Costs of living and studying in Guangzhou (Part time job?)

[pandabear89]

Hi,

I am interested in studying at either SYSU or Jinan University in Guangzhou, but my main concern is costs of living as I am going to be self-funded. In total I will have about RMB 100,000 and I intend to study an undergraduate degree which is 4 years long.

The tuition fees for SYSU are RMB 18,200 per year and the accommodation ranges from about 650RMB per month to about 1,600RMB per month and for Jinan the tuition fees are RMB 17,000 per year and I am unsure of the accommodation fees...

I am aware that RMB 100,000 probably isn't enough to live very well on for 4 years studying, so I guess my main question is, how easy is it for a native-english speaker to find a part-time teaching job while studying full-time? and, how much is the average salary? I have a TEFL degree but no 4 year degree, hence me wanting to study an undergraduate degree in Guangzhou...Is anyone else here working a part-time job whilst studying?

Am I being overly ambitious or does it seem at all do-able?

Any help would be largely appreciated as I plan to study in China this September..

Regards,

Darren

[Takeshi]

How old are you? Are you a university graduate or a university student outside of China?

It is probably pretty easy to find a part time job teaching English; but it will for sure be illegal. I would be kind of uneasy relying on such a situation to live, but I see many people who do. My friends have had various salaries ranging from 50RMB~200RMB an hour. It all depends on your luck I guess. The lowest was this guy working a very tiring job at a Japanese school (he was teaching Japanese, not English; maybe that's different), and the highest was this guy tutoring a bunch of rich kids at home. Your age and your academic qualifications will probably make a big deal in your salary.

Are you planning on going back to your home country during the summer? You could get a summer job there then; though I guess the flight costs would be significant.

[drencrom]

Good news: Student visa allows 20 hours of work per week

Bad news: Without a legal labor contract, you're still illegal

Good news: Everyone works without a legal labor contract

[Takeshi]

Could you give me a source for this "20 hours of work per week"? What is a legal labor contract and how do you get one?

[pandabear89]

I'm 23 and currently just a college graduate, i had to get a job to save money for tuition fees etc. however, i have had experience teaching 1 on 1 and as i mentioned I have a TEFL degree which I hope increases my likelihood of getting a job there while studying~

Thanks for the info! I do feel a bit uneasy about the whole situation as it's all a bit uncertain.. I'd feel much more secure if I knew for a fact I could find a part-time job of some kind.

[sacarletsunset]

I m 23 and currently studying in SYSU. I m CBC.

To live in Guangzhou, here's the cost:

Eating: eat at school, 5-10 yuan per meal, 2-4 yuan per breadfast; eat outside snacks 12-25 yuan per meal, restaurant 50 yuan +

Traffic: BUS 2 yuan（the second bus transfer not counted） ; Metro depends on the distance, maybe 2-10 each trip;

...............

In sum, to live in Guangzhou , you need about 700 yuan per month (for girls, not included the cost of living, tuition fees, books, entertainments, clothing), 850 yuan (for boys).

If you have to rent a room, you should prepare about 1000-2000 yuan for the rent.

About Part time job:

I m not aware of any part time job that ABCs are doing...It depends on your language ability.

Maybe you could help Chinese students who want to pass TOEFL, BEC exams with their oral English. They really need this, they often find partners to practice oral English on their BBS. As the tutors in Guangzhou charge for 50-80 per hour, maybe it's the price you can get.

EXCUSE ME FOR MY POOR ENGLISH ><

[szcube]

I am a studen in SYSU east campus.I am a girl.Generally ,it will cost me about 1500-2000 Yuan per month including clothes,shoes and stuff like that.It really depends.

I don't know whether teaching english is legal or not.But I have seen a lot of similiar examples.So I think it's not a big deal.