Korean Job Discussion Forums

[Ignacio10]

Hi guys and girls,

I'm new to the forum so my apologies if this isn't in the correct section!

My girlfriend and I are newbies to the TEFL game, we are going through a recruiter (Sky recruitment Center), we have been in contact back and forth and they have a job offer for us (pending successful interview of course).

I just wanted to post the job info so the more experienced teachers could tell us if it's a good or bad offer for first timers? This is part of the email they sent to us:

(Couple job option) Seoul Mokdong area.
this school is near Hwagok subway station.

Teaching kinders~elem schoolers
working from 9:00-6:00(2 days a wee)9:00-7:00 pm(3 days a week)
paying 2.1~2.2M
housing(15 mins on foot)/air tickets.
Starting from the end of Feb.
except pension everything is fully standard.
There are 7 more native teachers working for this school.

The recruiter added in a further email that classes were 40-50 minutes and teaching hours are 25-30 per week.

Any opinions are greatly appreciated, as a newbie this can all be a bit overwhelming at times so any advice is welcome!

Thanks,

Emmet

[itiswhatitis]

Kindy usually has the most office politics.

It can be total hell and you pretty much have to see it to beleive it.

Living in Seoul ain't that special. You will probably have to commute to work if you live in Mokdong cus the school won't pay Mokdong rent. If they do you will live in a shoe box.

A couple position is a bad idea. Especially for 2 rookies. Teaching kindy is generally considered the most demanding gig and there is a very good chance that 1 of the 2 of you will just not be cut out for it. Maybe you like the idea of being in Seoul. I understand that there are few options if you want to both be in Seoul and to not be on the other ends of the city with your jobs.

My advice: Look into a smaller city. You will both find a job at a seperate place and can rent your own place with the housing allowance. The primary benefit of being in Seoul is being a single guy who likes one night stands in Itaewon and Hongdae (sounds like this doesn't apply to you). There are a few other benefits to Seoul but that's what weekend trips to Seoul are for.

Good luck!!!

[Airborne9]

[YTMND]

Get photos of the apartment. Since it is a couple's job offer, I doubt they will give 2 places. This makes it more important to know where you both will be moving into.

Also, what happens when you both don't get paid or they decide to fire one of you? How will you handle getting a new school or new schools? Will one be nice and just finish the contract or will you both leave if the school can't get along with one?

I have seen this happen before with nasty results. That's why I am bringing it up.

My solution would be for one to get an apartment and the other would get housing allowance from a second school. This way, you aren't gambling with one school. If anything backfires, it will affect you both, whereas single job offers are easier to get out of.

[Dodge7]

I'm not sure what "except pension everything is fully standard" is supposed to mean. If that means you DON'T GET pension, then I'd decline the job on the spot. Working hours blow, too anyway. I wouldn't take this job. Being at work 9-10 hours a day, might as well sleep there.

[northway]

You should really only take a kinder job if you really like little kids or if you want maximum ownership of your class/classroom. Don't do it simply because of the location or because it's the first job you find. I loved teaching kindergarten and prefer them to any other age group, but I've also heard a lot of kinder teachers say awful things about their little ones, largely because they had no interest in them in the first place. Don't be one of those teachers.

[Otherside]

[cincynate]

[njp6]

I'd ask if you could e-mail a teacher there and get their opinion on the gig, the housing, and things in general. I did this with my first school and I got the answers I wanted (is the apartment size adequate, is there a gym around, what about entertainment, do you get paid on time). Make sure they give you and your GF bigger living quarters as you will be sharing, (correct?). Sometimes they like to cram couples in smaller spaces to save money. Also, kindy can be quite demanding. For myself, elementary school age was much better.

Last, do your research, but eventually take the leap. I turned down 3 or 4 places until I found something I thought would fit. Don't let too many doubts or too many naesayers deter you.

[Reidac317]

Looks awful. If you're going to work 9-10 hours a day with kindy to elementary students, you might as well work at KoreaPOLYschool (my current/first hagwon experience) where at least you'll get paid 2.7-2.8m base. You also get a strict curriculum to the page good for first timers along with not having some director try to sleaze you out of a pension.

This is just from my experience first time teaching at a job working similar hours, which I did not choose to resign with over wanting more free time. I'm by no means recommending the place as my experience has been pretty neutral, but with as many jobs as there are in Korea there's no reason to take a shitty one that is purely worse than other options.

For 2.1 you don't need to work more than 7 hours a day.
If you like kindy (which I love, but is a personal choice) and want a morning shift, I wouldn't take a 9-6 job even for a first timer for less than 2.4 or 2.5.
I haven't seen a job pay more than POLY if you're primarily here for money unless it has very special requirements.
Sure Seoul usually pays a little less but there's so many more positions that there's a much bigger pool to choose from.

This is my experience finishing up my first year here and looking for a new job. Don't be afraid to say no 5+ times to your recruiter and use as many as you can find, they clearly try to pass mediocre jobs first.

[Weigookin74]

Pay is low, but the market is pushing it in that direction. You prob won't be able to push too much, depending on how desperate you are. If you can wait, then wait for something better. If you need to get over soon, then give a similiar position a try. But push for 2.3 at least and for pension to be paid. (Similiar position, not this job.) With a year or two of experience, you can ask for more. You really should be in the upper twos, but with this economy, not so sure and not so easy. Poly would pay better, but are there more people applying for Poly than they have jobs available? Sadly, this isn't five years ago. You'll have to get more feed back rather than rely on me.

[cmb2]

I just interviewed with this job, too. The director lady that I talked to even confirmed over the phone that she wouldn't be paying pension. I've had many jobs offered to me where they don't pay pension. Why?!

[ttompatz]

[cmb2]

[Skippy]