Language Student? Check. English Teacher? Check. Now what?

[rahxephon]

I have studied Chinese for two years in the U.S., another year intensively in China, and have been self-studying while teaching English for the past 2.5 years. I did quite well as a student of International Politics, and I'd say my Chinese is good enough for a professional working environment. Question is: What's next?

Seriously, I'm not sure what industries, outside of education, that could use the skills or experience that I've acquired at this point. Considering I have no direct experience in any field, I am honestly concerned about having to work some Mcjob just to gain experience. Seemingly EVERYTHING, including entry-level jobs, require at least a year or two of it. Assuming further education is out for now, jobs in government (such as the State Department) are currently out of reach, un-paid internships are a no-go due to lack of funds to sustain myself, what other options are there?

Also, is it even possible to apply for jobs in one's own country while still working in China? I feel compelled to start searching and applying now as I'm not certain I will stay in China for work. Any advice would be much appreciated.

[markpete]

Hi-- Are you a U.S. citizen? I'm not sure why you'd need further education to get a job in government. Your background seems like it would be pretty well suited for the foreign service, and I think Chinese is one of their priority languages, meaning that you'd have an advantage in the application process.

http://careers.state.gov/officer/who-we-look-for#.

[gato]

If you didn't study Chinese, what would you be doing? If you want to make a living using your Chinese, then your Chinese would really have to be exceptional, so you'd probably have to concentrate on your other skills, with Chinese just as an added plus.

[rahxephon]

Yes, I am a U.S. citizen. I've looked into the foreign service quite a bit, but it's a massive commitment, and I'm just not sure I'm prepared mentally for such an undertaking right now. I was looking to work something a bit less...career-like for a bit, just to gain some actual work experience. Plus, I've been looking to take a break from overseas life for at least a year or two.

If I didn't study Chinese, I probably would have chosen a business major instead of International Relations, and would be working in a company somewhere, probably doing IT. Couldn't do that and Chinese at the same time so I opted for something else.

[rahxephon]

And I already know I can't rely solely on Chinese, Gato. That's the thing. What other skills might companies find useful for people with a similar experiences as me. International Politics is quite a broad field of study, making it difficult to determine which industries might be suitable. Throw Chinese in the mix, and it becomes even more confusing.

[Lu]

For a lot of jobs, the knowledge you will need you will learn for a large part while doing it. Learning Chinese shows a prospective employer that, among other things, you are smart and can work hard, meaning you can learn new things you'd need for the job.

What would make you happy in a job? Writing reports, meeting people, interpreting, organising events, teaching or managing other people, etc? And what field interests you? International politics is one, I assume. If you don't want to become a diplomat, you may want to check whether the American embassy (or consulates) hire local employees. There is more there than just the foreign service: research institutes, think tanks, trade organisations, perhaps even multinationals, NGO's, non-profits. What do people around you do, with similar backgrounds? Can you find some networking events to go to and meet people, to get an idea about what's out there?

You can certainly apply for jobs while in China (isn't that what skype is for). You could also try to line up a number of job interviews in one or two weeks and fly back for a short holiday and those interviews. Even if you're not 100% qualified you can still try to apply, many vacancy ads will try to find a five-legged sheep (so to speak) without expecting to actually find the perfect candidate, they will settle for someone who's good enough and can learn the other skills required. And I'm sure you have some work experience, the English teaching for one thing. Perhaps you also did some extra-curricular things: organise an outing for the kids/a group of friends, get involved in some charity? Moving abroad and building a life here also counts as a valuable experience. Not everyone is able to do that.

[rahxephon]

It's really quite random what other people do around me. I mean, most are able to speak Chinese, but I personally don't know very many people who were also doing International Politics. Even browsing through profiles on Linkedin, it seems pretty...varied. I'm not sure the exact path they took to get that certain job. I now know I want to stay away from interpreting and teaching, however. I live in a second-tier city; job fairs and networking events don't really exist here. And if they did, I think it would be for jobs in China, not back in the U.S.

Initially I was at a training center doing some translating and working as some kind of speech consultant (amount of work not worth the pay), in addition to teaching English. Now it's just English at a university. There isn't really anyone that can vouch for anything I've done, though. I wouldn't trust my colleagues or superiors (Chinese) that I've worked with in spelling my name correctly, not to mention writing an accurate recommendation in English. To prospective employers, it's almost as if I've vanished into shadow for a few years, learned a couple of neat tricks, and am now trying to walk into a position that I'm still not even qualified for on paper. I thought I was getting ahead of game by spending time here, doing bold things, etc. Now it just seems I've gone backwards and lagged out completely. Sigh.

[icebear]

I thought I was getting ahead of game by spending time here, doing bold things, etc. Now it just seems I've gone backwards and lagged out completely. Sigh.

You probably should choose the job you find most interesting, and then pursue a masters that can place you into that job.

[Lu]

There isn't really anyone that can vouch for anything I've done, though. I wouldn't trust my colleagues or superiors (Chinese) that I've worked with in spelling my name correctly, not to mention writing an accurate recommendation in English

I don't have much knowledge about how cv's work in the US, but if I were in this situation I'd ask someone at this university if they were willing to be my reference, and then put them on my cv as 'Prof. Zhang Mou (Chinese-speaking only)'. That way, at least it shows to prospective employers that you are confident that there is someone willing to vouch for you, even if most employers won't be able to verify this as they don't speak Chinese. Or how about satisfied parents of your pupils?

What you could also do is ask someone if they could be your reference, explain how this works in your country and what you need, and then offer to write the recommendation for them so that they only need to sign it. And then of course provide them with a Chinese translation. (Or alternatively get a Chinese recommendation from them and translate that to English.)

As for networking, have you tried getting in touch with former teachers at your university in the US? That would be a good place to start making guanxi. Is there perhaps some kind of alumni association or help-alumni-find-a-job center?

[ZhangKaiRong]

I understand your problem. I also had an IR major at university, and also learnt Chinese. My situation is better though, because I simultaneously studied another business/finance major, so finding a good job was pretty easy for me.

You mentioned you don't want to have ties with the government. Then why don't you try something concerning international trade? I don't know about IR majors in other countries, but at my university, apart from diplomacy, IR theory, world politics and other less-useful things, we also learnt some basic international economics, internation trade, economic integrations, etc. So you can try to find some organizations which aims to contribute to US-Chinese trade cooperation. I guess there should be some of this kind of organizations in the US.

My another suggestion is business consulting. In Europe, there are some private companies that work on the field of "Chinese business" counsulting, eg. there is a national, private businessman want to make deals with the Chinese (it can be import or export) but most of them lack the necessary language skills, cultural knowledge, 关系. These companies have this knowledge, so they can help to make the deal successfully, they have offices in China and their home country. I think this kind of work should need more language and cultural knowledge than actual business knowledge, so knowing your academic background, you are definitely qualified enough to get a job.

[rahxephon]

Judging by my experience and background, am I only looking at entry-level jobs? Some pay so ridiculously low. Less per hour than what I make here, where the cost of living is like a third as it in the States. I don't get it.

Thanks for the suggestions ZhangKaiRong. I'm looking into these thing now, but it seems entry-level positions are very, very few.

Although I did pretty well in my classes, I doubt my professors would even remember who I am. It's been nearly 4 years, and it's not like I was making an effort to get to know them more outside of class. I did get a couple of recommendations upon graduation, but as I said, it's been a while. Adding the fact that I'm trying to implement my knowledge of Chinese into my work, means there are only a niche group of people who could actually be of assistance in this area. Seeking them out has been a bitch, especially when I'm trapped in Middle of Nowhere, China.

[Angelina]

http://www.eurasiagroup.net/careers/view/analyst_china_washington?utm_source=Sinocism+Newsletter&utm_campaign=f973ee3e89-Sinocism04_05_13&utm_medium=email