NO Degree teaching in China

opps I hit the post button 3 times sorry

I am in South China at the moment in the Mega City outside of Hong Kong called Shenzhen. Whereas the economy and job market in the West has slowly been declining, China is booming in every field! For example, 90% of ALL the worlds Iphones are made right here in town!

That said, I have left my IT job here, simply because the French company I was working for was not doing business as "legally" as I had thought (selling Microsoft systems without a real OEM license....) so I left.

However, in doing so I have decided to go back to teaching Kindergarten this Sept. Most foreign teachers do not like teaching young kids, because you need to be active and well prepared. But the rewards are amazing.

For example:

To teach older kids/adults you usually need work in a training center. Training centers do 99% of their business in the evenings and ALL day weekends... In this city the average starting salary is approximately 8000rmb and look forward to Mondays off.... And a minimum of 16 hours actual teaching time every weekend, though possibly longer.

However, for kindy its like this:

Mon to Friday, 8:30 - 4:30 with a 3 hour lunch (not mistyped, 3 hours, kiddies gotta nap!)
typical workload is 1-2 X 30 minute classes in the morning and again in the afternoon. 3 per day is typical.
If you do the math, that's 1.5 hours teaching a day. The rest of the time can be spent prepping fun classes for the kids, though they do expect you to stay at the school typically.
But the best part is, since kindy teachers are harder to find, the starting pay is typically 50% higher, so 12,000rmb per month.... And you instead of working your butt off on holidays and vacations, you get ALL the government vacations and school vacations, with pay. (however, not full pay during the month long December and 2 month summer vacations, but paid none the less)

So I am going back to Kindy!! For those who would like some advice, tips and ideas, I am making a new video log on youtube which will outline a lot of my teaching ideas to help get you started. Check out: http://www.youtube.com/sirantESL

And on a side note: As mentioned before, I do have an amazing contact (Global TESOL also has them listed) for new teachers who want a guaranteed contract with a decent company.

The company is called Buckland group and they have helped me and many others get their foot in the door. Not only do they provide guaranteed contracts to anyone, no degree required, but they take care of every aspect of your life when you get here. All you need to do is get here. And their office is LITERALLY in the most amazing place on the planet. Google "Yangshuo" and you will see what I mean...

Once you contact them they will send you a contract, they prefer Sept or Jan arrivals to coincide with the school terms start. Then, once you arrive in Guilin (closest airport) They will pick you up, night or day, bring you to their own hostel, give you a week or 2 FREE training and accommodation while you choose what location in China you want to teach at. Then they help you set up a local bank account, send you to the new school, provide you with free rent, food, internet, Chinese lessons and paid holidays.

One thing to note is the pay is quite a bit less than you can make in the big cities, but in the smaller cities 4000 a month is more than the average doctors and lawyers make, so you will enjoy a very nice standard of living.

The reason I suggest Buckland over just coming and jumping in green is it gives you a safe and easy way to get your feet wet and build some all important experience, which WILL get you much better paying jobs later. Once you are in China, have gotten used to the culture shock and developed a few skills, the sky is the limit. The opportunities that present themselves will amaze you!

The secret is to get yer butts over here!!!!! That's the hardest part! Out of ALL the people I have known who have talked about it it, thought about it, and even actually taking the TESOL training, less than 10% have actually made the leap! Such a pity really.

Don't be afraid to go out into the world people! A Global TESOL certificate is the first step to a whole new life. Whether you are looking for a year off the daily grind back home, or like myself, want to rediscover living, you have to get ON THE PLANE before any of the good stuff happens!

I went from being an over stressed, under paid senior IT engineer for Hewlett Packard, in debt, obese and miserable, to being 100% debt free, a happily married family man and the fittest I have ever been in my entire life.

Whats stopping you?

For more info on China or Buckland (really, guaranteed contacts, and no, I don't work for them or receive any commission, they were just that good to me) please feel free to contact me.

p.s. REALLY do google Yangshuo and look at pictures of the place..... The 100% reason I chose Buckland to begin with....

Here's the direct link to Buckland's site: http://www.bucklandgroup.org/

EVERY single person I EVER recommended to try Buckland got a contract..... Every one... And of the few who actually took the leap, they are all still here.... :)