4/11/13

Game on: Disney vs. Peace Corps!

So after a year of gnashing my teeth, rending my garments, and pulling my hair (soon to be gone) over job offers – or, rather, lack thereof – I now have two “dream job” offers I have to decide between by Monday. Looking for feedback from folks that know me, or know China, or Mongolia, or Disney, or Peace Corps. A little info./details/pros & cons: Job #1 is with Disney, teaching English in Guangzhou. Disney China started in Shanghai in 2008, teaching English through games, music, and storytelling (featuring Disney characters of course!) for kids ages 3-12. They’ve since expanded to about 30 sites in about 10 cities. I would be a teacher, with a one-year contract. I get a review after six months, can extend the contract if we’re both happy with each other, can transfer/move up within Disney, etc. Job #2 is with Peace Corps, working as the Dir. of Mgmt. & Ops. in Ulan Bator, Mongolia. The job is basically second-in-command to the Country Director and has admin. oversight of the post/volunteers. I would get a 5-year contract, with the possibility of another job in PC, or extending my Mongolia job, for another 3 years. After that, I have “non-competitive” status for any federal job but can NOT continue working for Peace Corps. Some of the pros & cons are obvious. The Peace Corps job is more money. While I won’t be hurting at Disney, and in fact will be paid 3X the national average salary, it’s still a teacher trainer/low rung on the totem pole. And a plus/minus for living in Ulan Bator is I most likely won’t have a lot of options to spend a lot of money so could save a fair amount. Climate is a big thing for me, and this seems to skew towards Guangzhou. Although I can deal with extremes of cold better than extremes of heat, Ulan Bator is, naturally, just more extreme period. The winter is very very cold and very very long. On the flip side, Guangzhou has a humid, hot summer which I don’t really like at all. But the extremes of Ulan Bator aren’t there. Travel is a big thing for me and may ultimately be the “tipper.” From Guangzhou, I am a scant 2-hours away from both Hong Kong and Macau. Hainan, China is also very close. More importantly, just 3-5 hours by plane takes me to Singapore, Vietnam, Malaysia, the Philippines, Thailand, and more. While there are still some cool places to see in Mongolia, Russia, and China (Japan is probably a wash for both), still not as many as from a launching pad in Southern China. The companies themselves are close to a wash. As many of you know, I am a Disney freak (when she found out I got an offer from Disney, my sister said, “OMG, that’s like the mother ship for you!”), and it is EASILY the ONLY for-profit corporation I would ever consider working for. I heart Disney big time, and one of the “perks” of working there is that I get a Disney Silver Pass! :) On the other hand, I have an understandably strong affection for Peace Corps, as well. Not only was my volunteer experience with them one of the “high points” of my life, having that on my resume opened a lot of doors for me later and gave me a leg up on interviewing for jobs; so, to some extent, I feel a sense of obligation to PC. The jobs themselves are very different. With Disney, I would be teaching young children English, it would be much more physically demanding, having to be “on” to teach/entertain these kids. The PC job is mainly administrative work similar to what I’ve been doing for some years at the mgmt. level in various non-profits. Of course I do have the option/possibility of moving to an admin. job within Disney later on. Both bring their own challenges, but the PC one would probably be MORE of a challenge overall, which is actually kind of a pro for me. I like/need a challenge. At the same time, there will undoubtedly be challenges “a plenty” at Disney, so this may be a wash. So what am I missing, or not considering here? Which job do you think I should take and why?? Help! Check out Ulan Bator: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ulan_Bator Check out Guangzhou: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Guangzhou

2 comments:

  1. I should add that, with Disney, I will get a TEFL certification w/o having to pay for a course, and they provide Rosetta Stone free of charge to learn Mandarin.

    ReplyDelete
  2. I think you have already decided. Did you try flipping a coin -- not to see which side comes up, but to see which side you find yourself hoping for while it's in the air.

    ReplyDelete