Hi All and Happy New Year!
I do not want to be too specific at the moment, but ANY feedback about schools in China and Ukraine is appreciated. Any info regarding weather, work load, administration, salary range vs cost of living, academic rigor, and overall environment is appreciated. Thanks in advance.
What do you think about Shekou & Kiev?
What do you think about Shekou & Kiev?
Last edited by MMMC on Tue Jan 10, 2012 9:21 am, edited 1 time in total.
Hi... I'm not in Kiev, but I am at a QSI school at a neighboring country to the Ukraine. The weather is long winters- they start in October and go for a long time... though this year has been mild... only the occasionally 20s so far, it's been 30s for two months though. Other than that Eastern Europe is pretty easy to save... though the exchange rate in Ukraine is 1.00 USD for 8 UAH right now. I can't comment on the prices there. The school there is fairly large and is split into different sections for elementary and high school. A few of our students transfered from there and they were really happy with the school and the extra curricular. Kiev is a capital city and everything that it entails... there are a few blogs of QSI teachers in Kiev if you do some google searching. Travel is pretty easy in and out via train or plane. I'm pretty happy here in Eastern Europe- I like it, winter and all... but it's not for everyone.
I've heard mixed things about Shekou- they run from horrid reviews to great- check the paid section, there are plenty on there.
I've heard mixed things about Shekou- they run from horrid reviews to great- check the paid section, there are plenty on there.
Thanks Koda.
I've read reviews on the paid side and it seems as though the complaints are against a former director. Have you heard anything about the overall school environment and the cost of living? From what I've put together, the China school is run similar to a U.S school but I wonder if it's a high stress environment?
Otherwise, the organization seems pretty honest/fair.
Where's PsyGuy when I need him? :(
I've read reviews on the paid side and it seems as though the complaints are against a former director. Have you heard anything about the overall school environment and the cost of living? From what I've put together, the China school is run similar to a U.S school but I wonder if it's a high stress environment?
Otherwise, the organization seems pretty honest/fair.
Where's PsyGuy when I need him? :(
Last edited by MMMC on Tue Jan 10, 2012 9:25 am, edited 2 times in total.
Hey... uhm, I haven't heard too much about Shekou- one of our teachers transfered from there. She enjoyed her 2 years, she said it was very cheap... but they went to Hong Kong regularly for respite from the China wall. They also had some issues with visas and things like that, but that was the country and not the school, the school got everything figured out for them. The parents are very demanding and it's a much larger school than the one I am at. There is a very large expat community there which also makes things enjoyable. Overall the teacher just wanted to change schools because she wanted to see other places, not because she disliked where she was. She was able to save plenty and live comfortably, but it was also made easier by the fact that you couldn't really do online shopping :-P.
That's great news! The blogs I've read seem positive as well. We may end up there so I want to cover all bases before we move across the world. I like the fact that the organization is straightforward. No school is perfect but I think this school may work for us. Is transferring as easy as it seems? Ultimately, we'd like to settle somewhere with warmer weather. Thanks again for your help. Any one else is welcome to share.
Last edited by MMMC on Tue Jan 10, 2012 9:25 am, edited 1 time in total.
[quote="MMMC"]That's great news! The blogs I've read seem positive as well. We may end up there so I want to cover all bases before I move my kids. I like the fact that the organization is straightforward. No school is perfect but I think this school may work for us. Is transferring as easy as it seems? Ultimately, we'd like to settle somewhere with warmer weather. Thanks again for your help. Any one else is welcome to share.[/quote]
Transferring is pretty easy. Mostly it depends on your certification area and what is available...they send a survey out each year if you want to transfer and where would you like to go. There are some places that are hard to get into b/c people never leave, but for the most part you can transfer easily. Transfers are usually figured out in December/early January. Many of my friends are transferring to different schools next year and they are all happy with the moves, though I will miss them!
Transferring is pretty easy. Mostly it depends on your certification area and what is available...they send a survey out each year if you want to transfer and where would you like to go. There are some places that are hard to get into b/c people never leave, but for the most part you can transfer easily. Transfers are usually figured out in December/early January. Many of my friends are transferring to different schools next year and they are all happy with the moves, though I will miss them!
Shekou (Shenzhen)
Posted this on the wrong thread previously:
You can get Shenzhen information here:
www.shenzhenstuff.com
www.shenzhenparty.com
Cheers!
You can get Shenzhen information here:
www.shenzhenstuff.com
www.shenzhenparty.com
Cheers!
Hello
I was in Australia, sorry not use to the heat again. I really dont know a whole lot about Kiev (except I visited once), and liked the city. It does have a bit of a "seedy" . place atmosphere (which is why we went, the ice cream is AMAZING). I really only have peripheral experience and knowledge about eastern europe, and it sounds like some other members who are more qualified have already replied to your questions.
I really have a problem with QSI. They have been in the game a while long enough to work out the kinks and problems, and despite that they keep having issues pop up consistently. Everyone Ive ever met with and worked with who came from QSI didnt have good things to say about it. For instance one of the things they upsell a lot is the "transferring" aspect of working for them, but almost all their schools with the exception of Italy are located in eastern europe or parts of asia that its not hard to get a job in. Two of their strengths though is 1) their willingness to take rather large families that would be expensive or prohibitive for many other schools to handle. 2) They are an easy in to eastern europe (which only has about 14 tier 1 schools internationally).
I really have a problem with QSI. They have been in the game a while long enough to work out the kinks and problems, and despite that they keep having issues pop up consistently. Everyone Ive ever met with and worked with who came from QSI didnt have good things to say about it. For instance one of the things they upsell a lot is the "transferring" aspect of working for them, but almost all their schools with the exception of Italy are located in eastern europe or parts of asia that its not hard to get a job in. Two of their strengths though is 1) their willingness to take rather large families that would be expensive or prohibitive for many other schools to handle. 2) They are an easy in to eastern europe (which only has about 14 tier 1 schools internationally).
I have worked for 2 QSI schools, neither of which is in Kiev or Shekou. However, I have worked in a QSI school that was in a former Soviet Socialist Republic and one that is in China. I also happen to know quite a few people that either taught at or currently teach at both of these schools. I’ll do my best to give you a quick summary of both.
Kiev
Pros: From what I hear, this school has some pretty decent students. Most of the international kids are embassy kids and other pretty high level corporate executive kids. The international kids are really international in that if they weren’t in Kiev they would be somewhere else international. Pretty high level of English. Nice housing and even single-family homes for some families. Easy to get a car and get around. Locals are nice if you can crack their shell. Their Director is leaving to come to Shekou, which could be a good thing or a bad thing.
Cons: Heavily Russified. Former SSRs are not terribly friendly places. A close friend described the locals, both Russians and Ukrainians, as hyper-aggressive. It is cold. Pretty isolated and not that cheap to get out of and not much to see in the Ukraine. Cost of buying most things will be high but you'll save because there isn't much to buy.
Shekou
Pros: Warm. Close to Hong Kong. Easy travel opportunities all around. Great medical care right over the border in HK. Tons of western restaurants if you like that (Mexican, steakhouses, Starbucks, etc…). I’ve heard nothing but positives about the leadership from my friends. Chinese people are so friendly and nice. Local food is amazing. All my friends intend to stay for a long time.
Cons: The school is huge. Students are mostly Taiwanese and Korean with other groups thrown in. English level is not very high but they are working on setting up better ESL programs. Most of the kids don’t seem very international because if they weren’t here they would be back in their country of origin. Chinese is spoken constantly at school because nearly everyone speaks it. I’ve been in a few of the apartments for singles and couples without kids and they were tiny (maybe 600 sq. ft.) and not very nice. I’ve heard families get nicer places but haven’t seen them. They are looking for a new site to combine all their campuses, which could be nice but could also be a complete disaster depending on where they find the space and where your apartment is. Shekou is an expat bubble. You can walk for blocks without hearing anyone speak Chinese. It is quite expensive mostly because there is so much to buy there.
My choice: Shekou but that could be because I couldn’t stand the former SSR that I lived in for two years.
Any more questions?
Kiev
Pros: From what I hear, this school has some pretty decent students. Most of the international kids are embassy kids and other pretty high level corporate executive kids. The international kids are really international in that if they weren’t in Kiev they would be somewhere else international. Pretty high level of English. Nice housing and even single-family homes for some families. Easy to get a car and get around. Locals are nice if you can crack their shell. Their Director is leaving to come to Shekou, which could be a good thing or a bad thing.
Cons: Heavily Russified. Former SSRs are not terribly friendly places. A close friend described the locals, both Russians and Ukrainians, as hyper-aggressive. It is cold. Pretty isolated and not that cheap to get out of and not much to see in the Ukraine. Cost of buying most things will be high but you'll save because there isn't much to buy.
Shekou
Pros: Warm. Close to Hong Kong. Easy travel opportunities all around. Great medical care right over the border in HK. Tons of western restaurants if you like that (Mexican, steakhouses, Starbucks, etc…). I’ve heard nothing but positives about the leadership from my friends. Chinese people are so friendly and nice. Local food is amazing. All my friends intend to stay for a long time.
Cons: The school is huge. Students are mostly Taiwanese and Korean with other groups thrown in. English level is not very high but they are working on setting up better ESL programs. Most of the kids don’t seem very international because if they weren’t here they would be back in their country of origin. Chinese is spoken constantly at school because nearly everyone speaks it. I’ve been in a few of the apartments for singles and couples without kids and they were tiny (maybe 600 sq. ft.) and not very nice. I’ve heard families get nicer places but haven’t seen them. They are looking for a new site to combine all their campuses, which could be nice but could also be a complete disaster depending on where they find the space and where your apartment is. Shekou is an expat bubble. You can walk for blocks without hearing anyone speak Chinese. It is quite expensive mostly because there is so much to buy there.
My choice: Shekou but that could be because I couldn’t stand the former SSR that I lived in for two years.
Any more questions?