Hey all,

I've got 1 year of teaching experience teaching at one of the big universities here, a B.A., 5 years of Chinese language experience, and now I'm studying Chinese and have a student visa. I'm a young white American male.

I still have to earn money, though. I've seen plenty of opportunities for 1-on-1 instruction, but Chinese people give me much lower estimates of what I should be paid than Western folk here. What's the best way to earn the most amount of money in the least amount of time here without a full-time job? What's a good rate for my qualifications? What can I charge more for (test prep, distance traveled, hazard pay from riding my e-bike through these streets?)

Prefer teenagers and older.

Thanks!

With your level of experience, you should be asking for 100 rmb/hr, if they come to you, and if they are middle class.

If you are living in a working class district you should charge less but aim to have multiple students.

Test prep is usually the same fees as English class.
Don't aim to travel far, there is no extra money for it, unless you can negotiate extra for transport (then take your ebike and hide it round the corner). Hazard pay! What have you been smoking?

150 RMB for 1-on-1. This has been discussed before. Many schools and students still think it's 2005. Everything has gone up. I also recommend that you collect 4 weeks upfront. Good Luck!

Yeah, ask for 150 nobody will come to you, listen to 'tigertiger', he has a brain.

A teacher with lots of experience can ask 150, especially if you have grey hair.

The op doesn't posses a lot of experience and is not an oldie. That is why I suggested 100 if they come to you. If they want you to go to them, charge more.

some schools are charging 400 an hour for 1-on-1 or 'VIP' classes. 150 sounds about right for 1-on-1 classes with the level of experience that the OP has. HankKerrick, if you want plenty of work then go for 100... that will also get you more of the customers that aren't that serious about studying English.

Be careful - working on a student visa isn't technically legal...

Schools in Kunming charge well over 200 an hour for 1-on-1 classes with a foreign teacher. The 2 I know of for certain charge 240 and 275 respectively. Logic dictates that you should be able to charge at least 150 without the middle man, and with the right costumers around 200 or even higher. The tricky part is finding the students and that can be kinda hard being new around these parts. Most of the foreigners I know here who have good, steady and well-paid gigs needed time to build up their base and rep. I spent 3 years in KM and had 2-3 regular private students who paid me around 200 for each lesson. With my day job I'd haul in more than a wan a month, more than enough to live comfortably. I know other foreigners who'd charge 100 kuai, work their asses off every day of the week and land 15-20.000 no sweat.

I wouldn't work for 100 kuai an hour in this day and age. The inflation in Kunming is clogging 10 percent or so and as EnglishTeacher says, many people still think it's the early naughts. Also, you really don't have to feel bad (as I sometimes did in the beginning) for charging 150-200 from the middle and upper class around here. They DO have the money and when push comes to shove they don't mind paying for quality -which is what you should give in return. Chinese 1-on-1 tutors in maths, Chinese, guitar, piano and whatever regularly charge in the hundreds as well. One of my students had moved up to the tier 1 in piano instructors in Yunnan. The price with discount AND 1 year's payment in advance still amounted to 500 kuai an hour. Qualified and dedicated foreign English teachers are worth 200 an hour hands down.

@Danmarien
That was my point. You said some very good points. I've been here over 5 years. If the students are serious about learning, they will pay 150 RMB and up. I don't have time to waste with students & their parents that just want a 'laowai' because they think it would be 'cool' or whatever concept they have in their minds. Like I said before, I also request advance payment of at least 4 weeks. In this way, I know they have the money. I take my teaching seriously and expect my students to want me because they feel they are learning and I'm worth it. I much rather have 2 to 3 serious students than 10 students just to make a buck. It's too painful to teach when the student(s) don't really want to learn.

Some schools charge 300-450 for 1 to 1 with foreign teacher.
Keats charges 100 for 1 to 1 with a mandarin teacher.

Tiger Tiger is mistaken.
150 is the bare minimum, for anyone with solid experience. His grey hair teacher can charge 200.

OP, 150 is your answer.