[gjindancer]

Hi People! My name is Dan, and at the minute I live in the sunny north east of England , my girlfriend has got a good job in Hong Kong teaching English to Japanese primary school kids. Its a really good job 23kHKD per month and a relocation package...

The trouble is, she won't go without me and thinks If she takes the job, I'll not be able to move over to be with her, for visa or work complications..

I am a graphic/web designer with multimedia and AV experience, and looking on jobsDB.com was quite encouraging, but I am willing to teach english, or work in bars initially if I have to..

I have applied for several jobs already, but she has to tell the company if she is going or not by Monday - I think she should go and not worry too much about me coming over, but what does everyone here think??

Personally I've always wanted to travel and live overseas, and at 28 its something I'd jump at given the chance!!

Thanks

Dan

[jimbo]

Dan

Your options are, doing an online TEFL course, this can be done within a few weeks and that will help you a lot, You'll need this to make you get a work permit easier. Its not difficult to do and pretty cheap.

I'd say go for it, When was she thinking of going over?

[dropdedfwed]

Hey Dan,

don't want to discourage you at all, but 23k/month is not a lot of $ if no housing allowance is included in the package. rent will set you back in the vicinity of 10k/month.

also, if your GF is a qualified teacher, she should be able to get a higher pay than just 23k - that's almost the same pay you'd get if you did as jimbo suggested and got a TEFL and taught english in a college with no other qualifications (apart from a degree of somesort).

you can come here on a tourist visa and check it out, and you can leave HK for a day (Macau or Shenzhen) and re-new that visa once or twice without hassle (for UK i think you'd get a 90 day visa).

in regards to bar work - to get a work permit in HK i think you have to be able to have a sponsor/employer that will state that local talent cannot fill the position - but there are some bar positions that "could" be put in that catagory

but hang it - come to HK! even if your GF "only" gets 23K - if you get your TEFL etc and get some teaching work, between you both you're bound to have enough cash for some fun!

HTH,

DDF

[jimbo]

Its 180 days for U.K passport holders so almost 6 months which is plenty of time and teaching work is plentiful out here.

[PDLM]

Originally Posted by dropdedfwed

(for UK i think you'd get a 90 day visa)

6 months in fact.

[JAherbert]

hi,

forget about negative comments get your gear packed asap.

Your g/f has a contract? how long? I'd consider using the opportunity to get yourselves out here, and take it from there. Once her contract is up, she"ll have a bonus, and experience - and she will be able to demand a more realistic salary.

For you an employment visa is needed that requires a company to sponsor you, it is not easy, but not too difficult either. It takes time since most positions are filled through contacts not adverts.

23k will be tight, but you can manage, and you can rent an apartment for much less than 10K, sharing is an option too. However, if you don't like the idea of sharing you need to pay 3 months rental in advance!

a word about stress, some folks arrive and love the place, but others hate it and spend their time complaining, moaning and complain some more. Whichever way it goes for you it will be stressful while you are finding your feet.

whatever you deciede good luck.

[dizzydancer2005]

Hi Dan,
Good luck with your decision making! I have been in HK for almost 2 years now, and I don't know much about the Graphic Design job market, but I know a bit about the teaching lark!
When my flatmate moved to HK a few years before me, immigration didn't require a Degree to teach. However, now you do. You need to have the minimum of a degree and some sort of teaching experience or qualification.(However small!) I needed to get a TEFL before coming here, and did it in the UK in 48 hours, on a weekend course with a company called i-to-i. (www.i-to-i.com) i think.
Try coming here first on your 3 month tourist visa, and check the job market out. It's always easier to go through the process whilst your here. And in regards to living expenses, everyone always tell me HK is expensive, but thats not true! Accommodation anywhere in the world can be as cheap or as expensive as you want, you just have to look! You can find small, but nice accommodation anywhere here anywhere between $4- $40!!!
Hope that helps a bit! Check out the HK Immigration website too. Another website I checked out for jobs is www.tefl.com and of course www.scmp.com.
Good luck again!
Dizzy

[dropdedfwed]

hey dizzy,

I'm no expert on this, but from what i know that's sort of not 100% correct...

my understanding is... you have a better chance of a job, and better pay bracket with a degree and TEFL, but you can get work with just a TEFL. it all depends on WHERE you wanna work - schools or colleges or adult education thingies..

if you have a degree in English, and teaching qual and TEFL, you have great employment prospects. if you have any degree, and some teaching quals (eg dip ed, grad dip ed) and TEFL, good chance of getting work. if you have any degree and TEFL, ok chance of ok job, or if you have just a TEFL and no degree... you can get the low paid jobs with crappy hours but it is still work !!

[dropdedfwed]

try this link..

http://www.emb.gov.hk/index.aspx?nodeid=1300&langno=1

and check this thread

Can you teach without a degree

[PorkChop]

Hi,
Just been reading these posts and thought I would make my own little contribution re. teaching requirements in HK.
I am a qualified teacher - graduated from uni and also did a TEFL course. This meant that it wasn't very hard for me to find a job here. However, I have many expat friends here who are teachers who simply have only a TEFL course under their belts and no degree, and it doesn't really rock the boat too much if you can prove to the company that you have got the goods.
The TEFL course that I did is all the Cambridge CELTA. Look it up on the net and it will tell you how to go about it. You can't do it through corresponence - you must attend class, but it is recognised around the world and so therefore also taught in most university like institutions world wide. It is only a 4 week course and well worth it.
If you are worried that you wont have a substantial job if you come wtih your girlfriend, then perhaps look into something like that.