Applying for academic posts in Southeast Asia: checklist

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Applying for academic posts in Southeast Asia
checklist

•  
• Westhill Consulting Career Employment based in
  Australia, thank the guardian for the following
  comments
• http//westhillconsulting-career.com/teaching.html
  
• http//www.westhillconsulting-career.com/blog/

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• Do your research
• Collaborating with an overseas university first
  is a great way to get to know them if you are
  considering moving abroad. Paul Matsudaira
  started his career at Massachusetts Institute of
  Technology (MIT) in the US, before accepting the
  position as head of biological sciences at
  National University of Singapore in 2009.
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• While he was still at MIT, Matsudaira taught
  biology to students from two Singaporean
  universities via an online video link. He also
  travelled to Singapore several times in the
  summer holidays to teach at study camps. He says
  his family really enjoyed their trips to
  Singapore, and this made it much easier for him
  to make the decision about accepting the offer of
  a full-time post.

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• Go for it wholeheartedly
• Once you have made the decision to move, make
  sure it is a clean break. Matsudaira says the
  biggest mistake he saw others making was expats
  not really committing to the move. Warning, it
  can be very stressful trying to run parallel
  lives particularly across different time zones.
  It can also lead your new employers to question
  your commitment to the job. He said a "go for
  broke" attitude is essential to succeed.
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• Don't be put off by the paperwork
• Job interviews often take place in London. The
  employing university liaises with the immigration
  department and it usually takes less than four
  weeks for a work permit to be issued. Pay In
  general HK/south-east Asian universities pay
  better than European institutions and about the
  same as US universities, but tax is much lower.

4

•  
• Check for allowances
• Academics with children should also check on the
  availability and costs of places at international
  schools and whether the employer provides any
  education allowance.
•  
• Look into accommodation
• Accommodation is very expensive in many of
  south-east Asia's densely populated cities so
  colleges often provide it as part of the package.
  But if living cheek-by-jowl with your colleagues
  does not appeal see if the university will
  contribute towards an alternative. Look out for
  scams in working with accommodation agencies.
  There are few places where you can place a
  complaint.
• It will be a positive career move
• UK universities are still keen to attract
  overseas students, so academics with experience
  of working overseas and with good contacts abroad
  are likely to be in demand.

5

• It's a great place to be
• Tom Vinaimont teaches finance at City University
  in Hong Kong. He says "Both HK, Bangkok, Jakarta
  and Singapore are seen as transitory
  destinations places to get your career on track
  (research funding is pretty generous here) and
  then to move on from. But many people stay. I was
  planning to stay for three years. Now I've been
  here for 10, and I've just bought a house.