By Arnold Vis
Before starting this company, I was just like you.
Being an English teacher in China changed my life and I loved the whole experience.
It is a truly fascinating country and I cannot express what a privilege it is to explore it, I believe it is something everyone should do.
But the teaching market in China has evolved since the COVID years and things are different now.
In this article, I will summarise in what ways it has changed, and what that means for you if you’re considering starting an incredible teaching adventure in China.
Fewer Teaching Jobs
The key change in the market is that, compared to the pre pandemic years, the number of teaching jobs in China has reduced.
But as it is a massive country that values education highly, do not be discouraged because there are still plenty of jobs available, just not as many as before.
What the the reasons for the reduction in available jobs?
The Birth Rate is Down
Like in many countries around the world, birth rates in China plummeted during the pandemic. This is now affecting kindergartens across the country, as the intake of 3 and 4 year old children are much smaller than in the past. As a result, kindergartens are hiring significantly fewer teachers.
Funding for State Schools Has Reduced
The struggles during the COVID years meant that government budgets had to be redirected. Funding for foreign English teachers, that was flowing freely before the pandemic was unfortunately one of the many casualties. We have a longstanding partnership with the Chinese government for jobs at state schools, and the program is very much still going, but the number of jobs and available locations is much more limited than it has ever been.
The Slowing Economy Is Affecting Private Schools and Training Centres.
We also work with private training centres and private primary school that depend on parents paying for English lessons for their children. These schools have been impacted by the relative slowing of the Chinese economy in recent years, with some parents opting out of private English lessons.
The outlook for private training centres in China is mixed however. After many of them went out of business due to the double reduction policy in 2021, more and more seem to be springing up again this year.
Right, so what does all of this means for you?
Here our our top three tips to help you get started in China…
Apply Early
The process of getting a work visa organised for China takes about three months, so it’s always been a good idea to apply well in advance. But given the more limited set of vacancies, applying early is even more important nowadays, and highly recommended. If possible, apply with us at least 5-6 months before your intended departure date.
Be Flexible About Your Placement
When we offer you a place on the program, it means we think you’ve got what it takes to be an awesome teacher in China. But the schools have the last say and we don’t make the final hiring decision. When you join the program, we’ll ask you for an introduction video along with your CV and your ideal five placements (age group and location). We’ll do all we can to get you one of your top choices, but in a competitive market it may not always be possible, so be willing to compromise and open to considering an option that’s not your first choice.
Take the Initiative When You Get to China
When you get to China it’s likely that you will be placed with other foreign teachers, but the number may be limited.
So, it’s important to take the initiative and put yourself out there. When I spoke to one of our teachers recently, he described it as being back and university and going through freshers week, except with fewer students and alcohol. His advice was to take the initiative, push to swap WeChat contacts with people on your first meeting and make things happen.
As a company, we want all out teachers to thrive, and we’ll do our bit too. We’ve seen over the years that things like joining sports clubs and regular language lessons can help with feeling integrated. We’re always working on expanding the list of referrals we can make on those fronts, so don’t hesitate to ask!
I hope this has helped make some sense of the complex Chinese teaching market at the moment. China is a country like no other, with incredible people, culture and food. And as an ESL destination, it offers unrivalled perks like flight reimbursements and free housing.
If you’d like to learn more, check out our program page, and if you’d like to apply you can do so here.
If you have any more questions, please don’t hesitate to contact me at arnold@impact-teaching.com
