Teaching Abroad: When Your Job is Fun But Your City Isn’t

You moved across the world for an adventure, and you found the perfect classroom. Your students make you laugh, your coworkers are kind, and you genuinely love teaching. But then you leave work, step outside, and realize you’re in a city that feels more like a ghost town than a home base.

This is the quiet struggle many international teachers face. You can adore your job while feeling trapped by your location.

The Reality of Smaller City Placements

Teaching in a smaller city in a country like China comes with trade-offs. The cost of living is lower, you’ll likely have more autonomy in the classroom, and your students may be sweeter and less jaded than those in mega-cities. But the social scene, dining options, and weekend activities can feel painfully limited.

When the nearest exciting city is hours away by an unreliable bus that stops running at 6 PM, your freedom shrinks. You become a hostage to bus schedules and the mercy of a vehicle that leaves only when it’s full.

The Holiday Pay Shock

Many teachers accept positions without fully understanding how their salary averages out across the year. A monthly salary that sounds generous can become quite modest once you factor in unpaid holidays.

Getting four months off sounds amazing on paper. But if those months aren’t paid, you’re surviving on eight months of income stretched across twelve. That’s a math problem that gets harder every month.

Before signing any contract, calculate your average monthly income across the full year. Ask yourself honestly: Can I live on that? Can I save for emergencies and travel?

Job Hopping: The Interview Elephant in the Room

You have a PGCE, experience with international curricula, and years of classroom success. Yet schools keep focusing on one thing: your short tenures. It’s frustrating when you have legitimate reasons for leaving. One school didn’t renew anyone’s contracts. Another switched your subject on day one and then fired you for not having the perfect degree match.

This pattern isn’t unusual in international teaching. Schools can be unstable, unpredictable, and at times, unfair. You shouldn’t have to apologize for protecting your career.

How to Frame Your Resume

When interviewers ask about your work history, focus on what you chose, not what happened to you. You don’t need to mention the school that didn’t renew contracts. You can say: “I completed my contract and sought a better fit for my skills.”

For the school that changed your subject and let you go, frame it as: “I realized the role didn’t align with my expertise, and we parted ways amicably.”

Always keep your narrative positive and forward-looking. Emphasize what you learned from each experience and how it makes you a better teacher today.

Trust the Process

The right school exists for you. One that values your experience and understands that international teaching often involves moves, transitions, and a bit of a messy timeline. Keep applying, keep refining your story, and don’t let one interviewer’s nitpicking shake your confidence.

Your students love you. That matters more than a flawless resume.