No not all Aston schools are franchises Theo. Aston started to sell franchises in aprx 2004. For eg: the schools in Xi'an, Dalian, Jinan and Shenyang are Aston owned schools and there are a few more too. As for the apartments when I worked for Aston I lived in several apartments and for the most part the apartments were "cozy" but several other teachers did not have cozy apartments. They apartments did not have much for natural lighting and no winter heat except for the wee box up on the wall that ate up your hydro and gave little heat back! But this was no different for teachers who worked for public schools, universities or other private schools. Apartment quality was all over the board in China. This also was the same for many of my Chinese friends. Apartments vary like anywheres in the world.

Just like any place where you will go to work in China things vary. You many get a great foreign manager or you may get one who will back up the cruel Chinese manager. There are a few good Chinese managers but they are few and far between. Lets remember that the rules regarding work there in China are not the same as they are in the west. There are many poor employers here in the west too who will do anything to make/save a buck with their local laborers. Many of these laborers put up with their work environment cause they know how hard it would be the get another job if they were to complain about work conditions etc.

So going to China is a hit miss experience no matter where you go to live and for what type of school that you work for. Expect many things to be different there in China and be prepared to be dicked about with. It is a way of life there but be firm and stand up for yourself!