[turnjet]

My background... I hold a British passport and graduated at Uni where I achieved a Higher Diploma (not a Degree), as I unfortunately failed my third year due to some pretty serious personal problems back home in England this year. Anyway, no excuses, i'm here now and have to deal with it.

So yeah, I moved to HK with my HK g/f who lived with me in England for three years (HK resident) and graduated in the same year as me. I'm currently staying with her in an apartment her mum owns, so i count myself very lucky. I have six months stay here and i've been here since the 20th of September this year.

Okay, so i've so far been unsuccessful finding a job. I've been to half a dozen interviews now, but not having a degree coupled with needing a sponsor to support a working visa has crippled my chances really. I've taken Insurance exams, but only passed Paper 1 and failed Paper 3 twice (Long Term Insurance), so i'm unsure as to whether Insurance is a suitable field for me and if I should take Paper 3 for a third time.

I've decided I.T. isn't going to be something I am likely to get a job in as i'd need to have a very specialised role to be sponsored. I've also put the Insurance plan on hold for now and am now trying to pursue a career in teaching. So far i've had one interview, however the interviewer was very blunt in saying as i don't have:

a) a Degree
b) Teaching Experience
c) Teaching Qualifications

- It would be very hard for the immigration commitee to validate my application. So my question is really, where do I start to get qualifications and/or experience to get a teaching job? I've did a search and found this:

Online TEFL courses

But i'm not sure doing a 40 hour online course will be enough to secure a teaching position. The only other experience I have is when I go round a friends house and help their kids (9 and 11 years old) with the English homework they bring home or mess around with M$ Office for a bit teaching them a few new things.

On another note me and my girlfriend recently went to Macau for Xmas and my 6 month stay in HK was renewed, something I came across as a total surprise. Either way, we are looking for a long term solution, not having to travel to Macau every 6 months. So if I continue to remain unemployed, we discussed it and will probably get married having been together for nearly four years now. Her family seems to of grown fond of me as to her mum asking us why we don't get married now.

Any thoughts and opinions would be greatly appreciated here.

[edinb]

My best advice to you mate is if you want to find a quick job teaching English , you should consider going back to the UK to study for a one month intensive CELTA course held all over the country and throughout the year. After that, come back to HK and with a native English tongue, you shouldn't find it too hard to find a job in a local language school.

I was in the exact same shoes as you (well almost). My girlfriend moved back to HK and I came with her from the UK. Having an IT degree in HK is pretty useless as I found out, even with a masters since people in HK are all generally technically skilled, so finding a job in this field is pretty fierce and demanding.

Or you could, like you said, get married but I think you might need to stay in the country without working for one whole year. Another thing you could do is consider studying in HK. Acquire student status to increase your visa limit.

Hope it works out well for you.

[turnjet]

Hey mate, thanks for the advice. Can I ask what job you do now?

[edinb]

turnjet, I was lucky as I found a job at university teaching English, doing the web design and looking after the technical issues within the centre.

[smerchas]

Hey Turnjet,

An even better idea, is to hop on a ferry and take yourself to Zhuhai and do your month TEFL course there. I've basically done the same one as they do in the uk CELTA course in China. All you will need is a visa, which is a pretty easy thing to do.

After I did my TEFL. I got myself a job as an english teacher within 48 hrs...!!!!

Good luck. Here is the website. The course was absolutely brilliant but very hard work. You have a great deal of actual teaching experience in chinese schools, which is a true eye opener..!!!

TEFL China - TESOL Jobs in China, Zhuhai with courses and certification

Any yes, it is a recognised course and you have over 30 hrs of teaching experience.

Have fun

smerchas
x

[turnjet]

Originally Posted by edinb

turnjet, I was lucky as I found a job at university teaching English, doing the web design and looking after the technical issues within the centre.

Nicely done man, you have a nice setup there.
---------------------------

Thanks for the heads up smerchas!

I've been going over various courses....


The Trinity CertTESOL Course is $24,500 HKD (£1,600), so the price is the biggest turnoff. Not sure on how much better it is in comparison to the other courses.

The TEFL course you recommend on the other hand is: US$ 1390 (£705) (excluding accommodation), however i'm really not too keen on going elsewhere to study.

Then there's the CELTYL course which is $10,000 HKD. (£650) which is a suitable price and in HK, but is only the Young Learners course.

Lastly there is the Online TEFL which can be either a 40, 60 or 80 hour programme. Price varies from 300 to 500 Euros. (£370 for the 80 hour programme), but of course it's only an online course. No knowledge of how well people fair after course completion.

Edit: Just found these online courses on your website link.

---------------------
100-hour online TEFL Certification with tutor support US$ 295 (£150)
100-hour online TEFL Certification without tutor support US$ 190 (£95)
100-hour course with tutor support US$ 445 (£225)
250-Hour online TEFL Diploma course with tutor support US$ 990 (£495)
250-Hour online TEFL Diploma course w/out tutor US$ 500 (£245)
Online Certification Course in Teaching Young Learners US$ 250 (£125)
Complete TEFL certification (+ young learners course) US$ 450 (£225)
-------------------

To be honest i'd rather study in Hong Kong, but you say the course in Beijing got you a job in 48 hours.

My partner and I are seriously considering getting married now so I don't have to worry about getting sponsored anymore. We have relevant evidence in the form of joint bank accounts back in England which date back three years, so I don't see it being too much of a problem.

I just need to figure out what course to apply for now. Online or not and whether the more expensive course is worth it. If the course you did was available in HK, i'd be well up for it. I'm pretty interested in the British Council CELTYL course, but again i'd only be able to teach young learners.

Anymore thoughts would be most welcome.

[smerchas]

Hi Turnjet,

There are quite a few online courses, and although they are fine. Quite a few companies are looking for 20 hours teaching experience, which you don't get with the online courses. Zhuhai is brilliant as it is literally an hour away from hong kong on the ferry. You could come home every night if youwanted to.

The accomodation is fine if you wanted to stay there too. I would highly recommend it. But hey....I hear some people will take an english teacher with NO TEFL too.....it's whether you want the risk or not.

Good Luck.

[jimbo]

Originally Posted by smerchas

I hear some people will take an english teacher with NO TEFL too.....it's whether you want the risk or not.

Good Luck.

Personally I wouldn't take the risk tbh, as working 'illegally' will put you in a whole load of trouble, i.e there are some dubious language centres that will take you without TEFL or a valid work permit but of course will try and avoid paying you at the end of the month, And suprise suprise you have no comeback as you're working 'illegally' in the first place thus are in no position to go to the police etc.

I have done the online TEFL course and yes its enough to get you a job in a language centre in most cases.

[smerchas]

Hi Jimbo,

I totally agree, if it was me personally, I wouldn't take the risk, I've heard loads of stories of people not being paid and even being deported...!!! I think any TEFL course will get you a job to be honest, it just depends how certified you want to be..hahahahaha

[turnjet]

It looks like i'll take the 100hr Online Tutor Support TEFL in the next couple of days and try and get it done before the Chinese New Year when people are bouncing jobs. If no luck, i'll probably do the TEFL onsite course afterwards to get some teaching experience.

Thanks for all the info and advice guys, appreciations due.