Hi,

Sorry if there is an existing topic about this, if yes please link me!

So I'm planning to coming to China to teach this spring. I'm currently graduating from university and I will get my degree issued in early March. I do not hold any other degree amt.

My initial incentives about teaching in China were learning Cantonese and/or going to some rural area to teach poor kids in a sort of volunteer / semi-volunteer setting.

There are three schools that are interested in me.

One is a university in Guangdong province, which I'd love to go to; however they say that since it'll be end of April or start of May until they got the Z visa for met to come due to my degree not having been issued yet, they'd rather want me to come for the fall semester.

One is a school in a city at the very border of Guangdong province that is not a Cantonese speaking region. They seem very friendly and enthusiastic to have me, however I'm not that interested in the place. The visa problem would probably the same, so that I'd have to wait for two months until I could start there. This wouldn't be a problem for them apparently but it would be for me, since I have no job and nothing to do here.

The third one is a school in a small town / village in Yunnan. This is a volunteer position that is being organized by a tiny association in my home country. I've been following their activities over the years and it seems like what they do is meaningful and the organizers are friendly and take good care of their people.
The problem with them is that of course they can't provide a Z visa. They said they'd get me tourist visas in Burma or F visas if possible, which has always worked out for them in the 5 years or so that they've done that. They provide accommodation and a small amount of money to pay for food and necessities.

So what I want to ask is, if I spend half a year at the third place first on a) a tourist visa or b) an F visa, would that compromise my chances of getting a Z visa later in China? Would authorities assume that I had been working illegally and not agree to giving me a Z visa? Would I have to leave China and go 1) to Hongkong or 2) to my home country in Europe to apply for that Z visa, if I want to teach in Guangdong from fall on?
Also, what would be your decision if you were in my place? (Would it be an option to ask the university to issue me a student visa at first?)

Any advice would be greatly appreciated, thank you!

Carol