Yep, Choatle! I'm with you! When I read the post from MICHAEL MOFFA my feelings were the same... A perfect example of "the lady doth protest too much!"

I have no direct evidence that the recruiter being discussed ("Vicki Ruan") is truly good or bad. All I know is that her name will appear constantly in job postings for positions all over the place in the good ol' PRC. She seems to "represent" hundreds of employers.

Because I am American, have lots of experience (at home and in China), and hold two masters degrees, recruiters/schools reps usually jump and respond quickly when I show interest in an open position. The two times I have sent letters of inquiry, documents, etc., to "Vicki Ruan," there was never a response.

Because of the huge range of employers to appears to represent, she couldn't possibly know the true realities of the job (work and living conditions, etc.), and probably could care less. After all, for her, it's all about commissions, not the welfare of the FT. She has no real reputation to uphold because she's not using her real name.

Bottom line (as so many others before have said)... AVOID RECRUITERS. At the very least, they "gum up the works," but more often they will say/promise whatever is necessary to get you signed up, so they can collect their fee and move on to the next sucker.