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Gwangju English Village...any thoughts?
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mckinneysbelfast



Joined: 30 Nov 2009
Location: Belfast, Northern Ireland

PostPosted: Mon Dec 07, 2009 1:57 am    Post subject: Gwangju English Village...any thoughts? Reply with quote

Just about to have an interview for Gwangju English Village but don't know much about it or about English Villages in general - anyone got any info? Just want to see if it's worth getting excited about the job!
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youtuber



Joined: 13 Sep 2009

PostPosted: Mon Dec 07, 2009 10:21 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Sure are a lot of Irishmen askin questions on here lol.

Anyways about English Villages:

You will probably have to teach the exact same class with the same activities and same speech patterns for 120 times per month. They don't rotate teachers very well. That is the huge negative. It gets very repetitive very quickly.

On the plus side, the classes can be fun sometimes and you get to meet lots of kids.

Another negative is you may have to live on Campus in a dorm style room. That sucks.

You will work with lots of foreigners which can be good and bad. If they are crazy (and some usually are) it is bad. There were fistfights among the foreign teachers at my village. But there are some cool foreigners as well. It basically feels like you are in high school again, which can be good and bad.
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PRagic



Joined: 24 Feb 2006

PostPosted: Mon Dec 07, 2009 6:15 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Repeat the mantra: All English villages suck.

Seriously, on the totem pole of English teaching, English villages are the bit stuck in the mud.
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monnymite



Joined: 10 May 2009

PostPosted: Wed Feb 03, 2010 2:03 pm    Post subject: Re: Gwangju English Village...any thoughts? Reply with quote

mckinneysbelfast wrote:
Just about to have an interview for Gwangju English Village but don't know much about it or about English Villages in general - anyone got any info? Just want to see if it's worth getting excited about the job!


hey just wondering how you got on at English Village, did you stil go for it?
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explorer25



Joined: 18 Jul 2004
Location: Korea

PostPosted: Wed Mar 24, 2010 7:52 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

what if the pay is 2.5 mil ???? would u say it sucks still Smile)
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blonde researcher



Joined: 16 Oct 2006
Location: Globalizing in Korea for the time being

PostPosted: Wed Mar 24, 2010 8:58 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Are you talking about the Valedictorian 'mock" village opened in 2009 in an office complex in Gwangju, just out of Seoul city?
If so, run a mile no matter what the salary promise is.
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tomato



Joined: 31 Jan 2003
Location: I get so little foreign language experience, I must be in Koreatown, Los Angeles.

PostPosted: Thu Mar 25, 2010 9:26 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

I've gotten a couple of phone calls from Gwangju English Village promising to call again to set up an interview.
Why couldn't they just set up an interview on the first phone call?
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tomato



Joined: 31 Jan 2003
Location: I get so little foreign language experience, I must be in Koreatown, Los Angeles.

PostPosted: Tue Mar 30, 2010 2:16 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

On Monday, I got a call from them saying that I was to show up for an interview on Wednesday, start work on Thursday, and not leave the premises until the end of camp.

I sent them an e-mail, telling them that I got a job somewhere else.

Then I got a letter from Stanley Nikosi, saying "you are to report at Gwangju tomorrow, that is 31st of march 2010 at exactly 2pm for the camp."

What is this, an English camp for the students or a boot camp for the employees?
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the ireland



Joined: 11 May 2008
Location: korea

PostPosted: Tue Mar 30, 2010 7:17 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

tomato wrote:


Then I got a letter from Stanley Nikosi, saying "you are to report at Gwangju tomorrow, that is 31st of march 2010 at exactly 2pm for the camp."

What is this, an English camp for the students or a boot camp for the employees?


Just turn up for work boy (I know you are almost 40 years older than me) and don't question the authority of the English village, not hot foot it son, go, go, go. while you're at it, down and give me 20!!!!
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amandaz



Joined: 05 Jun 2008

PostPosted: Wed Mar 31, 2010 4:45 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

I actually work at Gwangju English Village... I just fill in from time to time when they need extra teachers. I really like working there, mostly because the teachers who run it are super cool. It's not incredibly hard work, just making the kids happy and doing different role plays with them. BUT... I know the teachers who are there now are leaving soon, and they are getting new management who want to really amp up the volume on the number of classes/ kids they have visit. So I'm not sure if I would take that job.

The other thing is that the village is in the MIDDLE OF NOWHERE. It is not in Gwangju. So once you are out there you are stuck. No buses even! The management will pick you up at your apartment in Gwangju everyday and drive you, but I really don't like the idea that you can't go home in an emergency. I would probably say don't take this job, but who knows, it could be really good still. If you do, I might meet you!
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Manuel_the_Bandito



Joined: 12 Sep 2009

PostPosted: Wed Mar 31, 2010 5:48 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

At English villages you're employed more to be a "foreigner" than a "teacher".
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tomato



Joined: 31 Jan 2003
Location: I get so little foreign language experience, I must be in Koreatown, Los Angeles.

PostPosted: Fri Apr 02, 2010 5:21 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

the ireland wrote:
Just turn up for work boy (I know you are almost 40 years older than me) and don't question the authority of the English village, not hot foot it son, go, go, go. while you're at it, down and give me 20!!!!

I got a job somewhere else, though.
After a whole month of job-hunting, I finally got a choice between two jobs.
Someone who works there, please keep in touch, so I'lll know what I'm missing.
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mckinneysbelfast



Joined: 30 Nov 2009
Location: Belfast, Northern Ireland

PostPosted: Mon Apr 19, 2010 6:20 am    Post subject: Re: Gwangju English Village...any thoughts? Reply with quote

monnymite wrote:

hey just wondering how you got on at English Village, did you stil go for it?


Hey, kinda forgot about thread until now. So as you can guess, no we didn't take it. We did and bit of research and googling and got in contact with an ex-teacher who advised against it. Even though the couple who interviewed us were really nice and said the mangement had changed, there were just a few too many bad reports and the timing didn't 100% suit anyway.

Now we've gone the complete other direction to the english village route and are in for EPIK Fall 2010 Very Happy
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monnymite



Joined: 10 May 2009

PostPosted: Wed May 05, 2010 6:25 am    Post subject: Re: Gwangju English Village...any thoughts? Reply with quote

mckinneysbelfast wrote:
monnymite wrote:

hey just wondering how you got on at English Village, did you stil go for it?


Hey, kinda forgot about thread until now. So as you can guess, no we didn't take it. We did and bit of research and googling and got in contact with an ex-teacher who advised against it. Even though the couple who interviewed us were really nice and said the mangement had changed, there were just a few too many bad reports and the timing didn't 100% suit anyway.

Now we've gone the complete other direction to the english village route and are in for EPIK Fall 2010 Very Happy


U dodged a bullet there, seriously, that place was a nightmare, good luck in the fall!!
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supateacha



Joined: 26 Nov 2011

PostPosted: Mon Nov 28, 2011 6:07 pm    Post subject: Run!!! Reply with quote

I've worked there. I don't recommend it. The slander laws are in favor of the slandered in Korea because of the culture, but please hear me when I say, that I do not suggest going. If you have specific concerns you may PM me.

Last edited by supateacha on Mon Dec 05, 2011 11:53 pm; edited 3 times in total
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