I just need that Job for like 1 or 1.5 months as maximum 2 months !! cause I have to continue my College here in Cairo first

@anonymoose Perfect ..thank you for giving me hope ... Those friends who told me about that job said that if I wanned to work only for weeks like I said (1 or 2 months) It would be an English conversation not a whole English course you know ! so what do U know about that ?

@WestTexas Oh that's bad news ! I wanned to work for much less time I think so I get to be with my gf (which is the main reason U know) .. and I wanned to work as a teacher not in a company ...

[paperbagprince23]

As long as you don't look Asian, you are fine. I know some ABC's who can't even get a job teaching English, but plenty of lets say German, French, that can. If you look white, its good enough for them. The darker the skin, the lower the pay, but you can find a job teaching English no problem.

Iv'e also seen plenty of advertisements looking for Arabic translators, so why not look into that.

[H33]

@paperbagprince23 Wow , man that's great ! thank you ! I'm not white I'm alittle brown more than white .. but its okay I think

I can't be an Arabic translator cause I dunno Chinese yet ! I've just been studying for 3 months now and Just started taking formal lessons this week ! so I don't think by the end of the year I will be able to translate from Chinese to Arabic or English !

But That's a good thing to know about , so I'll keep it in mind ... Some friends told me its do-able but for like 100 YUAN per hour , What do you think about that ?!

[tooironic]

You say you only want a job for a maximum of two months? As far as I know there's no such position available in China for foreigners, unless you go there on some other type of visa and take some teaching work illegally. I've never heard of a job contract in China being advertised for foreigners that is under 12 months.

[anonymoose]

Actually, there are. I worked at a school before that hired teachers for about 6 weeks over the summer period. But the school was above board, and wouldn't take non-native English speakers.

[H33]

Ah I see I see , but my friends told me that too , and they said it won’t be in a formal school , it will be private lessons or some kind of private schools that gives conversation courses during summer vacation!

It’d be a pity if this was not right, what do you guys think about that?!

Edited October 12, 2011 at 10:20 AM by imron
Admin: Use the zoom function of your browser if you want larger text.

[bunny87]

if you go to china to teach English, aren't you automatically going to be working illegally? i was under the impression you need to be born and raised in a particular set of countries to get the proper work visa (USA, Canada, UK, New Zealand, Australia, South Africa).

and yes, you can find your self taking a pay cut automatically for not having white skin. just met with someone today who told me that my friend will of course earn much less because of her skin. though he has seen with his own eyes that "black women work the hardest". from a western standpoint, that's a horrible thing. however, looking at it from a Chinese perspective, i respect the guy for telling me outright. he didn't have to tell me, he already told me that she can start next semester, because it's too late for this one. and he could have said her pay and i would have not questioned it (it's between them, anyway).

[H33]

@bunny87 ... I dunno actually if that's illegal or not !! and about the skin color thing ! I think I am not that dark , I'm just a little sun tanned from the weather here , but I am alittle bit white than even my friends ! and I don't think he will cut my pay If I could impress him with my English ! who knows ! But thanks for your info ... helpful

[Matty]

@ paperbagprince23

I know a girl, Chinese blooded, Singapore born but raised in England who has amazing English and is a very well paid English teacher here. The parents often have an issue when they first hear about it but once they meet her and realise she can't speak a word of Chinese and see her English teaching abilities they never complain again. Her English is better than mine.

@ bunny87

I don't think it's required to be born and raised in one of these countries, however as I recall it is required to have graduated a 4 year university course in one of them. By 4 year they also accept 3 years too, I don't know any 4 year bachelor degrees in Australia.

[H33]

But I'm afraid I dont have this too ! I only can get a certificate from the British council in Egypt !! and I dont want a formal Job there , just a simple one for 1 or 2 months !!

And many Chinese friends who know me said its okay ! so what do you guys think ?

[MaLaTang]

you CAN get an English teaching job in China with your qualifications, but expect to work for less money and in a lower quality institution than someone who 1...holds a passport from an English speaking country (usa, canada, uk, australia, ireland, south africa) and 2...is white. The Asian parents who pay for their kids to attend English class want to see a WHITE face teaching their children. This also boosts the credibility of the school. Yeah...that's life.

[tooironic]

@H33 Even if you can find such short-term positions, I highly doubt they would be legal.

[H33]

@tooironic ... I see thanks for the advice , Do U think its so dangerous to work illegally ?! or it depends ?

[WestTexas]

I see thanks for the advice , Do U think its so dangerous to work illegally ?! or it depends ?

IMO not remotely dangerous. I've never heard of anyone getting in serious trouble for working illegally here. In China 'illegal' is IMO not as big of a deal as it is in, say, the US.

[Shasel]

So, I assume being African, it will be difficult to find a well paying teaching job. I speak English fluently, perhaps even more fluently than I do my native language. Does it help to have SAT, toefl, ielts results when applying for jobs or do they primarily look at your nationality, rather than your results?

[Pavel123]

Do you think it is possible to find good english teaching job in Shanghai for non-native speaker (I´m white and blonde - as I´ve heard that it matters a lot in China)?