Studying and Hustling in Chengdu

[jack]

hi everyone!

love this site.

i’m going to learn mandarin at SWUFE next year, looking to stay there for 1-2 years and i was wondering if i could get a job there? money don’t grow on trees after all… for the first 6 months i’ll be focusing on school. i’m currently living in nyc. i’m thai (big fan of spicy food) and english is my second language so teaching english is out of the question (or can i?) and i’m a graphic designer. i’ve been tending bar for almost 3 years (this job is my main income) and also a dj. do you think i can get a bartending job or any other job? i dont know much mandarin either. any suggestions for a job?

cheers

[Charlie]

Sawatdee man,

You can probably find a job here without too much issue, although speaking English and Chinese will really help you a lot. Get your Mandarin down and that will open a lot of doors. Teaching English is probably a good option depending on the level of your English. There are even foreign bartenders in some places like clubs and bars around Chengdu, not to mention design jobs here and there (my roommate works in the design industry in China and I used to).

[jack]

Sawaddee Charlie,

It’s good to know that I still have some hope because I’ve got all the negative answers from the other website warning that student can’t work in the entertainment venue neither teaching English with my yellow skin. I’ll get less amount of money if I’m tending bar than white or black. My English is alright I have a normal American accent. I think can teach an English conversation. I mean I’ll def sink mandarin into my brain before I try to find a job.

You mentioned that you used to work in the design industry. Did it pay well or just enough to get by?

Thanks man!

[Eli]

Jack,

Your written English looks like it is pretty decent. If your accent is good, you can probably get a job teaching English without too much trouble. I know a Korean American girl who teaches English, despite her Asian appearance. Probably don’t want to advertise that English is your second language when you go in for that interview though. It might not even come up… many of the American teachers that I know here have pretty mangled English themselves.

[jack]

Hi Eli,

Thanks! i’ll follow your advice.

[Author]

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