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I had been trying to break into EAP teaching for a while in the UK but it was quite difficult to get full-time position.  Then I heard about XJTLU from a colleague and jumped at the opportunity to work there.  I had loved working in East Asia before and so I was very excited to come to China when I heard I’d been accepted for a position as an EAP lecturer.  China is really good fun, with such a vast country to explore, adventures are never hard to find.  Living in Suzhou has also been great, it’s a major city with a large population but it never feels too big.  So you get all the benefits and convenience of living in a metropolis without many of the drawbacks like congestion and pollution.  Plus, Shanghai is only 30 minutes away by train if I’m craving the excitement of a major international city.  

I have worked at XJTLU for over 5 years now and this has been mainly due to the lovely communities of people that are here.  There is a great support network and it’s very easy to make large groups of friends and have a very busy social calendar if you want one.  The variety of teaching experiences here is also a good incentive to stay.  Within the ELC you have the opportunity to teach on a range of modules, from the very large, if you enjoy working in big teams, to much smaller specialised ones such as ESAP to architecture students.  With these choices, I’ve never got bored as I have in other institutions and that’s why I am planning to stay here for a lot longer!