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Q: A way of beating the racist hiring system in China?
I'm black, got no TEFL/TESOL, no experience, not from UK/NZ/USA (but from Africa at that) and I'm 19 years old (read: too young to be taken seriously). My only advantages? Native-level English with a neutral accent. After 5 weeks of EXTREME amounts of trial & error, I saw into the Matrix so to speak and found a patten. When I began, I only got 4 interviews out of literally 400 emails, but now I have part-time work teaching 6-8 hours a week and can typically get 2-3 interviews out of 10 emails, yes with my picture and all in there. That's a hitrate up from 1% to 25%... and the difference it makes is AMAZING. Its surprises me the odd interview includes jobs where "3 years experience" and "Bachelor's degree or higher" were listed as mandatory, where I don't have anything close.
My question is: for all my fellow black/brown skinned people who are aspiring teachers in China, how much would a PDF sitting right on your desktop detailing how you can save yourself a LOT of trial & error as well as frustration, screw the ignorant racist Chinese recruiter bastards, get a part-time job you enjoy and even have the luxury of job options be worth to you?
I'm not trying to peddle anything. I just want to see whether there is a sufficient need/demand for me to consider condensing this stuff into a book and putting it out there to help the community for a decent fee per copy.
Be aware, this assumes you ALREADY HAVE A VISA and know that my methods are NOT a replacement for legit qualifications, so university teaching positions and the like are out of the question. This is just to get your foot into the door to start getting experience and a little extra cash, about 150-200 RMB an hour.
11 years 32 weeks ago in Business & Jobs - China
How is this particular instance racist? It just sounds like "sour grapes" to me. You obviously don't qualify, as you have admitted to having no experience, no certificate, or degree. What you might consider a "natural accent" may not be so natural after all. I'm not knocking you, just saying. This particular example is not racist on the part of the Chinese employers, just business. It's their policy, so they can do whatever they want to, setting whatever parameters they so desire.
Most people who go through the long process of employment in China do plenty of research before they get here. That is one reason why they are successfully employed. They know what to do and what not to do. My suggestion would be to get some experience locally, and then, move on to get your TEFL/TESOL certificate. Play by the rules, and it may help to pave the way for a fruitful employment in China.
Btw, the PDF would be worth nothing to me, personally. I've found over the years that such reports are equivalent to hearsay. Direct experience is better received.
All the best in your future endeavors. 
mArtiAn:
I think 'racist' is actually a pretty fair description. 4 interviews out of 400 e-mails? I got the first job I ever applied for and that was after telling the boss I was poorly educated, partially dyslexic, and that I thought he'd be irresponsible to hire me. As soon as I said I was from London, he said "When can you start?" I think 'racism' is exactly what he's talking about; that's not to say it's racism in the sense of a hate crime, but the guy seems very literate, and certainly has a decent enough English level to teach the language. I mean, what the hell is a hitrate? As for writing a book about how black people can get teaching work in China, that sounds like more trouble than it's worth. Also sounds like less than he could fill a book with (Yeh, I know, I should be saying this to him, right?); KEN, I WAS SAYING, I DON'T THINK THERE'S ENOUGH TO FILL A BOOK ON THIS SUBJECT! (Do you think he heard me?) AN INTERESTING PAMPHLET MAYBE BUT NOT A BOOK! (Yeh, I don't think he heard me). KEN! OVER HERE, KEN!
Ken55:
So, how is this particular instance racist? I tested this. Let the numbers speak for themselves:
Same CV. Picture of my black self in real life? 4 out of 400. That is 1%
Same CV. Picture of some white guy off Google? 39 out of 50. That is 78%
And there's a 3-tiered Catch 22: I can't afford TEFL/TESOL without income from a job. I can't get a job without experience. I can't wait the 3 years until I finish my degree to have one to get a job.
Like I said, I'm simply offering A WAY FOR PEOPLE TO GET THEIR FOOT IN THE DOOR. This is getting called for an interview and presenting yourself well enough to have a decent shot, period. Whether you keep the position or not depends entirely on how fast a learner you are. How the hell do you get direct experience when no recruiter won't even give you the time of day?
Ken55:
Also, I used the word book very loosely here. More like a 10-20 page document at best, but yeah.
Schools can only get you a visa if you have a degree. There are ways around it, but some schools won't even bother even if you are white.
Yes, it is racist, but not directly from the employer. They are just trying to get the product that their customers want. The customers prefer white. I don't like it, but it is the way it is.
Posted as an answer so that everyone can read this:
So, "how is this particular instance racist?" you ask, Giad? I tested this. Let the numbers speak for themselves:
Same CV. Picture of my black self in real life? 4 out of 400. That is 1%
Same CV. Picture of some white guy off Google? 39 out of 50. That is 78%
And there's a 3-tiered Catch 22:
I can't afford TEFL/TESOL without income from a job.
I can't get a job without experience.
I can't wait the 3 years until I finish my degree to get a job to half support myself AS I STUDY MY DEGREE.
Like I said, I'm simply offering A WAY FOR PEOPLE TO GET THEIR FOOT IN THE DOOR. This is getting called for an interview and presenting yourself well enough to have a decent shot, period. Whether you keep the position or not depends entirely on how fast a learner you are. How the hell do you get direct experience when no recruiter won't even give you the time of day?
giadrosich:
No. That simply means you are unqualified. There are plenty of non-white people who are employed teaching English in China.
An unqualified teenager? No degree? No CELTA? No experience? I wouldn't give you a job; no matter if you were black, white, yellow, pink or orange.
MissA:
Definitely not aubergine. I'm hideously prejudiced against aubergine people.
mArtiAn:
RACIST! Orrrr......VEGETABLIST! C'mon Missa, didn't you ever see 'The Colour Purple'? Aubergine's have rights too! When will people see this!
Yeah, that PDF won't really be useful unless it lists the places that hire unqualified English-speaking black/brown people without all the bs.
Anyone who looks hard enough can find those jobs. I personally detest teaching English because of the skepticism that arises because of the color of my skin so I usually tutor math/physics/electronics in English and the like.
Chinese employers aren't exactly racist for not hiring black people. Employers recruit based on a demand/supply model. Chinese parents prefer white people to tutor their kids in English. So Employers will hire white people. Simple as that. When supply of white tutors is scarce, parents have no choice but to settle for black/brown people and that's when you manage to get a job.
This is not a secret that I'd pay for.
But you're welcome to try.
OP wrote: "I'm not trying to peddle anything.".
"I want to sell this thing for as much cash as possible."
There, I fixed that for you.
Ugh, somebody kindly point me to the "Delete question" button. Asking proved to be SUCH a retarded idea. -_-
mArtiAn:
No, it weren't a retarded idea, mate. Don't really see it as a viable business venture but you gotta dream, right? Good luck to you, sir.
Am in a dileema here......i know chinese are racist against all foreigners for the sake of culture difference but when it comes to employment most of them are racist against all races but whit people ofr the sake of the fair difference of appearance and for marketing........so in all cases chinese are racist in a way or another......solve one and the other will bit e back on you
