Quote: (12-12-2018 03:34 AM)66Scorpio Wrote:
As with most jobs, the better paying ones go to those with the better qualifications. Beijing passed regulations a few year back that you need a 120 hour TESL and two years of experience. The course runs maybe $1500 and takes a month full time. The higher paying ones elsewhere usually want a teaching certificate and experience.
Teaching other subjects in English rather than English itself generally pays better, but they still want a TESL and perhaps a teaching certificate and experience.
Saving $10k a year is easy in theory. Even at a low end salary you can find a place that will give you a room on campus, free food at the cafeteria and a WiFi connection. If you like your alone time and have a project to work on, you can go into hermit mode and then bank your entire salary, but that's sort of a waste to go half way around the world and then not do any travelling. If you are in a good location on the bullet train line, then it is cheap to travel but airfare is about the same as anywhere.
If you are only looking at one or two years to save, go work in the oil patch. Teaching English is a great way to travel but you probably won't start making decent money until you have those two years of experience.
And the problem with saving is that one of the bonuses of living in China is the cost of living somewhere between half and a quarter of what things cost stateside, unless you like to buy (real) designer labels, eat steak dinner, and have an apartment with a full sized kitchen and bathroom.
If you are looking at building location independent skills or business, it can be ideal. When I have my lesson prep and marking out of the way I am only otherwise working less than 20 hours a week, which is typical for primary or secondary schools. OTOH, some want you to keep "office hours" a few hours a day, even if you gave nothing to do. Private training centres kind of suck because you are in class 40 hours a week, no weekends off, and you are paying your own living expenses.
Yeah this is an issue for actually credentialed teachers. The high end private schools overseas nowadays all seem to have a disclaimer that you need 2 years of public school work. Thing is unless you're on an Indian Reservation (or you have a specialty like Math combined with another hard subject) then you probably won't get those 2 years unless a near-miracle happens or your Uncle runs the hiring board.
AFAIK - a famous YouTube LaoWei86 has a Master's Degree in Engineering. Couldn't get great work in USA (granted his age was around the Great Recession) and he couldn't be successful as a Professor nor running his own academy. So now he just runs a motorcycle shop (aimed at expats in China) and of course does his YouTube begging stuff.