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English first (EF)

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wiley316

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English first (EF)
« on: June 19, 2013, 11:49:28 AM »
Anyone heard of EF franchise? My Inbox came with an E-mail from EF this week and I've so far heard bad things about their management running, thought + they apparently pay on time.
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Day Dreamer

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Re: English first (EF)
« Reply #1 on: June 19, 2013, 01:03:51 PM »
There's no one specific answer. Some are great, others are horrendous. As a franchise, it will depend on which particular one you mean. Back in Changchun, we had 2, one great, one sucked.

You're going to hear lots of negative, here's a positive:

One of the things that will happen is that you'll have access to lots of modern equipment and books. You will also become a better teacher quickly which is good if you want to do more than a year of this. They have plenty of social events coupled with many long working hours means little down time. Usually the classes are not too big compared to other private schools.

Your "happiness level" will depend on what you want too. If you want basic pay and minimal hours, then bad choice. If you plan to develop and are willing to sacrifice personal time, go for it
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psd4fan

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Re: English first (EF)
« Reply #2 on: June 19, 2013, 10:12:37 PM »
Wayne the guy in charge of EF Daqing is a pretty good guy. I don't work for him but have had positive dealings with him. The teacher I know that are there are generally happy.
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bobrage

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Re: English first (EF)
« Reply #3 on: June 19, 2013, 10:28:30 PM »
The key question is: do they have on-call plumbers in case your water heater breaks?
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Fozzwaldus

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Re: English first (EF)
« Reply #4 on: June 19, 2013, 11:23:47 PM »
I had a good enough experience in EF Xi'an for a year, and its many branches were all reputedly well-run. Staff mostly happy.

The problems will be bog-standard language mill problems. They will work you hard and you will have admin/office hours.

They also pay well and give good apartments. There is a clear structure to the courses too, whether you like this or not.

Overall a good gig for new-ish teachers/new-ish teachers in China. Good place to get your feet with plenty of support.
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两只老外， 两只老外，跑得快，跑得快，
一个是老酒鬼，一个是老色鬼，真奇怪， 真奇怪
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BrandeX

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Re: English first (EF)
« Reply #5 on: June 20, 2013, 02:11:31 AM »
Quote from: wiley316 on June 19, 2013, 11:49:28 AM
Anyone heard of EF franchise? My Inbox came with an E-mail from EF this week and I've so far heard bad things about their management running, thought + they apparently pay on time.
No, and we have never heard of McDonalds either. Haha. What I mean by that is they are one of the most famous franchises for English mills in China. Anyone's experience with EF would generally apply to that particular center only, and likely only within a range of a few years as management changes often, similar to many fast food joints.
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Guangzhou Writer

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Re: English first (EF)
« Reply #6 on: June 20, 2013, 02:14:13 AM »
I think Day Dreamer's post sums up the better branches pretty well. You should ask to talk to as many current teachers (the more China varied experience the better) there as possible to get some kind of accurate idea.
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Fozzwaldus

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Re: English first (EF)
« Reply #7 on: June 20, 2013, 02:26:18 AM »
One tip = EF have a nation-wide recruiter that can place you anywhere. See instead if you can contact branches yourself, especially if you think you have found a good branch.

See, these branches are franchises and they resent having to pay the national recruiter. Also, you can get a better sense of the individual branch if you are negotiating directly.

Not sure how feasible this is, but I managed it (NEARLY 10 YEARS AGO OH FUCK WHERE HAS MY YOUTH GONE???? aoaoaoaoao aoaoaoaoao aoaoaoaoao)
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两只老外， 两只老外，跑得快，跑得快，
一个是老酒鬼，一个是老色鬼，真奇怪， 真奇怪
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The Local Dialect

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Re: English first (EF)
« Reply #8 on: June 20, 2013, 02:57:55 AM »
I also worked at an EF close to 10 years ago. My branch is now defunct but it was a cool job at the time with a really awesome DOS. The DOS makes a huge difference at EF. Some are great, some suck.

I will second the claim that (if you get a good one) they'll teach you how to teach. EF provides a lot of teaching support and feedback -- they make you observe other teachers before they put you in the classroom on your own and you're supposed to periodically participate in peer evaluations with your colleagues. They also will have your DOS observe your classes and give you feedback. The curriculum is very set, you get books to follow and the kids are split pretty accurately into levels by age and ability. EF can be a good first gig I think, provided you get a good center, although most teachers I know eventually move onto other things.
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Monkey King

Re: English first (EF)
« Reply #9 on: June 20, 2013, 03:34:59 AM »
OP, it's great that you are doing your research and everything, but are you ever gonna actually take the plunge and move to China?  So far you have asked us about:

  • future leaders consultants
  • DD Dragon
  • Disney English
  • Metan english
  • Shane
  • English First (EF)

You never really ask many specific questions, or give us much info', or provide any follow up, which is fair enough, but sooner or later you are just going to have to choose a school...
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bobrage

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Re: English first (EF)
« Reply #10 on: June 20, 2013, 03:46:27 AM »
Quote from: MK on June 20, 2013, 03:34:59 AM
...choose a school...

Maybe tell us a bit more about yourself too so we can help more - you've picked the bigger names which suggests that you are worried about security of employment and conditions of work.  Is this so?  What's your interest and motivation in coming to China?
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BrandeX

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Re: English first (EF)
« Reply #11 on: June 20, 2013, 02:47:30 PM »
Eh, it's been 6 months since he registered. Maybe he's an INTP like myself. I prepared for over a year before coming to China.
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Day Dreamer

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Re: English first (EF)
« Reply #12 on: June 20, 2013, 08:18:26 PM »
Quote from: BrandeX on June 20, 2013, 02:47:30 PM
Eh, it's been 6 months since he registered. Maybe he's an INTP like myself. I prepared for over a year before coming to China.

Excuse my ignorance, but what's an INTP?
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Stil

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Re: English first (EF)
« Reply #13 on: June 20, 2013, 10:22:02 PM »
Quote from: Day Dreamer on June 20, 2013, 08:18:26 PM

Excuse my ignorance, but what's an INTP?


It a personality type from the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator
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BrandeX

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Re: English first (EF)
« Reply #14 on: June 21, 2013, 12:31:20 AM »
Yes. More specifically:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/INTP
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