Living in Shenzhen, China can be described as one thing: convenient. I am amazed at the fact that I can have almost anything in the world delivered straight to my door. I joke that it’s an introverts paradise, everything is done by ordering from your phone, you could actually go your whole time without talking to anyone outside of work.

I however am an extrovert, and I have also found great pleasure in living here. TFT has an incredibly welcoming group in Shenzhen. I was placed in a wonderful school where I teach only grade 3, I lucked out in terms of jobs! Classes are big, around 50 students each, but you should have an assistant teacher with you or be able to request one with your school to help with classroom management.

I highly suggest the program in China, it has the best pay out of any other Asian country and the most travel flexibility. I have 5 weeks off for Chinese New Year in January/February. Living in a major city such as Shenzhen, Guangzhou, Beijing, Shanghai, etc. you will find lots of expats and foreigners. There is also always something to do and so much to explore. If you are like me and always want to be doing things and trying good food and buying things online, you might also have a hard time saving money.

The cost of living is cheap compared to Western countries, and you will receive a housing allowance every month that will cover most or all of your living expenses depending on how luxurious of a life you want to live.

Living here is the safest I’ve ever felt, especially as a woman. If you plan on coming, I would try to learn some Chinese! One of my greatest struggles here is communication. I wish I would’ve studied the language before arriving. PS, make sure you come with a lot of money, because it can get extremely expensive during your first couple of months.

Overall, I would recommend this program for people that are looking to be immersed in a culture living abroad with lots of travel time to explore China or surrounding countries. If you’re interested to be a career teacher I would recommend it as well, although I came here thinking I might be a career teacher and quickly changed my mind, haha.

I have a degree in Linguistics, and so teaching language felt natural to me both in ability, as well as a natural pursuit of my field of study. Teaching in China has felt so much more rewarding than any job I've had before, and China truly does feel like "the place to be" right now. Chengdu is a brilliant city and the staff at my school are incredibly supportive, even if I feel overly left to my own devices at time.

The whole process from the UK to China was seamless, The Fewer Things (TFT) handle functionally the entire job search for you, and you just need to provide the requisite materials i.e. a China-specific CV (which they provide a template for), an introduction video (they also provide instruction for this), and a TEFL Cert (which comes as part of the agency cost. On my first day the staff from my school picked me up as soon as I arrived at the airport, and we went for lunch on the first day to (naturally, in Sichuan) hot pot. The staff at the school have been absolutely lovely ever since I arrived, making sure I'm engaged with staff activities and helping me with anything regarding the students, and you really get the impression you're part of a greater whole, especially with the language exchange of assisting the Chinese English teachers, and improving my Chinese with them as well.

Chengdu is a massive city, and so from a numbers perspective it can seem daunting and isolating at first, but a new support network is always readily available: WeChat (China's all-purpose WhatsApp) has great features for finding foreigner-specific groups and people to help you find whatever your niche is in Chengdu. You'll even be able to celebrate Western holidays here, with a huge contingent out for Halloween, and now in early December there're Christmas trees and festive decorations springing up in shopping malls and public places, even where I live, which is a more remote district.

This experience is really what you make of it, and I can't recommend it more.

I taught in Shenzhen, China for a year through TFT, and they were amazing, Jamie was really helpful and the team took care of everything including the Visa, and I'd have really struggled to sort everything out myself. They also set me up with a their partner in china who are also really professional and look after first time travellers well. If it wasn't for them and TFT working together the process would have been extremely stressful, its honestly more difficult than you'd imagine to communicate with, and get assurances from chinese recruitment agents, so having TFT and thier partners in China in my corner was essential

TFT have been amazing to work with over the years and they haven't disappointed me yet with services to China, Vietnam and Thailand. Always easy to communicate with and happy to help.

They've helped with every step of the way from getting my license, the legalization of my documents, finding work and an apartment and always being ready to help when I had a question to ask.

It's nice to know that I can always travel to another country when I'm in the mood for another adventure and I'm looking forward to continue working with them.

Hi, I am Felicity and I participated in The Fewer Things China Program in 2023. I finished up my contract in the fall of this year and have now returned back to the States. The program is well put together and offered a ton of support both before and after we arrived in China! I particularly appreciated the group chat on WeChat with all the other participants during the preparation process, we all chatted for months and managed to really get to know each other before heading out. The school I worked in was a public school and I taught the elementary classes. It was a little hectic to begin with even after all the training we got, I was quite nervous during the first week or two but it soon balanced out once I got into the swing of it and the local Chinese teachers in my department were super helpful when I needed any assistance with anything. I loved my time in China and it has left me wanting more, I plan to take some time back at home and will then join another program with TFT later in 2025!

I would thoroughly recommend the China programme at TFT to start your teaching journey in China. I had no experience in teaching or any idea on how to get a job in China. The Fewer Things supported me in achieving my TEFL certificate and guided me through all the admin to move to China smoothly. They have great connections with reliable agencies in China and help you land a secure job. Although the salary is below average, it is still enough to live and spend freely and the security and reliability of the job is definitely a positive. I know many other teachers who found work in China by themselves and had bad experiences with dodgy employers and jobs that were not secure, which is not the case of TFT partners. Jaemi, the director of TFT, is also only a message away for any advice which is reassuring. Overall, I’ve made wonderful memories and friends in China and would recommend making the move for a new adventure!

I’ve started my ESL journey in Thailand late 2021, moved over to Vietnam at the start of 2023 and I’m now currently on my third programme in China which I’ve started in August 2024 all with The Fewer Things.

From day one I felt I was in right hands of guidance, support and more importantly trust as I live with autism, I struggled for years to get a full time job. My life has never been the same since and I am genuinely so grateful for the opportunities and support they offer for an exciting adventure.

Couldn't have been better how easy they have made my journey, so seamless and with endless support. I have had the best experience because of the network they create, the tools, help and guidance has been absolutely brilliant. I recommend TFT to anyone aspiring to teach abroad. Not only do they provide support along the way with any questions you have 24/7， they create a social networking with other people doing the same journey and makes you feel very connected and can be very insightful to talk to like minded people about to experience the same thing.