Greetings,
I plan to move to China after the summer for a teaching job (elementary to middle school math position). Will be my first time working and even visiting China.
Starting to plan things now.
For all you China people, what are some things you wished you knew before arriving and or things you would do differently if you had to start over?
Also, some specific questions.
1) When do schools want teachers to arrive for the new year? July? Aug? Sep?
2) What company do you recommend to handle legalizing documents? I've heard of TeachingNomads. I am currently abroad and will need to have them handle everything.
TIA
What you wish you knew before going to China?
Re: What you wish you knew before going to China?
Hmmmm.....
I've got a very jaded view on what's happening in China so take this into account with what I write below. Here are some things I think that may be helpful.
(1) Understand your school and clientele.
There are three different kinds of international schools found in China in general. They are:
(A) True international schools - with a almost total expat population (mainly asian).
(B) Quasai International School - with a mixture of international and local students (or local students with odd foreign passports)
(C) Foreign Language Schools - all of the students are Chinese, including the administration.
Note that type A is often seen as the most wanted. I'd say that Type C is probably the one with the most scope - with some of these schools being amazing and others being amazing for how bad they are.
(2) Understand your admin
This sounds almost bigoted - but the more local the admin the more the school will run like a Chinese school - with a much larger culture shock and all that entails.
(3) Get a VPN/(s) on your phone and laptop before you leave. Make sure they are working as well.
(4) Ask questions in the members forum when you know which particular school you might get a job through. The PM function is a location where I will be much more open and honest as well.
(5) Get ready to install DiDi (a better version of Uber) and Wechat (part WhatsApp, part payment system, part Spyware)
(6) Ask how you get paid and potentially how can you move money out of the country.
For example - some schools will pay you a local wage (often called housing allowance and living away from home allowance) and a base wage which gets sent to an overseas bank account. Other schools will pay only in Yuan. Some school Banks are great for transferring money - some are terrible.
(7) Ask about expectations of extra curriculars
New staff normally start a few days to a week or so before normal staff. This can be anywhere from late July to early August depending on the school.
For legalizing documents - your school should be helping you with a lot of this. It's been a while - but I don't really remember getting much in the way of legalized documents apart from a Police Check from either my home country or current country of residence. I do remember sending scanned photocopies of my university transcripts which then allowed me to get a Z visa (I think) which was mainly done on the Chinese schools back end. Then I got the permission to work letter and I got the work visa at my local Chinese consulate.
Teacher Nomads are a job recruitment agency from memory.
I've got a very jaded view on what's happening in China so take this into account with what I write below. Here are some things I think that may be helpful.
(1) Understand your school and clientele.
There are three different kinds of international schools found in China in general. They are:
(A) True international schools - with a almost total expat population (mainly asian).
(B) Quasai International School - with a mixture of international and local students (or local students with odd foreign passports)
(C) Foreign Language Schools - all of the students are Chinese, including the administration.
Note that type A is often seen as the most wanted. I'd say that Type C is probably the one with the most scope - with some of these schools being amazing and others being amazing for how bad they are.
(2) Understand your admin
This sounds almost bigoted - but the more local the admin the more the school will run like a Chinese school - with a much larger culture shock and all that entails.
(3) Get a VPN/(s) on your phone and laptop before you leave. Make sure they are working as well.
(4) Ask questions in the members forum when you know which particular school you might get a job through. The PM function is a location where I will be much more open and honest as well.
(5) Get ready to install DiDi (a better version of Uber) and Wechat (part WhatsApp, part payment system, part Spyware)
(6) Ask how you get paid and potentially how can you move money out of the country.
For example - some schools will pay you a local wage (often called housing allowance and living away from home allowance) and a base wage which gets sent to an overseas bank account. Other schools will pay only in Yuan. Some school Banks are great for transferring money - some are terrible.
(7) Ask about expectations of extra curriculars
New staff normally start a few days to a week or so before normal staff. This can be anywhere from late July to early August depending on the school.
For legalizing documents - your school should be helping you with a lot of this. It's been a while - but I don't really remember getting much in the way of legalized documents apart from a Police Check from either my home country or current country of residence. I do remember sending scanned photocopies of my university transcripts which then allowed me to get a Z visa (I think) which was mainly done on the Chinese schools back end. Then I got the permission to work letter and I got the work visa at my local Chinese consulate.
Teacher Nomads are a job recruitment agency from memory.
Re: What you wish you knew before going to China?
I'm less jaded than sciteach. Spent 5 years there, left a couple of years ago, looking to move back again because where I am now just isn't as interesting a place to live.
1. Before you do anything else, download and subscribe to a VPN. Express VPN and Astill seem to be the most reliable at present, with Astrill just ahead. From a teaching perspective, this lets you use Google, YouTube, etc; for home stuff, it means you can access Netflix / BBC / whatever.
2. I don't think the Didi English app is available at the moment - if you had it you were OK and it updated, but it got blocked in 2019 and I don't think it was ever restored. You can access it though through WeChat or Alipay (again, get these downloaded and set up before you enter China.)
3. You can now attach a foreign Visa credit card to WeChat before you arrive, but you have to do this when you are abroad.
4. If your school offers direct payment to an overseas account, usually as a % of salary, take it. It's much easier and cheaper than going to the bank to do it yourself. When I had to do this, it usually took at least an hour to process everything and you have to be there for the full time.
5. If your school doesn't offer direct payment, then they should allow you the time to go to the bank to do this (banks are helpfully only open during school hours.) If your school doesn't allow or like this, then maybe this is a school to avoid.
6. Despite what some will try to tell you here, not all the 'rent a name' schools in China are bad - Dulwich has a good reputation in both Beijing and Shanghai.
7. Sometimes you just have to roll with it. China can be really frustrating because of its bureaucracy - have a look at the official in the Simpsons episode "Goo Goo Gai Pan" - and even getting things like a train ticket can be difficult because you have to show your passport, visa, the birth certificate of your third cousin once removed's granny's neighbour (or at least, it can seem like that!) Take a deep breath, say to yourself "it's just China" and move on.
8. The people you will meet professionally will generally be more educated than the average Chinese person - you would be working in a school, after all - and will have had more contact with Westerners. This means they *might* be more open to different ideas, especially if you work in one of the schools under scitech's band 1 or even 2. However, many Chinese outside the major cities still haven't had much contact and you will be a novelty to them. You might also want to consider how you introduce yourself - British friends never really had a problem, but I know some Americans who said they were Canadian.
9. Be clear that, the further down the school scale you go, the less English there will be. At the top, almost every communication will be delivered in English, Mandarin and often also Korean. Further down, it will be in Mandarin and English, with the quality of English deteriorating the further down you go. The kids reflect this - at the top level schools, the English spoken by some in IBDP is of a higher level than their counterparts in the UK, USA or Australia.
10. Your first long holiday will be around now in October (Golden Week.) You might have your work permit by this time; if not, you have to stay in China. And anywhere you go will be busy - and I mean busy. Think Times Square on New Year's Eve, the Notting Hill Carnival, or other big events in the West busy, then double it. Thankfully, there are lots of places in China you can go which have lots of space - but book these well in advance.
11. Put politics out of your head. You learn that there are points when the rhetoric increases - in the run up to a major CCP congress, for example - but most of the time it's easy just to let it bypass you, as most Chinese do. Yes, there are cameras watching you, but genuinely if you are going about your normal business as a teacher or a person, they're not really interested. There are things you can talk about and things you can't - these are usually pretty obvious if you know China's history - and your school should help guide you around these.
1. Before you do anything else, download and subscribe to a VPN. Express VPN and Astill seem to be the most reliable at present, with Astrill just ahead. From a teaching perspective, this lets you use Google, YouTube, etc; for home stuff, it means you can access Netflix / BBC / whatever.
2. I don't think the Didi English app is available at the moment - if you had it you were OK and it updated, but it got blocked in 2019 and I don't think it was ever restored. You can access it though through WeChat or Alipay (again, get these downloaded and set up before you enter China.)
3. You can now attach a foreign Visa credit card to WeChat before you arrive, but you have to do this when you are abroad.
4. If your school offers direct payment to an overseas account, usually as a % of salary, take it. It's much easier and cheaper than going to the bank to do it yourself. When I had to do this, it usually took at least an hour to process everything and you have to be there for the full time.
5. If your school doesn't offer direct payment, then they should allow you the time to go to the bank to do this (banks are helpfully only open during school hours.) If your school doesn't allow or like this, then maybe this is a school to avoid.
6. Despite what some will try to tell you here, not all the 'rent a name' schools in China are bad - Dulwich has a good reputation in both Beijing and Shanghai.
7. Sometimes you just have to roll with it. China can be really frustrating because of its bureaucracy - have a look at the official in the Simpsons episode "Goo Goo Gai Pan" - and even getting things like a train ticket can be difficult because you have to show your passport, visa, the birth certificate of your third cousin once removed's granny's neighbour (or at least, it can seem like that!) Take a deep breath, say to yourself "it's just China" and move on.
8. The people you will meet professionally will generally be more educated than the average Chinese person - you would be working in a school, after all - and will have had more contact with Westerners. This means they *might* be more open to different ideas, especially if you work in one of the schools under scitech's band 1 or even 2. However, many Chinese outside the major cities still haven't had much contact and you will be a novelty to them. You might also want to consider how you introduce yourself - British friends never really had a problem, but I know some Americans who said they were Canadian.
9. Be clear that, the further down the school scale you go, the less English there will be. At the top, almost every communication will be delivered in English, Mandarin and often also Korean. Further down, it will be in Mandarin and English, with the quality of English deteriorating the further down you go. The kids reflect this - at the top level schools, the English spoken by some in IBDP is of a higher level than their counterparts in the UK, USA or Australia.
10. Your first long holiday will be around now in October (Golden Week.) You might have your work permit by this time; if not, you have to stay in China. And anywhere you go will be busy - and I mean busy. Think Times Square on New Year's Eve, the Notting Hill Carnival, or other big events in the West busy, then double it. Thankfully, there are lots of places in China you can go which have lots of space - but book these well in advance.
11. Put politics out of your head. You learn that there are points when the rhetoric increases - in the run up to a major CCP congress, for example - but most of the time it's easy just to let it bypass you, as most Chinese do. Yes, there are cameras watching you, but genuinely if you are going about your normal business as a teacher or a person, they're not really interested. There are things you can talk about and things you can't - these are usually pretty obvious if you know China's history - and your school should help guide you around these.
Response
You dont say where youre going, but there are substantial differences between a major city like Shanghai or Beijing and somewhere smaller and more provincial. In addition what the IS provides on campus can very greatly. Some of them have little shopping centers on campus.
You will either live in an apartment community, which is a group of independent property owners that build in a common community and share management (maintenance) and amenities (store, club room, playground, athletic courts, pool, etc.) or an independent apartment. A complex managed by your IS would likely be better for someone who values convenience over all other factors. Residential apartments for Chinese ISs tend to be utilitarian or very stylish depending on how much coin they put in them and how generous your housing allownce is.
Apartments in China tend to be generous in size and furnishings for foreigners even at modest costs. Its common for a one person apartment to actually have two rooms including a bath, living area, dining area and kitchen (a 1SLDK). Your apartment will have appliances, furniture, entertainment electronics, so at most you will have to buy is some kitchenware (though there may be this in your apartment, the knives wont cut anything) and very likely linens (sheets, pillows, towels).
Attached to your kitchen, there will be a little balcony or patio where the propane gas tanks are or your gas line is, this will also be where washing machine is (assuming you have one) its very unlikely you will have a dryer (VERY unlikely) and you hang your clothes to dry on your balcony. Back by the gas there will also be a box mounted on the wall about the size of a large first aid kit this is the water heater, It will break. There isnt a large water heater that keeps hot water continuously available (too much energy and expensive), instead this little box heats 1-3 liters of water to a VERY hot temperature (close to boiling) it then mixes it with the tap to get the right temperature. Its pretty fast, but many Chinese install the type with a switch that turn the unit on and off, meaning it can take anywhere from 5-15 minutes (about 5 minutes per L) for there to be actual hot water available. Though newer ones can do 3L in about 5min.
Your kitchen may or may not have an oven, you will have 1-2 gas burners (stove tops) a microwave (about 700W) a sink, a drying rack, a small cold box refrigerator.
The cold box may have a small compartment that holds ice trays right next to the condenser unit, but these cold boxes are not ice boxes, or refrigerators. They are not designed for commercial long term storage of food. Many Chinese insist on fresh food, so they will shop at the market daily or every other day, and thats what the cold box is designed for, keeping your drinks cool and your produce crisp, but nothing left in there will last very long. It gets cool but not really cold. You will also find it to be small about 2-3 cubic meters.
You wont have a dish washer, but there will be two things you dont usually find in a kitchen. One is a vacuum flask for drinking water, which is the kind of water cooler you find in an office. There are different models some have only one tap, and some have internal components to both heat and chill the water (so you can make tea from it without a pot, or ice chilled water), some have built in filters, and you can get different brands of water very similar to bottled water such as spring water, distilled water, purified water, and imported water. The cost of the water bottles varies but if you get a local brand and nothing fancy its about 30RMB, and either your IS or your management office can place an order for you. Delivery is typically the same day if made before 1:00pm. Its important to never do anything with the tap water at the sink other than cleaning dishes, you could technically boil it, but why bother. Which brings us to the second appliance in the kitchen which if you are a science teacher you will recognize as the same type of cabinet that safety goggles would be placed in to UV sanitize them, and thats what this does. You wash and dry your dishware and flatware and then place them in here for 10-30 minutes to sanitize them by UV light. If you are VERY lucky you may have a dishwasher.
Your bedroom will likely have a full size bed or larger, though it may likely be a European style, meaning the box spring is nothing more than a box (no coils, etc), and the mattress is likely to be foam (not memory foam). You dont find fitted sheets (and when you do they are expensive, you use a second flay sheet and tuck it under the mattress at the ends. You can of course spend huge amounts of money on high end bedding. You will also have various bureau drawers and armoires. You may or may not have a closet, likely you wont, and if you dont there will be a movable clothing bar to hang clothes on. Some owners are sensitive to foreign needs of a closet and will wall in a small area in the corner of the bedroom as a closet. Your bedroom may or may not have a television (there will be one in the living area).
Air Conditioning is not Central, but is provided through wall units in each room. They are typically the long Mitsubishi type models, that use a remote control. I advise taking a photo of your television, A/C remotes, and washing machine then printing them out and having the IS secretary or someone in the apartment office translate them for you on the print outs.
Your living room will have a sofa, chairs, tables and a television. You dont see audio/stereo systems much anymore. If you are fortunate your IS and the property owner will have the apartment wired for internet and if not you can typically have this done though the cost can be expensive since you have to pay for the entire years of service at the time of installation (about $250USD), depending on the speed.
Television programing will get you some local channels, none of which you will be able to understand, though you may get one English channel. Your property may provide a satellite package and options which they will discuss when you when you move in (When you move in you typically have 4 decisions to make and discuss: Water, Internet, Satellite and Telephone). The typical "foreigner" package is a handful of channels out of Hong Kong that will include BBC and then some western channels that play old seasons of western prime time programing, sometimes you can get HBO. Some properties have very well developed programing, because they have legal systems, but most of the time it s a pirated system and equipment, and your paying the property owner to spit and share what is essentially one programing feed.
That leaves telephone, meaning a land line, which no one uses, and is often offered because it is very expensive, and some owners will quote a price for a new or discounted installation even if the line is already there, and all someone does is connect a box or throw a switch. Everybody uses mobile phones. Internet is getting fast enough to stream over a good VPN connection, and youre going to want to subscribe to a comprehensive VPN service for both home and mobile. I like NORD VPN, you can usually find a special throughout the year of three years for USD$100. While there are access points/WiFi routers that support VPN service. The usual setup is to connect your laptop to the internet connection and then share the internet through your laptops VPN for your streaming sticks and other devices. I use a PC stick.
Mobile phone service in China is basically prepaid. You go to a Kiosk typically in a shopping center and buy a SIM card for about 50-100 RMB that gets you the SIM card a phone number and some starter time. You can buy buckets of data as well. The agent will install your SIM card, activate it and then call herself, and then using the caller ID save the number in your phone. After that you buy prepaid scratch cards with values from 10-100RMB scratch of the silver area, call the number on the back of the phone (there is an English option int he instructions) and tap int he code, a few moments later the value is added to the card. Calls and SMS (texts) cost about .1-.3RMB./min/txt. You can also get data service now where you buy a bucket of data in 100MB/1GB increments and add it much like any other phone card. As a foreigner you cant really get a contract plan, what you can do is set up automatic billing to a credit card that refills your account when it reaches a certain threshold. Youre IS maybe able to arrange for you to get a contract plan, but be weary of this because it will be their contract. This can get very expensive, since there is no "unlimited" anything, most Chinese are diligent about turning off mobile data when WiFi is available. There are essentially two types of mobile service plans. One you pay for every minute and text sent and received but can be used while roaming. The other type you pay for calls and texts sent, but incoming texts and calls are free (not billed against your balance) but only can be used locally. I recommend the local free incoming type plans (there is actually a version where the first minute only of the incoming call is free and a version where the whole incoming call is free). You can get a variety of handsets in China, Huawei is a very popular local brand, or you can use an unlocked GSM phone from home. Many kiosks will "cut" a SIM card to fit an iPhone but they typically have them available. You can also buy various IDD long distance cards and you can use IP Mobile phone to make cheaper long distance calls. Most ITs use Skype, or Google Meet or Zoom or another IP communication service. You will also find a lot of internet cafes. Some of them look a lot like Starbucks with a computer room and some of them are just a room with a few rows of computers (much like a school computer lab). Many Chinese do not have in home internet outside of their phones (mobile computing) so when they want to use a computer they either go to a school (such as a university) or they use an internet cafe. Costs vary depending on the quality of the hardware.
Electrical current in China is 220V meaning you will need a converter for US appliances if they arent dual voltage (such as a laptop). Most outlets use the flat two prong type, though China does have a flat 3 prong "Y" type of plug as well.
Your IS will arrange for a passbook banking account at a local bank. Either your salary will be deposited into this account or you will get an envelope of cash. Its called a passbook account because it comes with a small bankbook about the size of your passport. When you make a transaction at the bank you fill out the transaction slip and hand it to the teller with your passport and passbook. They will record the transaction and balance by machine. This is your statement, you will not get monthly statement mailed to you. You can also go in and have your passbook updated with your ATM transactions when you want. When your passbook is full you get a new one. Your account will also come with an ATM bank card, which you can use at ATM machines (cost is 2 RMB per currency transaction) or at POS terminals in various stores. Your bank may offer you a V/MC credit card as well.
Get used to using cash. In western regions credit and debit cards are the preferred form of currency, in China its still cash, and many businesses still do not have card readers for credit cards or ATM terminals. Nor will international or non-Chinese credit cards work in most places (but this depends on the city to a large extent).
At the end
Transportation is very economical at about 1-2RMB per ride by bus. Light rail is becoming increasingly more available in major cities. In addition taxis are plentiful and relatively cheap at about 6 RMB for the first 2 km and 2 RMB/km after. You IS is likely to also provide a daily shuttle between the IS and your apartment community. If you find a driver you like you can get their mobile number and have essentially an on demand car service, just SMS them your location for a pickup. Buying a bike is also an option and bikes are widely available for purchase.
I would not drive in China, sorry I dont have the stones for that. Chinese tend to have two speeds "go" and "go fast". Traffic signals and signs are more suggestions than regulations, and as a foreigner any accident is going to be your fault. Learn early how to cross the street in China its less about traffic signals and going with the flow which requires establishing eye contact with drivers and communicating intent. I would advise just following others for your first couple of weeks, until you get the hang of it.
Markets are pretty easy, there are lots of convenience stores that sell all kinds of things from paying bills to pharmacies. Its easier to buy a stamp and envelope from the conbini then going to the post office. The meat department will have VERY fresh food, while you can get your choice of meat cuts you will find a big wading pool with customers using little baskets to fish out live shrimp. You will also find tanks with fish, turtles, eels, clams (Albion) which is often served in place of beef fillett at dinner parties, as well as on high end dining menus. You will also not find large bulk sizes of many products. Many people take a bus, or a bike or a taxi, so small portable sizes of items are more commonly available, such as tissue paper (toilet) will often be available in only single rolls or 4 packs. Another option is delivery, its not uncommon to talk with the manager and arrange for delivery of a large quantity of items (Alibaba and Amazon are also options). You do not find coupons or shopping memberships, instead various manufactures will set up displays attended by some young pretty girl with discounted products, and stores will advertise special prices all the time.
You can find just about anything in China, so while their are lots of options there is little variety within a particular product. If you are brand or label loyal, it is very likely there will only be a few options, and most of them will be local brands. You will likely only find one international recognized brand of things such as shampoo and shaving cream for example on the shelves.
It is appropriate to bargain with street vendors and shops, but not "markets" where there are fixed prices. A lot of goods are available at specialty shops, that specialize in one or only a few type of products. So while you can buy towels at a market store (there is a Walmart) there is a towel linen shop somewhere that sells just towels at very low prices.
It is a very good idea to build a relationship with the local hotels. They are a wealth of information and services. Need your favorite cereal a hotel is likely to have it or can get it. Need to send an international fax hotel can make it happen. Need directions or a reservation, a referral or recommendation, no problem. Hotels provide lots of convenience with English speakers.
Your IS probably has a local clinic or a contract with a local clinic for minor ailments (or they may have an onsite nurse/health center) and a hospital for major medical problems. You will pay for your care and treatment and then apply for reimbursement, you will hopefully get some of it back. ISs are loath to advance any type of payment for medical care especially at the hospital since the probability of you returning home means the IS is going to have to pay the bill. It is important to otherwise take care of yourself. Your contract says (its standard) that if you are absent for more than 30 days your contract is cancelled. Medication is much less controlled in China and pharmacists can diagnose and treat many minor maladays such as the cold etc and prescribe antibiotics, etc. The cost of these consultations and medication is very very cheap. Narcotics and abusable medications are the ones you need a doctors prescription for and they are often dispensed at the hospital and the tendency is that all westerners are drug addicts and to give you the weakest pain medication to treat your condition. medical care is very good in China, if it is very clinical and technical. You need to be specific and detailed, understand that title inflation is very common in China. A doctor is likely really a nurse (just as the Assistant Manager is just customer service, everyone is an assistant manager).
In direct reply to your inquiries:
1) It depends on the IS. Usually theres new staff orientation and then all staff orientation. All staff orientation usually starts the week before students return, with some ITs who have been there longer being excused from parts of it. New IT orientation is usually a week or more before. It depends what you have to do. Mainly the activities will revolve around: Getting your medical exam, registering with the PSB, banking, phone, and if needed finding an apartment (if youre in temporary accommodations). Those are the main activities with the rest of the day being filled with seminars and presentations. The IS might also give you a tour of the local area and usually an evening or two take the staff out for dinner (usually once for new staff and once for returning staff). If you plan on an extensive apartment search you might arrive a few days earlier to visit properties with a property agent.
2) Contrary to previous contributors, teaching nomad does have an authentication and visa procurement service. They can take care of the whole process from authentication to visa or just parts of it. Really though its what your IS wants you to do. They may already be working with a particular contact or provider. What you need to do is follow this one rule: ALWAYS DO WHAT THE IS SAYS. The reason being if you do and something happens you have deniability. If you go rogue because you think you know better A) You may not get reimbursed. ISs dont send you coin to pay for all of these services in advanced. You pay for them and then submit receipts and forms to get reimbursed. If you do what the IS says youre much more likely to get back more if not all of your expenses reimbursed. If you dont you may get back less or none at all. B) If something goes wrong its your fault for not following directions which can result in the IS withdrawing the offer.
So really this is a conversation to have with your ISs HR department. They will likely send you an email with instructions for the process. Just follow them.
In reply to earlier contributors.
1) It is critical to understand your IS and where it fits in the hierarchy of ISs nationally, regionally, and locally.
The category of "Quasai International School" needs some clarification. Its not like youre going to find ISs where the student population is really split evenly. With the exception of ITs kids, its going to be nearly exclusively one demographic of students. You get a few exceptions but they are a small minority.
2) In China you see a lot more of the leadership scheme where there is a western academic leader and then in the shadows or the background a Chinese 'center' leader. What this really means is that in most cases the center leader is superior to the academic leader. The academic leader is still an executive leader in that they can direct your actions, assign others to supervise and direct you and can appoint and dismiss you but the center leader is the one controlling the strings. What this means is that there are going to be instances where the western academic leader has no power and cant do anything. They are the messenger and its their job in those instances to get the staff on board with whatever the issue is. Complaining to them is futile because they werent the decision maker.
As you go lower in tiers its very common for your ISs leadership to look and feel more and more like a locally run Chinese DS.
3) Absolutely get a VPN BEFORE you arrive in China. Once inside China you will be behind the great firewall and doing it will be an order of magnitude more difficult.
As far as what you want in a VPN. Price really does indicate quality. You really want a VPN that you are paying for. About USD$20/mth is typical because you want a VPN with high uptime and a large number of redundant servers to improve speed and reduce down time. Free VPNs either suck or they are simply monetizing your data.
4) The member forum requires paying a yearly membership fee.
5) Didi doesnt work in China anymore. WeChat in China becomes a super app doing most everything from shopping to banking to transportation. You can download it outside of China but gets super powered once inside China and properly registered. You can attach a foreign visa credit or debit card but I would make it a card with a very small balance, and one with no foreign transaction fees or very small fees. I just wouldnt do it and would stick with 2 domestic bank accounts and replenish the coin attached to Wechat as needed rather than open access to your entire bank balance.
6) As above your IS either gives you an envelope of currency or deposits your salary in a local bank. Some banks are better than others, but regardless of whatever bank your IS uses. You can open an account at a different bank thats better at whatever it is you want out of a bank. Some ISs will deposit into a foreign account but you want to see what bank they are using to make that transaction and what currency conversion they are using. Most of them are using a dynamic conversion rate that is poorer than what you could get doing the transaction yourself.
Unless you have outside financial obligations or your financial obligations are few (once or twice a year) this may not even be an issue for you, and may even cost you more moving coin from China out and then moving it back in again because all your real expenses are local.
More important to ask or better to investigate is how to fund whatever your investment portfolio (and you should have an investment strategy).
Your IS should provide you a bank day. Its a time once a month reserved for going to the bank, doctor/dentist, the tasks that can only be completed only during normal daytime business hours. Its not a full day but anywhere from a few hours to half a day usually scheduled around back to back prep/conf periods, where you normally would have to sign out you dont have to and its expected you will be off campus. If you have nothing to do you can usually just sleep in or end the day early.
7) It should just be generally expected that you will have ASPs. More importantly is asking about before you agree to the contract what the contract hours and what the instructional hours are. What the ISs holidays are (and which ones are paid and which arent, including the end of year/summer holiday, and how that effects your housing/housing allowance). Those are more important than ASPs, unless your IS has a weekend ASP requirement.
8) All the rent a name ISs are bad, at least compared to their foreign partners DS experience.
9) TIC. This Is China. It will explain a lot of bureaucratic idiocies. Chinas approach to a work welfare system is simply to give people jobs even if the job is stupid. That stupid job gives someone and often a whole lot of someones a living. So usually what in an inconvenience or an annoyance is someone doing their job.
10) To go further than the original contributor, most of the parents and people you will have contact with are likely more educated than you (yes even with an M.Ed). You would be surprised how many Chinese housewives are highly educated.
There is still a very real rural part of China that see foreigners as a curiosity. No one in Beijing or Shanghai, or Guangzhou is going to look twice at a gwailou foreigner is awe or even with much interest. That said having gwailou friends is usually seen as a status boost by Chinese, so they can be very friendly once getting to know you.
In critical situations that might involve possible conflict you might consider introducing yourself as CAN if from the US or AUS if from the UK. I wouldnt do so with anyone you remotely have any form of continuing or long term contact with, they will simply find out and then you have trust issue problems.
11) I can see how generally the further down the scale you get the worse and less common English is, but there are a lot of low level secretaries, receptionists and office workers who have very strong English skills better than their superiors in many cases (and a contributing factor for why they were hired).
I wouldnt say the students at top tier ISs have better English abilities than their native English speaking equals. I can tell, and I dont know anyone with a professional background in English edu who wouldnt.
12) You should have your work permit before you arrive in China. Its an ePermit most likely but its a requirement to get your Z visa. China implemented a new system that has been dismal but you want your residence card before you leave China, and if you dont have one you cant leave China during holiday. Youre likely to have been in China around golden week for 4-6 weeks so youre unlikely to have seen the Pandas, the Great Wall, the Forbidden City, maybe do those. Dalian is a popular beach destination within China but it will be crowded, and not in a good way.
13) Even more so than most avoid conversations of politics and religion with Chinese. Only broach those subjects with other foreigners in private. Never in the IS even if you think you have privacy.
You will either live in an apartment community, which is a group of independent property owners that build in a common community and share management (maintenance) and amenities (store, club room, playground, athletic courts, pool, etc.) or an independent apartment. A complex managed by your IS would likely be better for someone who values convenience over all other factors. Residential apartments for Chinese ISs tend to be utilitarian or very stylish depending on how much coin they put in them and how generous your housing allownce is.
Apartments in China tend to be generous in size and furnishings for foreigners even at modest costs. Its common for a one person apartment to actually have two rooms including a bath, living area, dining area and kitchen (a 1SLDK). Your apartment will have appliances, furniture, entertainment electronics, so at most you will have to buy is some kitchenware (though there may be this in your apartment, the knives wont cut anything) and very likely linens (sheets, pillows, towels).
Attached to your kitchen, there will be a little balcony or patio where the propane gas tanks are or your gas line is, this will also be where washing machine is (assuming you have one) its very unlikely you will have a dryer (VERY unlikely) and you hang your clothes to dry on your balcony. Back by the gas there will also be a box mounted on the wall about the size of a large first aid kit this is the water heater, It will break. There isnt a large water heater that keeps hot water continuously available (too much energy and expensive), instead this little box heats 1-3 liters of water to a VERY hot temperature (close to boiling) it then mixes it with the tap to get the right temperature. Its pretty fast, but many Chinese install the type with a switch that turn the unit on and off, meaning it can take anywhere from 5-15 minutes (about 5 minutes per L) for there to be actual hot water available. Though newer ones can do 3L in about 5min.
Your kitchen may or may not have an oven, you will have 1-2 gas burners (stove tops) a microwave (about 700W) a sink, a drying rack, a small cold box refrigerator.
The cold box may have a small compartment that holds ice trays right next to the condenser unit, but these cold boxes are not ice boxes, or refrigerators. They are not designed for commercial long term storage of food. Many Chinese insist on fresh food, so they will shop at the market daily or every other day, and thats what the cold box is designed for, keeping your drinks cool and your produce crisp, but nothing left in there will last very long. It gets cool but not really cold. You will also find it to be small about 2-3 cubic meters.
You wont have a dish washer, but there will be two things you dont usually find in a kitchen. One is a vacuum flask for drinking water, which is the kind of water cooler you find in an office. There are different models some have only one tap, and some have internal components to both heat and chill the water (so you can make tea from it without a pot, or ice chilled water), some have built in filters, and you can get different brands of water very similar to bottled water such as spring water, distilled water, purified water, and imported water. The cost of the water bottles varies but if you get a local brand and nothing fancy its about 30RMB, and either your IS or your management office can place an order for you. Delivery is typically the same day if made before 1:00pm. Its important to never do anything with the tap water at the sink other than cleaning dishes, you could technically boil it, but why bother. Which brings us to the second appliance in the kitchen which if you are a science teacher you will recognize as the same type of cabinet that safety goggles would be placed in to UV sanitize them, and thats what this does. You wash and dry your dishware and flatware and then place them in here for 10-30 minutes to sanitize them by UV light. If you are VERY lucky you may have a dishwasher.
Your bedroom will likely have a full size bed or larger, though it may likely be a European style, meaning the box spring is nothing more than a box (no coils, etc), and the mattress is likely to be foam (not memory foam). You dont find fitted sheets (and when you do they are expensive, you use a second flay sheet and tuck it under the mattress at the ends. You can of course spend huge amounts of money on high end bedding. You will also have various bureau drawers and armoires. You may or may not have a closet, likely you wont, and if you dont there will be a movable clothing bar to hang clothes on. Some owners are sensitive to foreign needs of a closet and will wall in a small area in the corner of the bedroom as a closet. Your bedroom may or may not have a television (there will be one in the living area).
Air Conditioning is not Central, but is provided through wall units in each room. They are typically the long Mitsubishi type models, that use a remote control. I advise taking a photo of your television, A/C remotes, and washing machine then printing them out and having the IS secretary or someone in the apartment office translate them for you on the print outs.
Your living room will have a sofa, chairs, tables and a television. You dont see audio/stereo systems much anymore. If you are fortunate your IS and the property owner will have the apartment wired for internet and if not you can typically have this done though the cost can be expensive since you have to pay for the entire years of service at the time of installation (about $250USD), depending on the speed.
Television programing will get you some local channels, none of which you will be able to understand, though you may get one English channel. Your property may provide a satellite package and options which they will discuss when you when you move in (When you move in you typically have 4 decisions to make and discuss: Water, Internet, Satellite and Telephone). The typical "foreigner" package is a handful of channels out of Hong Kong that will include BBC and then some western channels that play old seasons of western prime time programing, sometimes you can get HBO. Some properties have very well developed programing, because they have legal systems, but most of the time it s a pirated system and equipment, and your paying the property owner to spit and share what is essentially one programing feed.
That leaves telephone, meaning a land line, which no one uses, and is often offered because it is very expensive, and some owners will quote a price for a new or discounted installation even if the line is already there, and all someone does is connect a box or throw a switch. Everybody uses mobile phones. Internet is getting fast enough to stream over a good VPN connection, and youre going to want to subscribe to a comprehensive VPN service for both home and mobile. I like NORD VPN, you can usually find a special throughout the year of three years for USD$100. While there are access points/WiFi routers that support VPN service. The usual setup is to connect your laptop to the internet connection and then share the internet through your laptops VPN for your streaming sticks and other devices. I use a PC stick.
Mobile phone service in China is basically prepaid. You go to a Kiosk typically in a shopping center and buy a SIM card for about 50-100 RMB that gets you the SIM card a phone number and some starter time. You can buy buckets of data as well. The agent will install your SIM card, activate it and then call herself, and then using the caller ID save the number in your phone. After that you buy prepaid scratch cards with values from 10-100RMB scratch of the silver area, call the number on the back of the phone (there is an English option int he instructions) and tap int he code, a few moments later the value is added to the card. Calls and SMS (texts) cost about .1-.3RMB./min/txt. You can also get data service now where you buy a bucket of data in 100MB/1GB increments and add it much like any other phone card. As a foreigner you cant really get a contract plan, what you can do is set up automatic billing to a credit card that refills your account when it reaches a certain threshold. Youre IS maybe able to arrange for you to get a contract plan, but be weary of this because it will be their contract. This can get very expensive, since there is no "unlimited" anything, most Chinese are diligent about turning off mobile data when WiFi is available. There are essentially two types of mobile service plans. One you pay for every minute and text sent and received but can be used while roaming. The other type you pay for calls and texts sent, but incoming texts and calls are free (not billed against your balance) but only can be used locally. I recommend the local free incoming type plans (there is actually a version where the first minute only of the incoming call is free and a version where the whole incoming call is free). You can get a variety of handsets in China, Huawei is a very popular local brand, or you can use an unlocked GSM phone from home. Many kiosks will "cut" a SIM card to fit an iPhone but they typically have them available. You can also buy various IDD long distance cards and you can use IP Mobile phone to make cheaper long distance calls. Most ITs use Skype, or Google Meet or Zoom or another IP communication service. You will also find a lot of internet cafes. Some of them look a lot like Starbucks with a computer room and some of them are just a room with a few rows of computers (much like a school computer lab). Many Chinese do not have in home internet outside of their phones (mobile computing) so when they want to use a computer they either go to a school (such as a university) or they use an internet cafe. Costs vary depending on the quality of the hardware.
Electrical current in China is 220V meaning you will need a converter for US appliances if they arent dual voltage (such as a laptop). Most outlets use the flat two prong type, though China does have a flat 3 prong "Y" type of plug as well.
Your IS will arrange for a passbook banking account at a local bank. Either your salary will be deposited into this account or you will get an envelope of cash. Its called a passbook account because it comes with a small bankbook about the size of your passport. When you make a transaction at the bank you fill out the transaction slip and hand it to the teller with your passport and passbook. They will record the transaction and balance by machine. This is your statement, you will not get monthly statement mailed to you. You can also go in and have your passbook updated with your ATM transactions when you want. When your passbook is full you get a new one. Your account will also come with an ATM bank card, which you can use at ATM machines (cost is 2 RMB per currency transaction) or at POS terminals in various stores. Your bank may offer you a V/MC credit card as well.
Get used to using cash. In western regions credit and debit cards are the preferred form of currency, in China its still cash, and many businesses still do not have card readers for credit cards or ATM terminals. Nor will international or non-Chinese credit cards work in most places (but this depends on the city to a large extent).
At the end
Transportation is very economical at about 1-2RMB per ride by bus. Light rail is becoming increasingly more available in major cities. In addition taxis are plentiful and relatively cheap at about 6 RMB for the first 2 km and 2 RMB/km after. You IS is likely to also provide a daily shuttle between the IS and your apartment community. If you find a driver you like you can get their mobile number and have essentially an on demand car service, just SMS them your location for a pickup. Buying a bike is also an option and bikes are widely available for purchase.
I would not drive in China, sorry I dont have the stones for that. Chinese tend to have two speeds "go" and "go fast". Traffic signals and signs are more suggestions than regulations, and as a foreigner any accident is going to be your fault. Learn early how to cross the street in China its less about traffic signals and going with the flow which requires establishing eye contact with drivers and communicating intent. I would advise just following others for your first couple of weeks, until you get the hang of it.
Markets are pretty easy, there are lots of convenience stores that sell all kinds of things from paying bills to pharmacies. Its easier to buy a stamp and envelope from the conbini then going to the post office. The meat department will have VERY fresh food, while you can get your choice of meat cuts you will find a big wading pool with customers using little baskets to fish out live shrimp. You will also find tanks with fish, turtles, eels, clams (Albion) which is often served in place of beef fillett at dinner parties, as well as on high end dining menus. You will also not find large bulk sizes of many products. Many people take a bus, or a bike or a taxi, so small portable sizes of items are more commonly available, such as tissue paper (toilet) will often be available in only single rolls or 4 packs. Another option is delivery, its not uncommon to talk with the manager and arrange for delivery of a large quantity of items (Alibaba and Amazon are also options). You do not find coupons or shopping memberships, instead various manufactures will set up displays attended by some young pretty girl with discounted products, and stores will advertise special prices all the time.
You can find just about anything in China, so while their are lots of options there is little variety within a particular product. If you are brand or label loyal, it is very likely there will only be a few options, and most of them will be local brands. You will likely only find one international recognized brand of things such as shampoo and shaving cream for example on the shelves.
It is appropriate to bargain with street vendors and shops, but not "markets" where there are fixed prices. A lot of goods are available at specialty shops, that specialize in one or only a few type of products. So while you can buy towels at a market store (there is a Walmart) there is a towel linen shop somewhere that sells just towels at very low prices.
It is a very good idea to build a relationship with the local hotels. They are a wealth of information and services. Need your favorite cereal a hotel is likely to have it or can get it. Need to send an international fax hotel can make it happen. Need directions or a reservation, a referral or recommendation, no problem. Hotels provide lots of convenience with English speakers.
Your IS probably has a local clinic or a contract with a local clinic for minor ailments (or they may have an onsite nurse/health center) and a hospital for major medical problems. You will pay for your care and treatment and then apply for reimbursement, you will hopefully get some of it back. ISs are loath to advance any type of payment for medical care especially at the hospital since the probability of you returning home means the IS is going to have to pay the bill. It is important to otherwise take care of yourself. Your contract says (its standard) that if you are absent for more than 30 days your contract is cancelled. Medication is much less controlled in China and pharmacists can diagnose and treat many minor maladays such as the cold etc and prescribe antibiotics, etc. The cost of these consultations and medication is very very cheap. Narcotics and abusable medications are the ones you need a doctors prescription for and they are often dispensed at the hospital and the tendency is that all westerners are drug addicts and to give you the weakest pain medication to treat your condition. medical care is very good in China, if it is very clinical and technical. You need to be specific and detailed, understand that title inflation is very common in China. A doctor is likely really a nurse (just as the Assistant Manager is just customer service, everyone is an assistant manager).
In direct reply to your inquiries:
1) It depends on the IS. Usually theres new staff orientation and then all staff orientation. All staff orientation usually starts the week before students return, with some ITs who have been there longer being excused from parts of it. New IT orientation is usually a week or more before. It depends what you have to do. Mainly the activities will revolve around: Getting your medical exam, registering with the PSB, banking, phone, and if needed finding an apartment (if youre in temporary accommodations). Those are the main activities with the rest of the day being filled with seminars and presentations. The IS might also give you a tour of the local area and usually an evening or two take the staff out for dinner (usually once for new staff and once for returning staff). If you plan on an extensive apartment search you might arrive a few days earlier to visit properties with a property agent.
2) Contrary to previous contributors, teaching nomad does have an authentication and visa procurement service. They can take care of the whole process from authentication to visa or just parts of it. Really though its what your IS wants you to do. They may already be working with a particular contact or provider. What you need to do is follow this one rule: ALWAYS DO WHAT THE IS SAYS. The reason being if you do and something happens you have deniability. If you go rogue because you think you know better A) You may not get reimbursed. ISs dont send you coin to pay for all of these services in advanced. You pay for them and then submit receipts and forms to get reimbursed. If you do what the IS says youre much more likely to get back more if not all of your expenses reimbursed. If you dont you may get back less or none at all. B) If something goes wrong its your fault for not following directions which can result in the IS withdrawing the offer.
So really this is a conversation to have with your ISs HR department. They will likely send you an email with instructions for the process. Just follow them.
In reply to earlier contributors.
1) It is critical to understand your IS and where it fits in the hierarchy of ISs nationally, regionally, and locally.
The category of "Quasai International School" needs some clarification. Its not like youre going to find ISs where the student population is really split evenly. With the exception of ITs kids, its going to be nearly exclusively one demographic of students. You get a few exceptions but they are a small minority.
2) In China you see a lot more of the leadership scheme where there is a western academic leader and then in the shadows or the background a Chinese 'center' leader. What this really means is that in most cases the center leader is superior to the academic leader. The academic leader is still an executive leader in that they can direct your actions, assign others to supervise and direct you and can appoint and dismiss you but the center leader is the one controlling the strings. What this means is that there are going to be instances where the western academic leader has no power and cant do anything. They are the messenger and its their job in those instances to get the staff on board with whatever the issue is. Complaining to them is futile because they werent the decision maker.
As you go lower in tiers its very common for your ISs leadership to look and feel more and more like a locally run Chinese DS.
3) Absolutely get a VPN BEFORE you arrive in China. Once inside China you will be behind the great firewall and doing it will be an order of magnitude more difficult.
As far as what you want in a VPN. Price really does indicate quality. You really want a VPN that you are paying for. About USD$20/mth is typical because you want a VPN with high uptime and a large number of redundant servers to improve speed and reduce down time. Free VPNs either suck or they are simply monetizing your data.
4) The member forum requires paying a yearly membership fee.
5) Didi doesnt work in China anymore. WeChat in China becomes a super app doing most everything from shopping to banking to transportation. You can download it outside of China but gets super powered once inside China and properly registered. You can attach a foreign visa credit or debit card but I would make it a card with a very small balance, and one with no foreign transaction fees or very small fees. I just wouldnt do it and would stick with 2 domestic bank accounts and replenish the coin attached to Wechat as needed rather than open access to your entire bank balance.
6) As above your IS either gives you an envelope of currency or deposits your salary in a local bank. Some banks are better than others, but regardless of whatever bank your IS uses. You can open an account at a different bank thats better at whatever it is you want out of a bank. Some ISs will deposit into a foreign account but you want to see what bank they are using to make that transaction and what currency conversion they are using. Most of them are using a dynamic conversion rate that is poorer than what you could get doing the transaction yourself.
Unless you have outside financial obligations or your financial obligations are few (once or twice a year) this may not even be an issue for you, and may even cost you more moving coin from China out and then moving it back in again because all your real expenses are local.
More important to ask or better to investigate is how to fund whatever your investment portfolio (and you should have an investment strategy).
Your IS should provide you a bank day. Its a time once a month reserved for going to the bank, doctor/dentist, the tasks that can only be completed only during normal daytime business hours. Its not a full day but anywhere from a few hours to half a day usually scheduled around back to back prep/conf periods, where you normally would have to sign out you dont have to and its expected you will be off campus. If you have nothing to do you can usually just sleep in or end the day early.
7) It should just be generally expected that you will have ASPs. More importantly is asking about before you agree to the contract what the contract hours and what the instructional hours are. What the ISs holidays are (and which ones are paid and which arent, including the end of year/summer holiday, and how that effects your housing/housing allowance). Those are more important than ASPs, unless your IS has a weekend ASP requirement.
8) All the rent a name ISs are bad, at least compared to their foreign partners DS experience.
9) TIC. This Is China. It will explain a lot of bureaucratic idiocies. Chinas approach to a work welfare system is simply to give people jobs even if the job is stupid. That stupid job gives someone and often a whole lot of someones a living. So usually what in an inconvenience or an annoyance is someone doing their job.
10) To go further than the original contributor, most of the parents and people you will have contact with are likely more educated than you (yes even with an M.Ed). You would be surprised how many Chinese housewives are highly educated.
There is still a very real rural part of China that see foreigners as a curiosity. No one in Beijing or Shanghai, or Guangzhou is going to look twice at a gwailou foreigner is awe or even with much interest. That said having gwailou friends is usually seen as a status boost by Chinese, so they can be very friendly once getting to know you.
In critical situations that might involve possible conflict you might consider introducing yourself as CAN if from the US or AUS if from the UK. I wouldnt do so with anyone you remotely have any form of continuing or long term contact with, they will simply find out and then you have trust issue problems.
11) I can see how generally the further down the scale you get the worse and less common English is, but there are a lot of low level secretaries, receptionists and office workers who have very strong English skills better than their superiors in many cases (and a contributing factor for why they were hired).
I wouldnt say the students at top tier ISs have better English abilities than their native English speaking equals. I can tell, and I dont know anyone with a professional background in English edu who wouldnt.
12) You should have your work permit before you arrive in China. Its an ePermit most likely but its a requirement to get your Z visa. China implemented a new system that has been dismal but you want your residence card before you leave China, and if you dont have one you cant leave China during holiday. Youre likely to have been in China around golden week for 4-6 weeks so youre unlikely to have seen the Pandas, the Great Wall, the Forbidden City, maybe do those. Dalian is a popular beach destination within China but it will be crowded, and not in a good way.
13) Even more so than most avoid conversations of politics and religion with Chinese. Only broach those subjects with other foreigners in private. Never in the IS even if you think you have privacy.
Re: What you wish you knew before going to China?
Glad I made this post.
Seems I should wait to get my documents handled. Let the school give me instructions for that.
As for teaching hours (actual class time) what is a good, average and bad amount in China? (lower-mid grade maths)
What is an acceptable ASP expectation from the school?
Seems I should wait to get my documents handled. Let the school give me instructions for that.
As for teaching hours (actual class time) what is a good, average and bad amount in China? (lower-mid grade maths)
What is an acceptable ASP expectation from the school?
Reply
@cdmxpaisa
In direct reply to your inquiries:
Contact hours are typically 35-40 hrs/wk. Its the time youre required to report until the time youre released for the day. You have to be on campus regardless if its teaching, prep, conference, or open time on your schedule. Of those about half 20-25 instructional periods or hours is reasonable. Some ISs will have higher instructional hours but believe they compensate for it by having shorter contact hrs.
About 5 hours a week, depending on meetings. Some ISs also have weekend ASPs, things like speech/debate, MUN, sports, English corner. These are usually half a day on Saturday. Of course some ASPs require travel with various competition teams.
In direct reply to your inquiries:
Contact hours are typically 35-40 hrs/wk. Its the time youre required to report until the time youre released for the day. You have to be on campus regardless if its teaching, prep, conference, or open time on your schedule. Of those about half 20-25 instructional periods or hours is reasonable. Some ISs will have higher instructional hours but believe they compensate for it by having shorter contact hrs.
About 5 hours a week, depending on meetings. Some ISs also have weekend ASPs, things like speech/debate, MUN, sports, English corner. These are usually half a day on Saturday. Of course some ASPs require travel with various competition teams.
Re: Response
PsyGuy wrote:
> 8) All the rent a name ISs are bad, at least compared to their foreign
> partners DS experience.
That's a pretty broad brush. Some are pretty hopeless, particularly the ones which are not purely 'international' because they have the licence to accept Chinese national students and all the Chinese bureaucracy which goes along with them, but there are ones which aren't. They may not be to your taste as a school, but that's not the same as being a bad school.
On the point of the English levels of students - off the top of my head I can think of at least three former students (born and brought up in China) who are now trainees at Magic Circle law firms in London, and virtually all of the students had a higher level of English than the similar age group I taught when in the UK. Again, maybe it's different schools - I know that in other schools that might not have been the case.
> 8) All the rent a name ISs are bad, at least compared to their foreign
> partners DS experience.
That's a pretty broad brush. Some are pretty hopeless, particularly the ones which are not purely 'international' because they have the licence to accept Chinese national students and all the Chinese bureaucracy which goes along with them, but there are ones which aren't. They may not be to your taste as a school, but that's not the same as being a bad school.
On the point of the English levels of students - off the top of my head I can think of at least three former students (born and brought up in China) who are now trainees at Magic Circle law firms in London, and virtually all of the students had a higher level of English than the similar age group I taught when in the UK. Again, maybe it's different schools - I know that in other schools that might not have been the case.
Reply
@expatscot
Its not that broad. There are some of the rent a name ISs that arent train wreck of ISs, but as I wrote all of them are bad compared to their parent institution they are renting their name from. No ones going to spend a week in the best rent a name IS and confuse it with the quality of the parent institution. None of them even come close where you could argue that the rent a name IS is a reflection of the parent institution. Maybe a pale and hollow shadow, but having to use such adjectives would put it in the bad barrel of ISs.
I can think of more non-Native English speakers who have done well at learning English as a non-native speaker, many are fluent or very close to fluent, but none of them would be comparable in English ability to their native English speaking colleagues. Do they speak more eloquently then some bumpkin sure. Thats not what were talking about though. My position is comparing colleagues, peers, students educated in comparable environments, apples to apples, or even apples to oragnes, not apples to acorns. There isnt one of them where I cant tell the native speaker from the non-native speaker, and none where I would be able to claim the non-native speakers fluency is better than the native speakers.
Its not that broad. There are some of the rent a name ISs that arent train wreck of ISs, but as I wrote all of them are bad compared to their parent institution they are renting their name from. No ones going to spend a week in the best rent a name IS and confuse it with the quality of the parent institution. None of them even come close where you could argue that the rent a name IS is a reflection of the parent institution. Maybe a pale and hollow shadow, but having to use such adjectives would put it in the bad barrel of ISs.
I can think of more non-Native English speakers who have done well at learning English as a non-native speaker, many are fluent or very close to fluent, but none of them would be comparable in English ability to their native English speaking colleagues. Do they speak more eloquently then some bumpkin sure. Thats not what were talking about though. My position is comparing colleagues, peers, students educated in comparable environments, apples to apples, or even apples to oragnes, not apples to acorns. There isnt one of them where I cant tell the native speaker from the non-native speaker, and none where I would be able to claim the non-native speakers fluency is better than the native speakers.
Re: What you wish you knew before going to China?
So many people have already provided a lot of good points! So here are some less immediately pertinent ones.
If you're thinking about moving on from China after several years or so, find out about the process for withdrawing your (obligatory) pension investments prior to exiting the country and put it into action. It appears to be a lot more difficult when you have already left.
Also, you can apply in-country for both a Chinese-language and English-language version of a police check to show your next employers. It still takes a long time, but again is apparently even more complex after leaving.
If you're thinking about moving on from China after several years or so, find out about the process for withdrawing your (obligatory) pension investments prior to exiting the country and put it into action. It appears to be a lot more difficult when you have already left.
Also, you can apply in-country for both a Chinese-language and English-language version of a police check to show your next employers. It still takes a long time, but again is apparently even more complex after leaving.