Robert Maguire – 2005 – An American in Taiwan

I had done a fair amount of research before I actually started looking for places to work in Taiwan. Everything I read told me not to go with recruitment agencies or to accept jobs with chain schools, yet when I stumbled upon the Reach To Teach web site, I realized that this place was different. After doing some more searches, I realized that this wasn’t like other agencies and that there would be no safer way to come to Taiwan as a new teacher with no experience.

I understood upon arriving in Taiwan that I had made the right choice. Even having a Taiwanese girlfriend to guide me and translate for me, there is only so far a native can go to help someone making the transition from his or her country to one as different as Taiwan.

For example, have you ever been asked where the best hotel is in your hometown? It’s kind of the same thing. You might, at best, be able to give the name of a hotel, but you don’t know which one is the best. Since you’ve likely never stayed in a hotel in the city where you live, you don’t know which one has the best price, the best ambience, etc. It’s much the same thing with moving to another country. A native can welcome you, make you comfortable, help you with odds and ends, but they know very little about the details that are necessary for a foreigner settling in — from getting your ARC to simply getting fed up with the smell of “stinky tofu.”

I don’t regret my decision at all. With Reach To Teach, you will be placed with a good, reliable school and, thusly, gain a sort of dual support net during your time in Taiwan — both from Reach To Teach and your school.

– Robert Maguire