Korean Job Discussion Forums

[joelove]

[lemak]

[Oreovictim]

You can save cash in China. I can't tell you how much, because I don't know which city you're interested in, which kind of gig you want, how often you'll want to eat out, etc. But to give you an idea, I live in Shanghai, and I saved 80,000 RMB after one year here, and that's after buying a nice guitar and amp, getting a fancy phone, losing my apartment deposit to my evil ex-landlord. Also, I spend quite a bit on food; I don't eat street food or those disgusting microwave meals from the convenience stores.


I teach adults, and I have 25 one-hour classes a week. That's a lot for some people, but it's okay for me. I'm surprised how much energy I still have at the end of the day. When I taught in Korea, I had this kindy job where I'd be home by 3:20 everyday, but the job was chaotic. Teaching kids can be draining. But if you like kids, at least go for an international school - good money there.


But is life in Shanghai comfortable and convenient, compared with Seoul? Sometimes. There are definitely things that will make you want to bang your head against a wall. The drivers are worse; the lines at stores are longer; people smoke everywhere; there's pretty much NO toilet paper in most restrooms; there's no central heating and air conditioning, and the service at stores and restaurants aren't as good. (Yeah, you'll be at a grocery store in Korea and you'll hear a worker being loud, yelling the sales for meat or produce, but at least they're working. You'll be at Carrefour, and the workers are yelling, too - on their phones to their henpecked husbands.)


As far as the people, this is just my experience, but I find Chinese people a lot less racist and xenophobic than Koreans. I've had Chinese people mock me half a dozen times in one year. In Korea, I'd get it a few times each week. In Shanghai, I've only been referred to as foreigner three times, as well, get this - twice from Koreans. But at the same time, I’ve had lots of strangers in Korea do kind and generous things for me, doesn’t happen as much in Shanghai.

[Dodge7]

From reading these posts it seems China is pretty laid back. Less Stress. If I wasn't tied to this delusional country I'd probably do a year or so in China.

[rollo]

Every year there are those who teach illegally in China who end up facing the sharp end of the Chinese legal system. big big fine, maybe jail time and deportation. But every year more fools try this .

legal schools follow the law, work for a school that allow people to work on a tourist visa , watch out, they will turn you in when they are through using you.

A lot of nut cases in China but probably no greater percentage than korea. I do not hang out with the ESl crowd much. there is a greater mis here of business people and such.

[NohopeSeriously]

[metalhead]

I've worked in both. The Chinese are definitely more 'welcoming' towards foreigners, way friendlier girls too (not important to me, but you know, this being eslcafe and all). Anyway, both countries have their good and bad. China is more interesting on many levels, but of course, it's bigger and has more groups of people that aren't Han Chinese etc.

Unlike Korea though, location in China is incredibly important. There are some excellent cities for living in, and some truly awful ones. I'd probably recommend places in Jiangsu Province though, richer area and overall more 'civilized' than many other parts of China.

Of course, many things in China can be incredibly grating, the crowds, the pollution, the laziness etc. Also, going out in Korea I can generally afford most restaurants and places, not so in China. A good German or French restaurant will whack your wallet hard on a teacher's salary, even on a good salary.

[creeper1]

There are a number of inaccuracies in this thread

1. Chinese is not easier than Korean. Whoever said that hasn't studied both languages. In Chinese you have tones and the writing system, sweet mother, the writing system is so hard. Us foreigners may get hang of the speaking to a limited extent but reading and writing? Forget it.

For us westerners, familiar with the Roman alphabet, Korean is easier with it having a phonetic alphabet as well.

2. There is no need for a criminal check to get a Z-visa. You do need a degree however. For the Z-visa I needed a reference proving I had 2 years TEFL experience, a TEFL cert, a degree (only a scan mind) and a health check up done in China.

Lots of foreigners here in China are on the wrong visa. They use business visas to teach. Huge demand here for TEFL mean it is easy for non-native speakers (usually pass themselves off to parents as being American when they are in fact from Eastern Europe) to get a job. As I say, though, they are on a business visa.

My 2 cents is that China is good but the employers are awful. Want a university job? It's yours but the pay is a pittance.

Take a language mill and you get decent pay but worked hard.

IN Korea you can get those wonderful jobs called "after school jobs." They are super easy with a couple of hours worked a day but full time wages.

You won't find that here in China.

My verdict is you should stay in Korea. If you are a newbie reading this CHOOSE KOREA.

You will get your airfare paid and met at the airport. You will also have your apartment paid for.

THESE THINGS ARE NOT AVAILABLE IN CHINA.

[fustiancorduroy]

[World Traveler]

Well, the Foreign Service Institute considers Korean the hardest of any language they teach, but hell, what would they know?

http://fsitraining.state.gov/training/Language%20Continuum.pdf

[World Traveler]

Chinese:
Easier grammar
Easier pronunciation
Easier differentiation (discernment) between sounds and words
Spoken at a slower rate (as proven by number of syllables counted per minute)

[creeper1]

[Troglodyte]

[Smithington]

Thank you kindly to all who have posted their experiences. I'm seriously considering China for a year. Korea is driving me nuts. I need a break. I have a Masters and a (on-line) TEFL certificate. I'm thinking of Shanghai.

Cheers.

[Smithington]

I'm wondering. Would Hong Kong pay better? Has anyone worked in both Korea and Hong Kong? Is the latter better suited to foreigners than say Shanghai or Beijing?

Thanks in advance for any information.