Peizheng College (Guangdong)

Note: This wall all pre-2020
I had a good time in PZ - most of that because the students are amazing people.

Pros: Good schedule, the program is well organized, the students are great, housing is nice (but as other says - somewhat falling apart, maybe this has changed now), free HK apartment, salary is comparatively good (especially in this cheap area), new subway means easy access to the airport, teachers shuttles and busses are convenient for getting in and out of Guangzhou, can make some good foreign friends and contacts in the compound. Mostly people only work a 4 day week, English directors who do a lot in the background to make life easier for teachers and soften the potential communication barrier, lots of English volunteer students who are WONDERFUL to chat to and also will help with anything you may need if asked (like if you need help registering something, using an app, going to the doctor, whatever), many social events going on on campus, easy access to sporting facilities, a mini town of restaurants and cafes right across from the campus (surprisingly a lot of options for this rural location), run by locals and ex-students.

Cons: Management (as in - the people above the program directors) can be frustrating to deal with at times - as what's best for education may not be best for business (this is really an ESL con though), standards are a little low so don’t expect to really push students too much, the compound can feel a bit claustrophobic as you are forced to live with all your colleagues and everyone sees each other coming and going, there are guards stationed at the entrance of the apartments and you need permission to have guests over (this is their way of enforcing the gov rule of registering guests at the local police station I believe, but I don't think any adult wont see this is a con, regardless of the justification for it), its a long trip into the city and back if you use public transport, classrooms have chalk and chalkboards (no proper desks, no aircon, no tech), the HK apartment is more like a shared dorm (shared space with 6 beds - don’t expect a private getaway unless you're lucky and no one else books at the same time), Guangzhou gets H-O-T.

Things people may want to know:

*What others have said about PZ making it impossible to transfer to another job is unfortunately true, and I hope they've finally fixed this. I tried to reason and talk with them for a long time and get them to understand that if they don’t cooperate with the next school my documents will expire and it could take months to get a new CBC, which would get in the way of doing a visa run (which itself shouldn’t be necessary if they cooperated) and would be costly. They knew all this (and have years of experience with many foreigners having the same problem) yet still let my documents expire and did not cooperate with my next university. You may not think its a big issue now as you start the job - but PZ has messed with many teachers this way and continues to do it semester after semester. If you want to get in and out and not continue in a different area of China after working here - or will leave the country and don’t mind starting the visa process over, then it’s not a major concern. If you might want to transfer later then....be careful and find out what the current situation is. When I was there, they made a poor LAST impression with teachers, yet things were quite good from beginning up until it came time to sort out the transfer process when leaving - if they make it easier for teachers these days, then I recommend the place no problem.

*At the beginning of the second semester each year there is/was an outbreak of norovirus - some people get sick and they put the college on lock down, which means no using any of the restaurants out front for about a month.

*There is/was a period in the contract where there is delayed pay for 2 or 3 months (and that ends with a double pay day)..some people were upset at the system leaving them without a pay day for that long (although you get all money owed to you in the end). Although, it's no secret that this is going to happen - it's not exactly hidden info. But be mindful of not blowing all your money before this comes.

And as much as I loved the students they are low in motivation and don’t respond well to being challenged (although there are always exceptions that make the job worthwhile - and those exceptions at PZ will blow your mind - there are some very cool kids here) - and the college isn’t (wasn't?) interested in really implementing needed changes and improving education or backing up teachers who want to do extra. Some teachers have had unruly classes that behave more like public school kids - I didn’t get much of this myself but I would say that classroom management skills are needed (i.e. on a related note: for the good of the students I hope people don't come over and just to have a holiday anyway - bring some teaching skills along!).

* I don't know the situation post covid in this college, but I have good memories of the place and after being away for almost 2 years, my feeling is that I would do another stint here if I wanted to go back to GZ for whatever reason - I guess that means its recommended. I just hope they've sorted out that visa transfer issue for exiting teachers!

Here is a fair and honest review of Peizheng (PZ) after one year. I do strongly recommend PZ overall. I came to get adult teaching experience in a university and that is exactly what I got. I don’t regret a thing and I am happy I came here. I have recommended this job to my close friends and will continue to recommend it to others such as a reader like yourself. That being said, you should know what your life will look like if you accept this job.

PROS:
It is by far the most relaxed, chill job I have ever had in my life. A short bike ride or a 15-ish minute walk to class. No traffic, little pollution.

Work time: Four days with classes, one week day off and weekends off. You plan your English Corner whenever you want to.

Vacation time: Basically two months in summer, two months in winter, as well as national Chinese holidays. University positions in China offer the best vacation time you can imagine. This is perfect if you want a base for traveling, want to do privates, have online schooling to do, or have any other activity to do which is time consuming.

Management: Your manager will be a foreign teacher who is more of an intermediary with PZ management and the rest of the foreign teachers. That being said, any situation, question or concern was handled in a professional and quick manner. You have very little to worry about. They aren’t breathing down your back like some other positions in the ESL industrial complex of china.

Classroom: Small class sizes. 16-21 students in your regular classes. ECs really vary day to day. 3-12 students was my average.

Curriculum: Books are given along with topics to stick to for the week, as well as basic exam guidelines. However, in practice we are pretty much left to our own devices as to what and how to teach under the umbrella of the topic for the week. We have a lot of freedom. I have been able to try so much material, build my teaching portfolio and even perfect lessons which I used before.

Life at Peizheng: After traveling China and living in a really rough part of China, PZ feels like an easy-going bubble in the middle of rural GZ. The local people here are used to handling foreign teachers, and all the students speak some English. It’s a very easy life in China. It’s definitely ‘China light’ until you visit the neighboring towns of Chini and Shiling- that’s where you will see raw China. Huada is the developed and quiet suburb of GZ which is perfect to hang out on a day off, or on the weekend. Huadu is like GZ without the crowds. GZ center is easily accessible and only becoming easier with the metro and the special buses for teachers. However that being said, while the center of GZ is great for a full/half day or weekend trip, don’t expect to be going there every night after work unless you don’t mind spending all your time on public transportation.

Housing: By far the best apartment I have been given in an ESL job. The foreign teachers live in a compound of villas. The apartments are only a few years old and are in great condition. They have spacious studios, regular apartments and even bigger apartments for couples.

Students: Most come from smaller cities in Guangdong. They are humble, working class and lower middle class mostly. 90% have never had a foreign teacher before PZ, so these aren’t the grown up spoiled brats from kiddy training centers. Many will be impressed, curious and interested simply in your existence as a foreigner in China. Classroom management can consist of a sleepy student, or one who likes to use their phone during class. The students may also sometimes be quiet because they simply don’t understand you.

CONS:

As with every job, there are cons.

Classrooms: We have access to use multi-media classrooms once a term or for our English Corners. However your everyday classroom will consist of fans and a chalkboard. No white board, no markers or any screen to show videos. No AC.

Life at Peizheng: PZ has a strong small town feeling. It is what it is, some love it and others don’t.

Housing: Guests must also be registered beforehand. You can’t bring anybody last minute and expect them to enter the compound.

Students: Being a student’s first foreign teacher can be an amazing experience. However, the bad part of this is that you’re teaching students who have studied reading, writing, and listening in English with Chinese teachers who often times had bad English themselves. Some classes have high speaking levels and some just have a really low speaking level. This isn’t all their fault. It is a bigger issue in the paper exam based education system. So, this is where we (the foreign teachers) come in. It’s a part of the job, so just try your best to have fun with them and get them talking.

No job is perfect. However, I do recommend this position. It’s honestly a really great experience in general. I am personally leaving because I just miss the excitement of living in the center of a big city.

I really enjoy teaching at Peizheng. I am just finishing up my 3rd year of teaching here.

The students are very friendly and because the class sizes are small (only about 20 students) it is easy to get to know them. This is also beneficial when it comes to grading. It is easier to be more objective in grading with less students to keep track of.

There is a lot of room to grow in teaching experience, gaining knowledge from other teachers. There is also a lot of freedom to try different activities separate from the book (although using the book some is mandated, and actually helpful).

Living on campus is convenient and beneficial for me. Use of the tennis courts, track and field, swimming pool, and basketball courts is easy because they are right there on campus where I live.

The apartments have some maintenance issues sometimes, but the office works with me to get things fixed as I need.

PZ is in a rural setting, which I quite enjoy. It’s much quieter than the city. It’s cheaper than in the city. And at the same time, the newest subway line is only 15 minutes away now so it is much easier to get to the city if need be. The college also provides a free bus every other weekend to take us in and out of the city.

Overall, I feel very free living and working at Peizheng. I think it is really a great place to be.

Having worked in Peizheng College for nearly 3 years, I feel I have some knowledge of what it is like for a working teacher here.
Speaking to other teachers in Peizheng, they mostly all agree that the college is a pleasant place to work in and that the students and pace of life are two big incentives. There are, of course, always a minority who don’t enjoy the experience, for a variety of reasons, and I have no intention here of denying them that right. However, surprisingly, quite a few teachers that do leave come back again, and often say, after experiencing other work environments, that Peizheng College was a far better experience than they had at the time realised.

The social life in Peizheng is, putting it simply, great, and with many opportunities – games, sports, events, restaurants, etc, to get involved in.
Of course it’s not all perfect, and if I said it was I’d be lying. That’s not what I’m trying to do.
For foreign teachers the English teaching here is aural based, and for that reason the classrooms were setup, some years ago, quite sparsely by the then foreign directors, purposefully, to encourage an environment that is geared towards aural teaching and practice. Many teachers love this form and find it easy to work with but some, perhaps instituted in the bed of grammar focused teaching, find it hard to stick to. The reason for this form is to encourage students to use what they had already learned in their pre-college school environment but which they had not had the opportunity to practice in real time. This is a serious issue in China and student-confidence in their English speaking abilities are low, even though they are well learned in most other aspects of English, especially writing. So, putting it simply, China has not been good at giving its school students the opportunity to practice any aural skills in class – the students have the ability but have not had the opportunity. Peizheng College, in this respect, is a forerunner and has taken the problem seriously by doing something about it. It has made the College a popular choice amongst potential students for that reason, though there are other factors too, and the growth rate has been phenomenal.
The students mostly love it, and find these types of classes exciting and beneficial.

One of the main issues that some teachers have had in Peizheng College has been to do with the strong application of control. Most teachers accept this, in varying forms, but some, I think, find it too difficult to adjust to and can become embittered by it (this is not intended to belittle and I acknowledge that in some cases I may be a mile wide of the mark by saying this). There are, however, teachers here who have been in Peizheng for a very long time – up to 16 years. Some have told me that the control issues that have taken place in the past, and that have upset some, are more bark than bite, and if not taken to heart almost always pass over. To be honest, this is how China is and, I suspect, is not just an issue to be found in Peizheng College by the foreign teaching fraternity but is something that happens all over China.

Though this is a sparse account of Peizheng College, I think it is an honest one. There is no doubting that the staff here do have the best interests of the foreign teachers at heart, and have provided ample evidence of that on many occasions, but like a very large ship there are many departments and this causes complications that make it difficult to fulfil every good intention. Peizheng College is a very big place with now 18,000 students, an increase of six thousand since I first came to work here. It is then, growing rapidly and with such rapid growth it is impossible that there will not be some growing strains. Yet despite this, I would still say that Peizheng College is a peaceable and pleasant place to work in, with, as mentioned, lots of activities and opportunities for those who are willing to give it a try.
The key, I think to successfully living and working here, is to not lean too heavily on one’s own understanding of how things should work – China is different in every way and culture shock is a very real problem to deal with.
I hope this will serve as a useful and helpful account of what it is like to work in Peizheng College, and a help for anyone trying to decide whether to come here or not.

to summarise in one word: disrespectful
disrespect from the support team and staff
Try other places first.
I had a bad experience with Peizheng College in Guangdong Province over a period of time. I am posting my experiences here, as Peizheng College is a big recruiter of foreign teachers, and regularly advertises on this website.

The main problems I had concerned teaching hours, a deposit I was asked to pay for my apartment, and health problems at the campus which I was not told about.

Firstly, after I arrived there, the college wanted to change my contract and tried to increase my teaching hours (but for the same salary - no corresponding increase in salary!).

The college seemed to think that changing already agreed contracts wasn’t a problem.

Secondly, the college also tried to increase (by 100%!) the “deposit” I should pay for the apartment I would have lived in. The college staff pressed me to pay this much higher deposit immediately in cash, despite my employment contract saying my apartment deposit was due to be paid after I had received my first month’s pay.

Also, I encountered health problems at the campus which I was not informed about before travelling there. In the days before I arrived, the area around the college had an outbreak of the “norovirus”. Local health authorities investigated the outbreak and closed the campus for 1 week.

If I had known in advance about these problems, I would have reviewed my travel and working arrangements to reconsider when, or if, I would travel to this college. However, as the college had not informed me of any of this, I felt my health and wellbeing were put at significant risk.

Given these problems, I departed Peizheng College after working there a long time. And based on my experiences there, I do not recommend this college to any teacher seeking employment.

I do recommend working at Guangdong Peizheng College. The reasons are many and will be explained below.
First, I suggest that you read all of the reviews on this site and other ESL sites.
Then, I suggest that you consider what mainland China is and Chinese culture in the context of today's world.
In short, China is change.
In short, Peizheng is pricey. And it's treatment of Westerners is clinical.
First, it is pricey to come here.
The housing deposit is at an extremely high rate for the entire year. New teachers must pay for it up front.
Peizheng students are fine, for the most part. However most all of them are here because they do not like to study. And that there is someone who can afford the 30,000 RMB per year expense rate. And in China there is a national standardised exam whereby they must get a good score and in turn are presented with higher educational institution choices.
In case of Peizheng, those students did poorly on this exam. Notwithstanding the mainland China academic environment is a highly competitive place.
The price you pay for 35-55 other teachers here is high. It is a university so naturally most everyone already has some kind of "teaching experience."
that is, young persons and couples fresh off of the plane to sixty-five year-old men who ensure job security by entertaining the students well.
Most "teachers" here succeed in oral English by entertaining the students. This edutainment is what keeps the pistons firing in this school which was founded as recently as 1993.
The administration is excellent at one thing: that is, to cover theirselves. This form of liability seeps into every move of the office where it creates bureaucratic and quasi-bureaucratic policies all of the time. This keeps this employed meanwhile ignoring the needs of the foreign teachers. So expect a guarantee in pleading ignorance.
Who will sail the ship doesn't matter. The real goal is keeping the ship seeming like its going somewhere while no one is the captain. And the leader of such moves is related to the founder, in an illegitimate manner.
Many of the coworkers have borderline personality issues. Moreover they are unable to succeed in a regular job and lifestyle back home. Or they never matured past adolescence.
If you can play games, entertain, make noises and be a stand up comic, then this is the place for you. There is no lesson prep required except for a few teachers who have English majors which need stimulation beyond the norm. Oh yea, and the Dean may decide to change the textbook mid-ship.
The classrooms themselves are quite small, hot, and void of any "smart" capabilities such as a projector or even a listening device.
Keep in mind that the school is a cooperative with the local municipality in which there is an agreement to hire local workers and share in an incentive sharing plan.
The enrollment rate continues to increase. The third largest city in China is nearly 90 minutes away.
So, there is a massive persons density here like London. Don't expect a quaint and charming countryside.
The locals are as indifferent and ignorant to foreigners. They have seen the hordes in Guangdong for a century or more. Mainly all for trade reasons.
Overall don't come here if you want a true depiction of the welcoming nature of China, and true interest in English language learning.
A lot of people in the West need a job. And there are some who really need a job.
There are so many other opportunities out there that will make you feel rewarded, and to not have to be around such an unwelcoming environment.

I worked at Guangdong Peizheng College for between 2 and 5 years and had experience in a few different levels of management and teaching- my advice to you is to stay far, far away from this school and the people who live here. The Chinese management holds major animosity towards foreigners; lies, deceit, forgery, and corruption at every level are commonplace. The thing is, this school is FAMOUS for having the most foreign teachers in Guangdong Province. Kids come here to study English and learn from foreigners, so the school is forced to hire lots of foreigners and there's no way that they can ever do away with the huge FT population; necessary evil. But the Chinese administration doesn't like foreigners and treats them worse than the cleaning people. If you work at PZ, you will ALWAYS be under suspect and you will NEVER be treated respectfully. People come here and think that if they "stay under the radar" than all will be good and the management will eventually see their good behavior and treat them fairly. No. That's Western logic and it doesn't work here. At PZ, if somebody sleeps with a student or shits on the roof of some apartments (not kidding), even if the management CAN figure out who that person is, they won't do it. Instead, they will punish the entire foreign teacher population. Imagine living in a place where you have to get a permission slip before ANYBODY comes into your house from the outside; your Chinese girlfriend, your sister from the UK, your friend who lives in GZ; anyone. And the administration reserves the right to deny anybody the right to have a friend over and they won't give you a reason, they'll just say no. It's common for the foreign teacher's at PZ to refer to their housing complex as a "prison" which is exactly what it is.

In addition, the foreigner community at Peizheng is a bit weird and a bit cold, which I think is partly due to the influence of the Chinese management. Gossip here is impossible to escape. People have way too much free time and the internet speed is circa 2001, so there's not much to do but sit around and talk about who is sleeping with whom; which is actually quite relevant to your life because anything another foreign teacher does can be something that changes the rules which govern your life. Think twice. Also note that the only positive review on this site was written by someone who was recruiting for PZ at the time of writing; go figure.

We would not recommend working at Peizheng College. This post is based upon the job and work conditions. As far as teachers at life in China, the post by Puzzlebox is accurate.

Foreign professors used to live in an older, smaller units. The College moved us to a gated compound around 4 years ago.

The school was also operated by Hong Kong owners. Thus the turnover a few years ago has caused some large management changes.

Make no mistake it is in the countryside. As big as Huadu is expanding, it is still a distance from the large metro, Yonge street kinda place.

Also, because of this, the school seems to have given an ownership to the local population. So kind of like a land-grant institution. Management will always side with the local janitor, plumber, cleaner or construction worker. And back down should support to a foreign Professor be needed. Again: there are fifty teachers here in a private school.

Individually, a few instances here and there may not seem so bad, but if fifty teachers are here, over time the result should be a huge pattern, as noone can actually remember all the paths, but people don't want to seem dumb in a meeting, so they just sit there in ignorance. This is particularly tough on new hires.
This applies to the passport, visa, utility bills.