 Re: Can I make enough money to support a family as an ESL Teacher?
OK, I am supposed to be lesson planning for a private class in 2 hours so I will be quick.
My situation: I am an ESL teacher, and my Chinese wife has just got an admin job in a big multinational. She gets 1500 RMB a month, about 200 dollars. My last four jobs in China have netted me: 1400 dollars a month with a free flat, 1300 dollars including accommodation allowance, 1250 dollars, and 900 dollars for an 18 hour working week that allowed me to do a lot of private classes at 14 - 20 dollars an hour. At the moment I do 3 classes a week, and make about 400 dollars a month for only 16 hours extra work. (1 dollar = about 7 RMB)
Rental of a flat in a smaller city like Zhengzhou or Chengdu can be as low as 700 RMB a month, although 1500 RMB is a fair average. It is possible to live on 200 dollars a month, for 2 adults, if you cook for yourself.
Many Chinese families survive on 1500 - 2000 RMB per month AND they save up to buy a flat.
China is a good place to live and save up, if you can accept the culture shock and the bureaucracy, and it is still a seller's market from the point of view of the EFL teacher. BUT, the culture shock is extreme - I came here after 15 years experience as an EFL teacher in 5 other countries and I still haven't fully settled in even though I have been here over 2 years.
I recommend China, it's a blast!  |