As the insatiable demand for English teachers grew in the last decade, so too has the number of people looking to make a quick buck by pairing schools and foreign teachers together. While using an agent can on occasion be a pain free experience that helps remove a lot of the hassle from the scary "relocation to a new job and/or country" process, many people (including myself) have undergone semi-traumatic experiences that they would not wish on anyone. If you decide to deal with a recruiter or an agent to find a teaching position in China, there are many things to watch out for, and prudent steps to follow to ensure that they are not taking (complete) advantage of you.

A cautionary tale

When I arrived in China in November 2009, I came with a company based in the UK that worked in tandem with a Chinese agent. The whole experience was a two-month nightmare wherein nothing that was promised came to fruition. The company recruited over 50 people to teach in China and we were all lied to about our salary, housing, benefits and school type—our temporary resident permits were never even applied for!

Worse yet, there were regular threats of violence that culminated with the agent nearly coming at me with a broken bottle when I told him I was leaving the company and had secured a position on my own. It goes without saying this is not a position you want to be in. Luckily, such extremes are rare, but you should remember that you're merely a commodity in a financial transaction, so lies and deception are incredibly commonplace when dealing with agents.

Who should consider using an agent?

Simply put, only those who—for whatever reason—are having tremendous difficulty finding work by themselves should even consider using an agent. As anyone who has ever worked in China knows, discrimination based on color of skin and/or age is commonplace, so this usually means those who are "non-white" or those who are over 60.

The majority of job advertisements request a photograph to be sent with a CV and any other supporting documents and this is to simply ensure that the teacher "looks the part". This is particularly prevalent at private language institutions as it is a long held belief that white people are best for business. For non-white people wanting to teach in China, using an agent can potentially help you get "a foot in the door" as many have long-standing relationships with school owners.

Of course, anybody can use an agent, so long as they have it on very good authority from someone that they completely trust and who, through their personal experience, can verify that the agent is trustworthy.

Things to ensure when using an agent

First and foremost, you'll need to ensure that the contract is with the school itself and not with the agent. If your contract is with the agent then you are potentially entering a world of trouble. A very common scenario is that the teacher is very happy with the school but not with the agent, while the agent acts as an unnecessary middleman in the teacher-agent-school relationship. The agent may then attempt to have you work at different places each week or month to maximize their own returns, i.e. making you work at the place that will pay them the most commission. Related to this point, be sure that it is the school itself that pays you your salary, not the agent. The agent should simply be a broker that helps you find a position, and once you are placed at the school their involvement should cease.

It is my firm belief that you should not pay the agent any money. A reputable agent will simply take a one-off payment from the school as a kind of "finder's fee" and should not ask you for money at any point.

Red flags

When using an agency, there are many things to look out for that should serve as a big red flag that your agent is not all that reputable.

If you are applying for an English teaching job from outside China and an agent advises you to enter the country on an L or F visa which will be converted to a work visa once you arrive, I seriously advise looking for a different offer. This was exactly the situation I found myself in after I arrived and I regretted it for a long time afterwards. Although there are indeed some provinces that enable you to convert a business or tourist visa into a working visa, you have no real guarantee that your working visa will ever arrive, or you may be faced in the precarious position of having to do a "visa run" back to your home country at your own considerable expense. The two main reasons schools offer this kind of L/F to work visa conversion is that they are either concealing the fact that they are not licensed by SAFEA to hire foreign teachers or they want to delay signing the contract until they've seen you teach. Flying to China for a job interview is surely something that does not appeal to many.

Any agency that refers to itself as "official" or "government approved" is potentially unethical as nothing of the sort exists. Although a license exists for agencies to recruit foreigners, none can claim to be approved by the government. If an agency claims such credentials you can be sure it is a false claim.

Another highly unscrupulous tactic used by agents is to advertise positions that don't really exist in order to collect potential employees' contact information. The positions advertised will boast excellent salaries and benefits, but when enquiring about them an applicant will be told they are no longer available and will then be told about positions that are considerably less attractive. If you deal with an agent whose advertised positions regularly "disappear" then this is likely the reason.

Agents advertising on TEFL websites

China EFL websites are the main portal through which teachers (especially those outside China) acquire their positions, so due diligence needs to be applied to any position found through a China EFL website. You must clarify every point and not just take everything at face value, as ambiguous wording will almost always work against you.
Many agents in the EFL business will deliberately try to mislead you through their advertisements into believing that they are in fact the hiring institution, not an agent representing one. They do this simply because they know that recruitment agents in the TEFL industry have a deservedly bad reputation.

A reputable agent will always be very clear and upfront about who they are and what they do. They will not attempt to masquerade as a school or an educational institution.

Another thing to remember is that just because an agent's advertisement appears on a TEFL website doesn't mean that the website is endorsing that agent or school. Advertisements are there to make money for the website owner and are not intended to act as a service for teachers.

What steps should I take?

If possible, always contact hiring institutions directly. Thoroughly qualify every point that is important regarding salary, visa provision, working hours, holidays, housing etc. Leave no stone unturned, and don't worry about being perceived as being difficult or demanding as you are investing considerable time in your new position. A little extra fact-finding can go a long way.