Step 1 - Decide if Teaching is Right for You
You need to ask yourself these questions before you continue.
How old are you?
You should be at least 18 to go and teach. Some schools may also have upper age limits but there are a lot of middle aged teachers in China.
Are you a native English speaker?
Most schools in China prefer native English teachers from the UK, USA, Australia, New Zealand, Canada and Great Britian. There are jobs available for non-native speakers but they are much harder to find.
Do you have or can you acquire a passport in your native country?
China requires that foreign teachers have a work visa in China. The company that hires you will assist you in acquiring this visa but you will need to have a passport. Unless there is a legal reason that you are not allowed to leave your country, you should be able to obtain a passport in your country without too much hassle.
Am you qualified to teach?
In the past, many schools in China have NOT required any degree to teach English. This may be changing as the government tries to standardize the system. Really though, any native speaker of English who is over 18 has a legitimate chance of landing an English job in China. However, if you want to have some negotiating power and more choice of where you go, it is recommended that you have at least an Associate’s Degree and/or a TESOL/TEFL certificate as well as some relevant experience back in your home country. The optimal qualifications for a teaching canidate is to have at least a 4 year Bachelor’s Degree, TESOL/TEFL certificate, and some teaching experience.
Do you like working with kids?
It can be tough to teach kids sometimes, especially the primary grades. If you have no patience with young kids, you may want to look into finding a job that allows you to work with high school seniors or adults. No matter what you choose, you won’t enjoy teaching in China if you don’t have some degree of patience. Sometimes, people (adults and children) just don’t pay attention.
Do you have a physical disability?
Having a disability is NOT a reason to give up on going to China. However, you should realize that China is not as handicap accessible as other “first world” countries. Places such as apartments and restaurants that would ALWAYS have elevator access in your country may not be so accessible in China. In addition, most people in China spend a lot of time walking from the train to a bus stop, or from a bus stop to their homes. Taxis are usually almost always available but they are also more expensive. If you do have a physical disability, my advice for you is to be upfront about the disability when you are looking for a job so that there will be no surprises when you arrive.
Do you have any medical problems?
China is a fast developing country and these days, most medical services are available. However, it is always good to check (online) to make sure that medicines and other devices that you may need are available in China. If not, you will need to stockpile these items for the duration of your stay.
Having certain diseases such as AIDS and Hepatitis may prevent you from working in China. Teachers who apply for a work visa in China will have to undergo a physical which includes bloodtesting. Check with the Chinese embassy for the latest information.
These are the most basic questions that you should think about. In addition to those questions, however, you should think about the following questions which are a little more personal.
Where are you in your life at the moment? Is this the best time? Here are a couple of things to keep in mind.
a). If you are in the middle of college at this time, and you leave to teach at a school in China(which is not affiliated with any university program), you may have to pay interest on your college loans while you are teaching since you will not be taking any classes.
b). Do you have many financial obligations in your home country right now?
Living in a foreign country does not exempt you from making child care payments, credit card payments, school loan payments, or any other legally binding payments
While you can generally expect to earn 3-6 times the salary of an average Chinese worker, you cannot expect to make the same salary as you would in the U.S. It is true that the he cost of living in China is much lower than in the U.S. but teaching English in China is not a get rich scheme. If you are frugal, and aren’t into partying a lot, you should be able to save a some money each month but it won’t be a large amount.
In my opinion, teaching English in China is best for people who want to take a year off between high school and college, have just graduated from college, or are looking for something “different” to do later in life.
Whewww! Those were some intense questions, right? Are you still interested in going? Ok then! Let’s move on to some of the more fun stuff.
