To enroll in the CLI’s Teach in China program, simply complete our online application.
Upon submission, you will receive an e-mail from the CLI admissions department explaining your next steps.
After years of living, studying, working, and traveling in China, CLI’s American directors have come to realize that there is no place quite like Guilin.
With a comfortable combination of upbeat city life, small town community feel, stunning natural scenery, an excellent Chinese language learning environment, and friendly people at every turn, we truly believe Guilin is the perfect location to experience China and teach English.
For a comprehensive guide to teaching English in China, please reference the U.S. Embassy in Beijing’s Teaching English in China page.
Finding a safe and trustworthy option to teach English in China can be a difficult and time-consuming task. CLI makes it easy.
Many members of CLI’s international team have taught English at a variety of levels and in a variety of settings throughout China, and they know the ins and outs of the job.
Since our founding in 2009, CLI has established a strong network of partnerships and friendships in China that includes institutions at the elementary, middle, high school, and university levels, where administrators enthusiastically welcome new teachers from abroad to their English departments.
In order to qualify for CLI’s Teach in China program, applicants must be at least 24 years old and must hold a bachelor’s degree or equivalent from a four-year university.
In accordance with standards set by CLI and its partners, as well as the Chinese government, preference is given to applicants with TEFL or TESL certification. There is a range of TEFL/TESL certification options, and we do not prefer any particular method of certification over another.
By enrolling in CLI’s Teach in China program, you will be offered a five- or ten-month contract (your choice) guaranteeing a carefully selected and reliable English teaching position in the city of Guilin.
Countryside teaching positions within two hours of downtown Guilin are also available and can be provided upon request.
Placement location and grade level vary depending on availability. Teachers should expect to teach between 15 and 18 hours per week, but no more than 20, with an additional 10 hour weekly minimum of class preparation time.
CLI Teach in China participants are provided with the following:
With a friendly atmosphere, a stunning natural landscape, and a perfect balance between upbeat city life and small town community feel, Guilin offers an incredible location to teach English in China.
Check out our Guilin page for additional insight.
CLI delivers much more than an incredible opportunity to teach in China.
In addition to gaining invaluable international work experience, you will be provided with endless opportunities to discover Chinese culture and establish lifelong friendships with travelers from around the world.
One of the most important skills you can acquire while living in China is the ability to communicate using the world’s most widely spoken language – Mandarin Chinese.
As CLI is primarily a center for Chinese language and cultural studies, you will have countless opportunities to learn Mandarin while in Guilin.
A major advantage of joining CLI’s Teach in China program is your unlimited access to CLI’s Chinese language learning environment.
Teaching Chinese at the primary school level can be an incredibly rewarding experience.
Students who have the opportunity to learn English with a native speaker at a young age have an invaluable advantage over many of their peers that benefits them throughout their lives.
Parents, faculty, and students in China hold English teachers at all educational levels in very high regard.
Rather than attending separate campuses for middle (7th, 8th and 9th grade) and high school (10th, 11th and 12th grade), Chinese students usually attend one school for the final six years of their compulsory education.
The schools at which CLI’s Teach in China participants are placed have all been carefully vetted by CLI over the course of years, and faculty and administrators are always happy to welcome new instructors from CLI.
With four major universities in the city, Guilin provides a great university atmosphere for both students and teachers.
College students have packed schedules that require long hours on campus, while teachers are usually scheduled between 15 and 18 hours of class per week.
Our primary university partner in Guilin is Guangxi Normal University.
There is no standardized curriculum that Teach in China participants are required to follow in their teaching position.
As is typical throughout China, most of CLI’s partner schools leave it entirely up to the English teacher to develop his or her own lesson plans.
FALL SEMESTER
Program Dates: Late August to mid-January
Application Deadline: May 15
SPRING SEMESTER
Program Dates: Mid-February to mid-July
Application Deadline: November 1
CLI’s Teach in China program fee, which includes all services, amenities and provisions listed in the below Included in Fees section, is 1200 USD for both the semester and academic year options.
Please complete our online application to apply to join CLI's Teach in China program.
All Teach in China program participants are provided with a professional teaching position at a carefully selected reputable grade school or university. Contracts can be issued in lengths of five months or ten months.
Please contact us if you wish to teach in China for more than one year. Your contract will be issued directly by the school employing you.
Your school will also provide you directly with a monthly salary of between 5,500 and 8,500 RMB.
CLI’s comprehensive program orientation will thoroughly introduce you to the journey ahead and prepare you for the demands of being an English teacher in China.
Orientation includes several teacher training sessions organized by both CLI and your host school, a walking tour of downtown Guilin, and a “life in Guilin” meeting that prepares you for the many differences that living in China entails.
Orientation activities typically take place on the Saturday and Sunday prior to the start of the semester.
CLI ensures that your host school provides you with all of the necessary documents for you to acquire an official Employment (Z) Visa or a Cultural Exchange (F) Visa (depending on host school and qualifications of teacher).
CLI additionally provides comprehensive instructions and assistance in taking all steps necessary to acquire your visa.
We know that many teachers who travel to China are doing so for the first time. At CLI, we pride ourselves on providing comprehensive support and assistance to the teachers we find placements for.
From the moment you arrive in Guilin until the day you leave, CLI will be there to assist you with questions, problems, and logistics in order to make your transition to China as smooth as possible – your program fee even includes airport pick-up and drop-off.
In addition, we have team members on call 24/7 to handle any emergency situations that may arise.
CLI makes sure that each Teach in China participant is placed in comfortable housing accommodations. Housing is provided by your host school at no additional cost to you.
All accommodations include heating and A/C, hot and cold shower water (some sinks do not have hot water), and convenient access to your host school. Internet is available in all apartments for an added cost of approximately 20 USD per month.
All apartments provided to Teach in China program participants are fully furnished and include heating and A/C, cable television, a washing machine, hot and cold shower water (some sinks do not have hot water), a refrigerator, and cooking appliances.
A monthly allowance for electricity usage is typically provided by each participant’s host school. Internet is available in all apartments for an added cost of approximately 30 USD per month.
In China, most teachers tend to live in school-provided housing located on or within convenient distance of campus.
As a result of this social norm, most Teach in China program participants live in school-owned teacher accommodations located either on or near campus.
Classes are typically located within ten minutes’ walking distance of your apartment.
Living in Guilin and being plugged into the CLI community presents Teach in China program participants with countless opportunities to interact with local Chinese and learn about Chinese culture.
You are encouraged to exchange experiences and teaching tips with other English faculty and immerse yourself in the local educational environment and the unique city of Guilin.
In addition, Guilin is home to a large foreign community of international travelers, teachers, and students. Let China be your home away from home, and learn firsthand through the Guilin foreign community why so many have settled down in southern China.
