foxy
- 2014-08-13
Your reply is an excellent one.
I fully agree with what you have said.
Could you perhaps give us a list of the undesirable provinces? Or it might well be easier and more brief if you give us a list of the desirable provinces instead!
martin Hainan
- 2014-08-13
The way it is is that these days more and more Chinese employers prefer to use recruiters to obtain job applications on their behalf
During my ten years in China it seems to me that the China EFL industry has stratified, but only in part towards recruiters. Chinese universities and high schools finally recognize that teaching English requires more than a white face, the ability to speak a native language, and a college degree. Additionally, preparation of rich students for overseas education has created a demand for 'subject' foreign teachers. The salaries for these positions have escalated significantly. But genuine credentials are required.
The other English 'teacher' employers in China, at the various language 'schools' and in the undesirable provinces, they have little or no opportunity to acquire credentialed teachers, no matter what salary they pay. Likely this is the majority of 'teaching' positions in China, certainly the majority of advertised agency jobs. Nevertheless, these positions must be filled; recruiters perform the market function of placing unqualified 'teachers' in undesirable positions. They lie to and for both candidates and schools.
It remains true that if you are a competent credentialed teacher, you can send your resume directly to the FAO departments of institutions that you select and a number of these will offer you employment at rates that have increased significantly in the past few years.
foxy
- 2014-08-13
In the Resources section at the top of this Forum there is a detailed breakdown from one poster of the pitfalls of using recruiters :"Why Raoul Duke Wants You To Avoid Recruiters by Raoul Duke."
Presumably that information is of sufficient value for it to have permanent status on the board.
The way it is is that these days more and more Chinese employers prefer to use recruiters to obtain job applications on their behalf than when the late Raoul Duke had posted his advice. Just look at all the job ads on this board and Daves ESL Cafe from Chinese recruiters, the latter website charging for carrying those ads. If we all shunned recruiters, they'd be out of work fast. And just imagine if that happened how low the salaries offered by Chinese employers to a chosen applicant who applied direct would be. Chinese employers are equally as tricky as Chinese recruiters. After all, they're all Chinese!
I don't know exactly what the commission actally represents as a %, but I do know that about 5 years ago a fellow FT employed by a private university in Jilin province through a relative of his Chinese wife who happened to be a Henan-based Chinese recruiter received 8,000 RMB as air fare allowance whereas I received just 7,000 RMB via my Chinese recruiter from that university. I saw my fellow FT's employment contract, so it wasn't merely hearsay! At that time I was on 5,500 a month while he was on 6,000.