| Teaching position at Ameson in Nanjing | |
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| May 29, 2013 14:54 | #21   |
| GUEST05687 | Hi. I had a phone interview with them as well. Could you tell me if you accepted the teaching position or not. If yes, could you tell me a bit more about them. Thank you. |
| May 30, 2013 10:20 | #22 |
| GUEST04846 | Not really sure how anyone knows anything about the Ameson Year in China program when it is in its first year of existence; the first batch of teachers will be sent over in August. I can't speak for other Ameson programs, but this particular thread seems to originally be about a different program (perhaps the Fellowship for Teachers). One thing I learned through my communication with them is that over 17,000 folks have gone over with the Ameson Foundation since 1994 through various programs affiliated with it. They have a Linked In page with several former Ameson Fellowship for Teachers members, so I would get in contact with them if you are concerned about the Ameson Foundation as a whole. Hope this helps! |
| Aug 10, 2013 09:59 | #23 |
| GUEST72475 | Ameson. Where to begin... Interviewed back in May for the teaching position with Ameson Year in China. Got interviewed by some monotonous intern over skype who couldn't answer most of my simple questions (what age group would i work with, what are the living arrangements, etc). I got my letter within a week saying i was accepted. Was super excited about this, got TEFL training, took some weird test after that, etc. my "regional project coordinator" Deborah did not return my calls or emails which was a little shady but i eventually got in contact with other year in china people via Facebook and found out she was just an idiot and that were other regional project coordinators who could assist me. things were Ok but the clock was ticking. Now it is August. I have plane tickets next week to jet off to Shanghai for our orientation. The program still hasnt come up with visas, and i still do not have a city placement. The American office in Washington D.C. has been largely out of the picture. All calls and emails to any one in that office go ignored. I have gottten the contact information for one of the head honchos there (Aaron Sisko) but he ignores me as well. I try getting in touch with the China Ameson office but they ignore me too. not exactly good customer service. Yesterday I get an email saying that A. my flight may not actually be compensated (like they originally said it would), and B. i may not receive a city placement until OCTOBER. despite the fact that they told me to fly to Shanghai for orientation at the end of August. i am not alone in this. Several other Ameson AYC teachers are being told the same thing. but on the bright side a few "lucky" individuals HAVE gotten their city placements and are happy and ready to do the program. a bunch of us have been screwed over though. We have been lied to, ignored, and misled for months. but we held out hope we would get the "opportunity of a lifetime" and a "great adventure". after passing up job offers, ending leases, selling possessions, etc... our dreams have come to an end. i could pull out from the program right now without telling anyone and no one at ameson would know or care. but either way I am stuck here in the USA now, with no job, no apartment, and half my stuff. I am stuck having to explain to everyone why my big China adventure, doing my dream of teaching english to children, is kaput. but, there is a silver lining: i can help others make an informed decision on this excuse for an organization. And i have time to re-evaluate my life and what I want to do. so, thank you Ameson! |
| Sep 4, 2013 14:15 | #24 |
| GUEST19734 | To the person above. Knowing that this organization is split between being both an American based and Chinese organization must have given you the notion that they work like Western companies. I am currently in the AYC program (the first of it's kind) and expected problems to happen because of the recent government regulation amendments in China as well as this program being in it's first year. I do agree that Ameson could have come up with a better planned structure for the program, but I had also expected it from the beginning, and am currently doing my best to work with the office administration. It has been going well given the recent circumstances with the law, and I see a handful of teachers have already made it to their placements. I also believe it wasn't a smart move to get your plane ticket, quit your job, and sell your possessions without having received a work visa --let alone placement. This would be common sense to me. But I hope that things do look up for you soon and that you continue to keep communicating with the Shanghai office, and if not, have a backup plan. Prior to committing to this program, I already had some backup plans. |
| Sep 11, 2013 19:04 | #25 |
| GUEST20227 | My daughter had the same problem as GUEST72475. She was told to purchase the plane tickets 4-6 weeks before the orientation, and that the visas would be worked out by mid-August. Then she was told to go to Hong Kong (not reimbursed for THAT travel) to get the visa after orientation. Then she was told to just wait til October altogether, and "MAYBE" the visa situation would be resolved then. If you're a legitimate employer, you don't tell your employees (especially not recent college graduates who have loans and a million and one other worries on their minds) when to fly over to a foreign country then change your story 2 days before the flight. She (and all of us as a family in supporting her) followed everything Ameson told us to do, but she got ripped off in the end. it's kind of hard to have a "back up" job, or even "back up" housing for some people, so she considers herself quite lucky. Ameson turned out to be a bust for her, although interesting sidenote, her friend who is doing the program says that none of the teachers he has met with Ameson got any of their top 5 city preferences (NONE; I can understand getting something in the top 5 at least, but nobody can report getting anything on their top 5?) and that some were being sent alone to random cities not on the initial list (which I have a copy of). In addition, she heard that some people have been assigned to teach high school chemistry, history, and geography, when the program advertises "teaching English in China to children". This program sounds like it just wants American butts plugged into Chinese classrooms to get accolades. It's a chance for college grads to see China, but it comes with a lot of lies along the way. If it works out for some, great. But buyer beware. |
| Jan 13, 2014 15:56 | #26 |
| GUEST12246 | Just incase anyone checks this thread anymore. I have personally went through the AYC program and it's safe to say that it works no differently than any other third party recruiter. I was originally placed to work in one of the cities in China that I had put on my preference list on my application, but was later bait-and-switched to another smaller city without any real information on the school and our schedule. Great, how misleading. I rolled with it since I was here in China and on my way. Fast forward two months, Ameson had all but ceased to communicate with me and my fellow AYC teacher. We had problems with the school but Ameson would of course be powerless to help us. We were on our own. As a recent college grad, I was excited to teach in a different country and learn the language. Ameson aligned themselves with this goal and capitalized on it. They'll put you through some training, but don't expect to hear from them after being placed, other than random surveys and newsletter updates. Like the above poster had stated, this program might work out for some and it gives us a chance to see China but there really are plenty of lies along the way. |
| Feb 19, 2014 17:36 | #27 |
| GUEST32202 | GUEST12246: I was just accepted for an interview, but reading the reviews is certainly scaring me! Does this seem like something that is just kinks that a new program needs to work out, or an active culture within the organization? |
| Mar 14, 2014 09:16 | #28 |
| GUEST15177 | It could happen that these problems we are experiencing will be worked out in time, but it would also not surprise me if this program continues to gain a terrible reputation among us participants. I can say from being in this program for the 2013 - 2014 academic year, all the horror stories you are reading on this forum are true, and I could probably even add some more to the list. Nevertheless, if these are just "kinks" in a new program, there are MOST CERTAINLY not problems you want to be dealing with thousands and thousands of miles away from home in a place where you don't speak the language, you are all alone, and where you are consistently lied to and taken advantage of. If you really want to teach in China, please stay away from Ameson and choose another company. They are seriously the worst. |
| Apr 5, 2014 00:47 | #29 |
| GUEST00115 | They post that they are members of OACAC. I checked (vetted) and can NOT find anyone from Ameson or Ameson itself. Check for yourself. |
| Jun 27, 2014 17:11 | #30 |
| GUESTCHAR | So to the earlier people who were thinking of taking the position in 2014, have you continued with the program ? If so, what was it like. I find there to be several opinions for and against Ameson. If this is not something you would recommend, what other suggestions do you have? |
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