Count me as one who was suckered in by "William Luo" and his agency in Beijing. Frankly, I should have known better as my current job isn't my first in China. Granted, I am at a university and that, in and of itself, means things aren't so bad: salaries are paid on time, accommodations are decent, etc. etc. This post is, however, more about -how- recruiters work, not where you end up.

So, how does William Luo & Co. work? This is what I pieced together after I arrived at my new school and spoke in detail with the Foreign Affairs Office about the events leading up to my arrival.

First, Luo & Co. have NO relationship with all, or the vast majority of, the schools they advertise...they simply troll the Internet and comb other sources for possible leads. They cherry-pick the details of the job, i.e. choose the highest possible salary, which in the case of a university, might be reserved for PhD-holders or other highly specialized degree-holders who can offer more than the typical, qualified EFL teacher. The ads they post will all contain similar details of benefits, accommodations, etc., because they have no idea what the school can actually offer. Should you ask questions about the school, its location, etc., you can expect to receive lots of "our school" "very famous" "located in X city center" ...but it's all either slightly misleading or purely speculative as they really don't know. Please note: because of the way the operate, THERE MAY WELL BE -NO- CURRENT OPENINGS AT THE SCHOOLS LUO & CO. ARE ADVERTISING...THEY JUST USE THE INTERNET AND OTHER SOURCES AS LEADS.

After you contact Luo & Co., they will contact the school; if there is a position, then they try to place you. If no, then they might shop you around to other schools. If they find an opening, they will offer you "this much better position" at "a much better school" and, if agreed upon, a contract is sent out. The contract is, of course, worthless because Luo & Co. use their own, cookie-cutter contract. In my case, the university sent Mr. Luo a PDF file (so it couldn't be altered) of the contract for me to sign. What did Luo & Co. do? Tossed it aside and sent me their own. Why? In their own words to the Foreign Affairs Office after I arrived and the chaos ensued: "SO THE FOREIGN TEACHER COULD NOT CONTACT THE SCHOOL DIRECTLY AND TO PROTECT THE MONEY THEY EXPECTED TO RECEIVE FOR PLACING HIM." OK, fair enough, they are offering a service and can expect to be compensated, but the contract they send out will likely bear little in similarity with what you actually get. In my case, I made changes to the contract Luo & Co. sent in order to clarify the rather sloppy language and ensure that I would be paid X salary for X number of months, receive X amount of vacation and airfare bonus monies, be expected to perform X duties, etc. etc. Guess what? I was met with bemusement on arrival at the school and even laughter as they told me that the contract I had in my hand (downloaded and printed) was, in their words, "impossible."

Again, I am not saying I bear no responsibility. I should have done more homework, but that's really not the point. The details of why and how I ended up at my current job are also not so relevant. As I also said, the job isn't a nightmare, but I am receiving less money than I thought I would, fewer fringe benefits, in accommodations and perks not quite as advertised, in a location not exactly as touted. Please look back at Chris's posting, note the e-mail addresses, and be very careful with this recruiter. Be careful, in fact, with anyone using a disposable e-mail account (Yahoo, Hotmail, Sina, et al). Be careful when you begin to notice advertisements that all offer the same (or very, very similar) packages. Recruiting teachers is an ugly business and to those who are actually trying to do a honorable job, well, hats off. Unfortunately, there are far more people out there hustling, and to those folks, a big thumbs down.