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One of my best buddies (and his brother) both teach english in Taiwan (or thereabouts), and they usually try to convince me (when they come into town) to go there and do it for a while, or at least to take a 3-4 week vacation to visit and teach a bit to finance the vacation.
Strictly off memory, here is what I know (keep in mind some of this may differ from country to country)...
- the money can be really good but you earn your income in two ways; first, by teaching english in some form of classroom environment; second, by doing private tutorings for students which are usually less structured & more lucrative; I imagine you may need the classes to get your private contacts, but may be wrong...
- part of how well you do overall is based upon the company that hires you before you go over or once you get there - therefore its best to have one or more contacts that you can trust to ensure that the company you choose is not below average
- living is cheap, booze is freeflowing, trafficking drugs (in Taiwan, at any rate) is punishable by DEATH (no joke, this is stamped on your passport)...not sure what penalties exist for possession or consumption, if any...
- living standards/conditions aren't 'North American' style, so be prepared to make some creature comfort, day-to-day, adjustments (anyone who's travelled overseas likely knows this already, but just in case)
If you're curious why I don't do this, it's basically 'cuz I'm happy where I am now (homewise, jobwise, socially, etc) and my sense of wanderlust, of adventure, extends far enough to travel for vacations but not to relocate. And I haven't done it vacation wise just 'cuz I'd have to use my whole vacation allottment for the year, and I keep having other committments to look after for this time (family visits, etc)...but I am planning on the vacation angle at some point in the future.
Hope this helps...I'd offer to let you correspond with him via email but to be honest, he's crap for email replies, U'll be waiting forever...
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Mar 12, 03
