Considering teaching in China but need some more information

[Gallamanji]

Hi everyone. I am considering the idea of moving over to China and teaching English part time, and am trying to find out more about it. I thought I would let you know a bit about my situation and, if possible, get some information from you as to what opportunities, if any, might be suitable me in China. I will try and keep it as brief as possible.

Basically, I come from an Art background - BA in Fine Art and MA in Computer Animation. This is my main focus really. Although I am interested in Teaching and value learning it as a skill, it is not my main ambition to be a Teacher. Since graduating I have been working on my Illustration and Computer Animation portfolio, with the hope of finding work in the Video Game or Film Industry. However, I still have much to improve on and learn in this field, and finding work in the industry could take quite a while. I love Chinese and Eastern culture and my girlfriend is Chinese and now lives in Beijing. 

I am considering the idea of teaching in China with the hope of it giving me an opportunity to:
be with my girlfriend, 
earn money to sustain and enjoy life in china,
embrace Chinese culture, 
meet new people,
open me up to new business/industry opportunites 
have spare time to work on my portfolio (very important) << also requires my desktop computer and watching tutorials on internet

as well having an enriching experience and embrace learning teaching as a new discipline.

I am considering the idea of doing it for 6 months to a year, or even sticking around if it works for me. And would like to be working part time, ideally teaching small groups, with lots of spare time to work on my portfolio, but earning enough to sustain myself. After some research I think private tutoring might be the right thing to get into?

I wondered if you would be able to let me know how plausible this idea is for me and what steps I night have to take to achieve it. 

My main concerns are that my reasons for wanting to go there are quite selfish and I probably wouldn't be happy if I didn't have enough spare time to work on my portfolio. I am also quite introverted and might be uncomfortable teaching too large groups or teenagers, but I am not sure. Its obviously a big decision to make, and a big change. Perhaps you could help me figure out whether its right for me and what to expect or prepare for.

Thank you very much for your time, I hope I managed to keep this as brief as possible and I really look forward to hearing from you.

[ChTTay]

Hello there!

 

The issue you will have with any 'part time' work is that it will, most likely, not give you the correct visa that you need in order to work legally. You would most likely be on a business or tourist visa, while working on the side. Apart from being illegal, this has other implications for you in that every 30 to 90 days you would have to renew your visa in China or leave China and apply for another visa. You would also have the anxiety about whether or not they would renew your visa or give you a new one long enough to enable you to stay.

 

Regarding teachin generally, if you worked for a private language school class sizes would likely be small (as that is what the students are paying for!). They may also have one on one teaching too. Generally, I would say the biggest demand for learning English in private language schools comes from younger, primary school level students. Once they get older - middle school and high school especially - they usually have too much public school work to do. You could always try and teach adults if you don't like the idea of teaching children.

 

From what you have said, I would probably think twice about coming here to teach. If you come here to be a teacher, then be a teacher. Don't see teaching as a side to doing 'your portfolio' as otherwise you are giving any students you might have a raw deal. Also, you are short changing yourself as you won't get as much out of the experience if you aren't full committed to it. I am not saying, while teaching here, you can't do other things. Of course you can and most jobs allow a good amount of time for that. You will be able to tick off most of the things on your list easily. However, if teaching is going to be your job in China, then treat as such.

 

If you have a Chinese girlfriend, enjoy 'Chinese culture' then why not enroll on a language course here at one of the Universities? You pay by the semester, have classes Mon-Fri and you would be looking at 3 hours of class time a day. Homework and self study might take you between 1 and 3 hours depending on how much you do yourself.  That would seem to leave you with a sizable chunk of time to work on your portfolio and also to do some tutoring part time - as many students end up doing. With new student visas, I believe you can work a limited number of hours part time as long as your school agrees.

[Gallamanji]

Thank you very much for your detailed response, I was really in need for this kind of information and advice. Apologies if my initial post sounded slightly naïve. If I was to do it, I would put 100% into the teaching, I just have other commitments that I need to put 100% into as well and needed to gauge whether it was possible for me to do both successfully. I did think that this might not be totally possible. Another factor is all the equipment and resources I need to work on my portfolio, such as my Desktop Computer, Pen Tablet, and all the online learning videos etc. which might not be possible to have over in China. Working on my portfolio really is the number one thing for me to do at the moment and I am in a perfect situation right now to do that. I have a lot of free time, and all the equipment  and resources I need. I think coming over to China might mean sacrificing some of that, which might not be the best decision. I am still researching it as a possibility though, and would be intrigued to see what other people have to say. And thank you for your suggestion of enrolling at a University, I would definitely look into that.

[Walkingtree]

I completely agree with ChTTay - you can easily find a Chinese language program for around 9000 RMB per semester. That will get you here, legally, and provide you with plenty of time to work on your side projects. At most you will have 12-15 hours of classes per week.

 

My girl is an artist - she brought what she needed from home. You'll probably have to do the same.

 

Also, it may be possible to find a non-English teaching job with your level of education, especially in Beijing. Perhaps kill two birds with one stone because they'll have the equipment you need.

[dacchan]

Hello hello!!

 

I'm sorry i can't give you any helpful information regarding any of your questions however, i wanted to say that i am an artist too who is considering moving to China and teaching English while working/developing on my portfolio (this does not mean that i will not commit fully to my job though). I do plan to bring my equipment with me so maybe you should look into that too...pen tablet is a precious thing

Wish you all the luck and i hope everything goes well and as planned for you!  

(it's nice to see another fellow artist jumping into the same adventure)

[歐博思]

The internet here is garbage -- save yourself the trouble and get a quality VPN before you come. I personally use and recommend Vyper.