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Ranking of Korean Universities for Terms and Conditions
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Swampfox10mm



Joined: 24 Mar 2011

PostPosted: Sun Apr 29, 2012 4:57 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

To add more about the sly/slow attempts to remove our housing allowance...

For several years, we all had the choice of school housing or 300,000 won allowance. Then went from 3 waygooks on staff to over 15 in a short few years.

The school built a teacher apartment building and attempted to move everyone (E-2) into the same building. Prior to that, teacher housing varied a fair bit due to teachers being put in apartments in various school-owned or rented buildings. The school used to pay utilities, but that went from free to 50,000 per month to 100,000 per month.

Now all of the new E-2 teachers (and even one Ph.D on a different visa) are living in 6 to 8 pyung efficiency apts in this new building (some students also live in the same building). They are still "charged" a based 100,000 per month utilities fee, no matter how much they actually use. Side note: the building was brand-new 2 years ago, but leaked from the first rain. It still does, but rather than fix it properly, they have literally built an odd gutter-like contraption that captures leaking water AFTER it flows down the wall between the wallpaper in my co-workers place. Before that monstrosity, they actually cut a chunk of concrete out of the roof to collect the water in a pool, claiming that would do something. Laughable.

Some of the teachers didn't like the new dorms, so they made it known they planned on moving into their own apartments and instead take the allowance. They were told that, if they did so, they would NOT get the 300,000 won allowance. So now we've got a group of teachers who DO NOT get the allowance if they move out, and some of us long-timers in the same department who DO. One teacher said he'd move out anyway, which prompted a visit from the president, who wanted to see his place (this dorm building was rumored to be the brainchild of the prez and a dean). The prez "couldn't understand why he would want to move out," and according to my co-worker, hinted to him that his contract might not be renewed if he did move out! So now some people actually feel forced to live in the place.

I'm sure you can see where this one is going...

When we went to sign contracts a few months back, I found the entire paragraph about the housing allowance had been omitted! I'm one of the (apparently) few teachers who goes over the contract with a fine-toothed comb, comparing it to previous years. I half-expected something like this to happen. I complained about it, and got it put back in. The excuse was... get this... the secretary had, "Decided that other people didn't have the allowance in their contracts, so she felt it best to delete it from mine so that other teachers wouldn't become upset."

Now honestly, would you buy the excuse that a secretary would just up and decide to delete something from someone's contract "because it seems more fair?"

So that's where we are at right now. As far as I'm concerned, that 300,000 won is part of my pay. To ask me to take a 300,000 won pay cut would not go over well.

This has all taken its toll. We have 3 teachers leaving (all going home for various reasons), and I know of at least 2 others that are looking. I'm hoping to stay put. One other co-worker has a growing family business that is starting to look more and more inviting to him, so he may go, too. What I'm really curious about is how many teachers are leaving university jobs for home because a base of 2.5 or less is no longer what they consider "enough," given the far-higher costs of living in Seoul? It seems to be a factor for some here. How about your school? Are you seeing people leaving because of this?
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hubbahubba



Joined: 31 May 2008

PostPosted: Sun Apr 29, 2012 10:00 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

and you're still there..??? why?? Year to year here in the ROK--time to go
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hubbahubba



Joined: 31 May 2008

PostPosted: Sun Apr 29, 2012 10:06 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

near the 5-6 mark where "private" uni's have to match our pension contributions..from what ive seen..that's the "bye-bye" time..now I'll wait for Patrick busan to tell me it's all a "misunderstanding"..lol
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Swampfox10mm



Joined: 24 Mar 2011

PostPosted: Sun Apr 29, 2012 3:52 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Yep. I am now fully-vested in pension. If the housing stipend went away, I would likely begin looking. Also, we do not have term limits and get a yearly wage increase. At this point, not much out there is better, and if I leave, the best I could do now is barely break even. If the stipend went away, then I could do better.
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Smithington



Joined: 14 Dec 2011

PostPosted: Tue May 01, 2012 7:01 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

The foreign language institute at HUFS is probably the worst....We really need to create a 'blacklist' of universities (ahem) that people should not apply to. Some of the conditions are so bad that they do not deserve to have foreign staff. They really need to shape us, and start improving their conditions, or be deprived of instructors altogether.
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withnail



Joined: 13 Oct 2008
Location: Seoul, South Korea.

PostPosted: Tue May 01, 2012 7:03 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

We may have a winner in the category of 2012 stingiest terms and conditions for a uni job Smile

Here: http://www.eslcafe.com/jobs/korea/index.cgi?read=52787
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hogwonguy1979



Joined: 22 Dec 2003
Location: the racoon den

PostPosted: Tue May 01, 2012 7:35 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

withnail wrote:
We may have a winner in the category of 2012 stingiest terms and conditions for a uni job Smile

Here: http://www.eslcafe.com/jobs/korea/index.cgi?read=52787


they have had a shit rep since we got here in the mid 90s, for a while the housing was in a hotel, no kitchen.

BTW I heard that Honam Univ down in Gwangju is back to having their teachers live in a dorm on campus with students which in the past would be locked at midnight. We were there living in that situation for 2 years around a decade ago but since we werent night owls it didn't bother us that much. the bigger problem was having to live with the soccer team
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Chaucer



Joined: 20 Oct 2009

PostPosted: Wed May 02, 2012 7:47 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

withnail wrote:
We may have a winner in the category of 2012 stingiest terms and conditions for a uni job Smile

Here: http://www.eslcafe.com/jobs/korea/index.cgi?read=52787


Wow! I don't see how five hours a day four days a week is 12 teaching hours.

And with all those camps and staff meetings, when are you going to find time to spend your 1.9 million salary?
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Seoulman69



Joined: 14 Dec 2009

PostPosted: Wed May 02, 2012 8:14 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

I thought I would give some info about where I work.

Low Level University
Good things:
Weekly hours: 15
4 day week
Full summer and winter vacation
Housing provided
Good management
MA preferred but not required

Bad things:
Wage 2.3mill
Wage doesn't increase every year
Low level students
You'd need to share an office with me

Hope everyone can add some info about their uni.


Last edited by Seoulman69 on Mon May 14, 2012 7:56 pm; edited 1 time in total
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withnail



Joined: 13 Oct 2008
Location: Seoul, South Korea.

PostPosted: Wed May 02, 2012 10:59 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Exactly - The purpose of this thread is to get the insider track on these uni jobs, so come on chaps, spill the beans!
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zappadelta



Joined: 31 Aug 2004

PostPosted: Thu May 03, 2012 7:02 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Hi, I have a great uni job with excellent conditions that I will detail here so that everyone can come gunning for me. No thanks
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edwardcatflap



Joined: 22 Mar 2009

PostPosted: Thu May 03, 2012 2:55 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Quote:

Hi, I have a great uni job with excellent conditions that I will detail here so that everyone can come gunning for me. No thanks


I don't quite get this. I don't really understand what you mean by 'everyone can come gunning for me.' Are you talking about people wanting your job? I don't know much about the way universities work but I'd have thought they either want to let you go anyway or keep you on. Are you worried they might decide to get rid of you simply on the basis of better qualified/experienced people showing an interest in your job? Or are you saying that people will be envious of your conditions and come 'gunning for you' in the sense of posting rude comments on here?
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hogwonguy1979



Joined: 22 Dec 2003
Location: the racoon den

PostPosted: Thu May 03, 2012 4:23 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

zappadelta wrote:
Hi, I have a great uni job with excellent conditions that I will detail here so that everyone can come gunning for me. No thanks


goes double for me, given the current univ job market and how competitive it is, I'm hanging on to my job with a vise like grip
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edwardcatflap



Joined: 22 Mar 2009

PostPosted: Thu May 03, 2012 4:26 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

So are you worried too that they might decide to get rid of you simply on the basis of better qualified/experienced people showing an interest in your job? Is that how Korean universities work?
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withnail



Joined: 13 Oct 2008
Location: Seoul, South Korea.

PostPosted: Thu May 03, 2012 4:27 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

My guess is he means that if you are on to a good thing, you shouldn't publicise the fact in case you invite others to take an interest at your expense - but as you say, this is a slightly irrational fear...

If your university wants you out, they will simply not renew you.

People sometimes don't get renewed if their evaluations are consistently substandard or they turn out to be a freak etc.

What doesn't tend to happen is being canned simply because there might possibly be someone out there who could potentially get better evaluations! Nobody knows that.

You are, after all, the one with the contract! If your evaluations are satisfactory to the university and you're not some sort of sociopath, you normally get renewed.

If Zappadelta is worried about anything, it might be because of a general uneasiness about the increasing number of experienced, related-MA holding candidates out there!

Especially so, since a recent trend I've noticed is that many of these are being hired straight from the States/Canada etc

Shock/horror! - They have not had to 'pay their dues' by working years in Korea first. They haven't 'put in their time' / 'done a proper shift' etc...!!!

Perhaps this is a viable complaint.

On the other hand, a lot of these new hires tend to have a RELATED MA and Tesol quals/experience.

I think if your MA is in Biology and you've never sought to gain a TEFL teaching certificate/diploma, then you may have reason to feel less than secure in the future. No idea if that applies to Mr Zappadelta.

But still, the great thing about the anonymity of your Dave's username is that you can share some truths about your uni without too much fear of being deported!!

Chill out Frank Zappa!


Last edited by withnail on Thu May 03, 2012 4:41 pm; edited 1 time in total
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