Moving Abroad and Teaching in China: What You Need to Know

Longing to travel the world? Interested in teaching? Looking for a different, new adventure? It may have crossed your mind: What about teaching English in Asia…?

Rural area of Zhejiang province

You aren’t the only one. It’s incredibly easy to get a teaching job in several Asian countries, including China. All you need to apply is…

-Be a native English speaker

-Have a bachelor’s degree (any field)

-Be willing to commit for a year

-Have an “aptitude” for teaching (literally the wording they used on my first application)

You do not have to speak the local language. You do not have to find your own housing. Your flight will be reimbursed upon the completion of your contract. You can literally just go. It’s the wanderlust dream of my generation.

On top of that, many teaching jobs pay very well. Even if the salary doesn’t look like much in US dollars, it can go a long way in a place like China that has much lower living costs. I’ve been able to live comfortably in China, travel, and make my student loan payments with every teaching job I’ve had here.

There are two main types of teaching jobs in China (and in most other Asian countries): university and training schools. Yes, you can teach at the university level in China with only a bachelor’s yourself. Your magical native-speaker status is highly sought after. Here are some basics about these two opportunities:

Teaching in a training school is where the money is. Training schools are after-school programs for children anywhere from toddlers to middle schoolers. Describing it as an after-school program makes it sound like part time work, but it’s not – I put in wayyy more hours at my training school than I do now at a university. You teach evenings and weekends, basically whenever public school is not in session. You give homework and tests, and do all the things a normal teacher would do; it’s not daycare.

Teaching at a university usually means a lower salary but an amazing schedule. Foreign teachers often teach the basic English classes for freshmen or other low-level courses. The salary is livable and the schedule is so light that you can often pick up side jobs, like tutoring, and/or travel constantly. (Warning about the side jobs though: contracts usually include something about how you can’t do them without boss approval.) Working with young adults means you can often become friends with students.

Peace-keeping gate 

But before you jump on a plane, here are a few things to consider:

1. DO YOUR HOMEWORK BEFORE YOU GO. There are fake schools. There are agencies that take your money and place you in a crappy situation. There are schools that never complete your paperwork so you are working on the incorrect visa and could be arrested anytime, and also can’t report anything the school does without jeopardizing yourself. There are schools that don’t pay your salary and give you a moldy apartment. There are agencies that pay you a minimal salary and get double the money from parents. Don’t be dumb, do your research, and make sure you know what you’re signing up for.

2. YOU WILL BE TEACHING. While this opportunity may look like financing for your travel plans and social media stories, it is, in fact, accepting a job. And that job is teaching English. (Chinese law technically requires two years of teaching experience to qualify for a work visa, but if a school wants you, they can get you here.) Teaching is a helping profession, mentoring, working with young people to open their minds to places they’ve never been before and equipping them to communicate and create meaning in a second language. It’s coming up with games and activities and conversation clubs, and tackling piles of grading. While you may not want to be a teacher forever, you do need to want to be a teacher for a year.

3. IT’S AN ADVENTURE. And what I mean by that is, it’s uncomfortable. Moving to a new country and jumping into a job you may or may not have previous experience in is a whirlwind. You will be challenged in most every area of life, from buying food in a new language, to frustrating teaching days, to miscommunication with bosses, to getting lost, to cooking with chopsticks, to building friendships with people with whom you have nothing in common. If you are open-minded and flexible, these challenges will help you learn so much. You will discover a whole new world and culture and language, and it will change yours. Those challenges can become hilarious stories and experiences you treasure.

So what are you waiting for?