Q&A

Got Questions on ESL Teaching Jobs in China? Find Your Answers Here

What kind of qualifications or experience do I need to teach English in China?

We offer a wide variety of ESL teaching jobs in China, our positions require a bachelor’s degree. Some schools require a TEFL certification, CELTA, and relevant teaching experience; whereas other positions don’t require any previous teaching experience and qualifications. The best thing to do is contact us to see what is available for you!

Do I need any previous teaching experience?

All of our ESL teaching positions provide paid training. The type of training provided, largely depends on the position you choose! Some schools will have you do the training in your destination city; whereas other schools will have you take part in a 10 days paid training at one of their HQ schools in either Beijing or Shanghai. In this instance, the school will pick you up at the airport, and take to you to a provided hotel. In the training, there will be on average 15 other foreign teachers participating, and everyone will be working for the same company together, so it’s a lot of fun because everyone goes sight-seeing, dinner, drinks, etc, while doing a paid training. Plus you’ll be making many friends all across China, giving you more reason to go visit Hefei, Nanjing, Shenyang, etc.

Whereas other schools will require that you obtain a 120 hr. TEFL certification. In this instance, either the school will reimburse the cost of the online TEFL certification, when you arrive in China. Or you’ll be able to Log-in for free, to the company’s online TEFL course on their website, before coming to China. So it largely depends on the position you choose!

Do I need to speak Mandarin to teach English in China?

Schools actually prefer that teachers don’t speak Mandarin in the class-rooms. That’s because, if say the teacher makes a mistake, the students will be become very excited and suddenly it becomes teach the teacher Mandarin class, instead of teach the students English class. So generally it’s best not to speak Mandarin in the class-room. But if you do wish to learn Mandarin, your greatest teacher will be your students, because when you hold up the flash-cards, one of the students always screams out the answer in Chinese!

What about Accommodations, Provided Apt. or Housing Allowance?

Provided apt. (Mostly 2 tier cities, I.E. Chongqing, Hefei, Suzhou, etc. The vast majority of cities in China.) Once arriving, in whichever city you choose, you’ll have free airport pick- up, and you’ll be taken to your provided apt. Since an English teacher in China does make so much more than the average person in China, and because rent is generally very cheap in China, that’s one of the school’s #1 priority’s, is to make sure the teachers have a really nice western style furnished apt, in one of the nicest parts of the city!

Provided apt, is really straightforward and easy, because you’ll never have to pay rent!

Housing allowance positions are equally good! (Mostly 1^st tier cities, I.E. – Beijing, Shanghai, Shenzhen etc.)  Once arriving in destination city, you’ll have air-port pick-up, and you’ll be taken to a provided hotel. The school will also assist you to find an apt.

China Link ESL is 100% free for those seeking ESL teaching jobs in China. Start a teaching English in China now!

What sort of teaching resources will I have?

Internet, digital white- boards, textbooks- with written, audio, and video segments! So generally, whatever the chapter subject is in your textbook, for example, animals, sports, jobs, etc. You’ll have the freedom to teach those subjects however you’d like to teach those subjects!

So a lot of the time will be spent using the textbooks, PPT’s, online ESL games- I.E. car racing English games, memory matching games etc, and of course flash-cards, and playing games with the flash-cards. That’s really what the schools want from their teachers, is to make a fun educational, interactive experience for the students, I.E. playing lots of games and having fun!

What kind of things will be asked during the Skype Interview?

We are aiming to find out is what kind of teacher you are and what you are ideally looking for while coming to China to teach English. We will ask you about your availability, preference of location, and whether you‘d be interested in teaching kids or adults. We might also ask you if you have a TEFL certificate, or why you are looking to come to China. If you already have experience, we might ask about the kind of students you have taught and the age of the students you’d prefer to teach?

What is the Visa Process?

Your school will organize all the necessary paperwork needed to obtain a legal one year work (Z) visa. This process can take up to 5 weeks. The papers will then be sent to you and you can take these papers, along with your passport, application form and any other documents needed (please check with your nearest Chinese embassy) to the Chinese embassy, where they will issue you a visa within 1 week. Once your visa is stamped into your passport, you can enter China!

What will my Salary and Benefits be?

English teachers’ salaries in China are very competitive, which will provide you with a very comfortable lifestyle. The monthly salary for our job openings is between 10,000 – 20,000 RMB per month, or $1,500 – $3,000 USD a month. The exact amount is determined by the school you’d be working for, the city you are based in and the number of years of previous teaching experience.

As the cost of living in China is significantly lower than that of the West, an English teacher’s salary goes a long way. Eating dinner at a local restaurant will typically cost between 15 – 30 RMB per person (Roughly $2 – $4 US dollars) and most teachers find they can live easily on 100 RMB per day ($15 USD). Cost of living in big cities like Beijing and Shanghai is slightly higher than smaller cities.

China Link ESL is also 100% free for our job seekers. Start your new teaching adventure in China today!