You do work 30 hours at least a week. You sit in a glass cubicle, with students and Chinese tutors running in and out all of the time pestering you. You are not allowed to leave. The 16.5 hours in the classroom-glassroom is the easiest part of your 30 hours. I could have one lesson a week but if I were obliged to sit in the office for the remaining 39 hours, I would have worked for 40 hours, since i don't want to be there. No, No, you work thirty hours any way you look at it.

Now, in a university because you have only one or two lesson plans a week, it's not difficult to, get your plans together (based on their text books) and do any marking all in two hours a week. If[the university] they only pay you 5500 for say 15 hours teaching plus your two hours for plans and marking papers (not much of that) you will earn about 323 RMB per hour. However, you[in EF Changchun] only earn 233 per hour. The disparity gets much much wider when you take into consideration that most universities cover your utility bills including Internet. Indeed they supply you with a desktop in your flat. Your money is poor to say the least. Can't you get another rubbish training centre job? When I did a year in one a few years ago I used to take home 12000 for the same hours you're doing? Maybe overly-cooperative FT's have lowered TC pay, I don't know.

If you work in a university and your hours are only 10-15 a week, you can always find yourself private students. I used to put my details on Chinese sites and ask for just 200 for a one hour lesson. These days a few hours work a week will do me.