THE FUNDAMENTAL ASPECTS TO CONSIDER WHEN APPLYING FOR A TEACHING JOB IN CHINA

The concept of teaching abroad and the journey to make it a reality may seem like a task with many unknowns. You see the end goal, the reality to be teaching abroad. However, you ask the question and wonder: what does all of this entail? Am I right for this?

The first part, I would say is to first understand the role itself. There are two major components to this. You have probably guessed it, a) Teaching and b) China. By understanding these two fundamental components, and what it may mean, is crucial in determining whether the role is right for you.

With the teaching aspect, it does not matter if you have limited to zero, or plenty of experience. Regardless of where you fall on the experience spectrum, there is always value in understanding your abilities/competencies and past working experience to see how these could be translated to the teaching arena. If you have plenty of experience, great! The question would be how you could use those previous skills to accommodate and support the school that teaches English. If you have zero or limited experience, that is fine. Can you first visualize yourself in a classroom full of kids (if you are teaching kids)? If you can, great! You would then ask yourself, what are the qualities of being a teacher? In addition, does your personality, previous experience match, or can be adapted to meet that of a teacher?

With China, even if you have the teaching aspect nailed; you have to ask yourself if you can acclimate to a new environment. China is a country that maybe very different to your own. Everything could be very different in terms of lifestyle, people, food, cultures, weather, and population. There is definitely value in researching the country beforehand to set expectations and to gain a better insight into what life might be like for you there. Of course, one can never fully imagine actually being in China and teaching. But it all boils down to knowing what you want, and whether or not what you find out, matches what you are looking for.

So having consider the fundamental aspects of the role, you have overcome the biggest challenge of all in that you have at least considered the opportunity to teach abroad in China. You have somehow internalized the idea and have made that decision in your mind to take that step forward (however small) it may be, it is one-step over the biggest challenge. Therefore, you reflect and tell yourself that something has made you want to apply. Understanding this, can really help you with how to proceed. The thought itself has somewhat (or very much so), piqued your interests.

The next steps would be to put this idea into tangible actions to get that teaching job in China. It typically starts with researching to see what teaching English is all about. Through this research, you will find many strings of opportunities that present themselves as channels on getting that teaching job. Pull on these strings and you will unravel further information and will typically lead to some interaction with a company/agency that specializes in teaching English Abroad. In the modern age, these channels could be a job ads, Instagram post, careers fair, internet search engines, social media accounts etc. These channels should allow you to make an application in some capacity. If the advertising company/agency wishes to proceed, you should be in touch with a representative. This would be the time to really utilize the opportunity to find out more and vice versa, be informed about the realities of what it takes to embark on this adventure.

Now that you have made an application, just like any position, you are going be assessed to see if you are suitable for a teaching position in China. Let us break down how to get this teaching job at the stage of the interview.

Your ability to obtain the necessary documents to apply for your visa, which assesses your ability to meet the expectations of the company you are applying for.

The visa element may be a complex process, one you may be not familiar with. This is where the representative will assist you. They will discuss the visa requirements and it will be down to you to ensure that you have the necessary documents to work in China.

With the teaching aspect even if you have limited to zero, or plenty of experience, regardless of where you fall on the experience spectrum, there is always value in understanding your abilities/competencies and past working experience to see how these could be transferred to the teaching arena. If you have plenty of experience, great! The question would be how you can use those previous skills to accommodate and support the school that teaches English. If you have zero or limited experience, that is fine. Can you first visualize yourself in a classroom full of kids (if you are teaching kids), if you can, great. You would then ask yourself what the qualities of a teacher are. And does your personality, previous experience match or can be adapted to meet that of a teacher?

With China, even you have the teaching aspect nailed, you have to ask yourself if you can acclimate to a new environment. China is a country that maybe very different to your own. Everything could be be very different, lifestyle, people, food, cultures, weather, population. It wouldn’t hurt to research this beforehand and to gain a better insight into what life might be like for you there. Of course, one can never fully imagine it until you actually experience it, but it all boils down to what you are looking for, and if you can imagine yourself there.