Korean Job Discussion Forums

[Totti]

Are there any Universities that hire without any Uni experience? I've been looking round and most seem to say they want 2 years experience at Universities. Would any of them hire from abroad?

I've just completed my MA and have around 4 years experience teaching high school in the GEPIK program and adults in the UK.

[Cave Dweller]

Yes, you can. If you are limiting your search to Seoul and Kyeonggi area, your chances are low. If you are willing to go to the countryside for 1-2 years in order to beef up your resume, they'd hire you in a heartbeat.

One of my ex-coworkers got a uni job in Suncheon, way down south. He liked it but most wouldn't. He told me about the caliber of co-workers he had, which makes me think they'll hire anyone, including one guy with OCD and another with really really bad hygiene.

[ChrisPK]

[Cave Dweller]

Good luck with that.

quote="ChrisPK"]

[PRagic]

just pepper the market with applications, but, as a previous poster inclined, you're more apt to have a better shot out in the countryside.

Good luck to you....

[Cave Dweller]

+1

Once you have your package ready (resume, cover letter, what not) you have very little to lose by spamming it.

[Totti]

[TheMeerkatLover]

There is far too much bad information provided in this thread. The rules for hiring have changed. The old days of 'networking' to get your position are more or less gone with the new hiring rules. People who are working at a uni are mostly not able to bypass the inspections that come with a faculty review.

To be hired today, you need 2 things.

1) A graduate degree (highly preferred from a Western university outside Korea) If you did your degree in Korea, your application will go to the bottom of the pile.
2) 2 years university dept. experience AFTER you graduated from you M.A./M.Ed studies.

Many will not like to accept this, but teaching adults, 'teacher's certificate', EPIK experience & hogwans are not considered in the experience bracket. Uniwon experience (hogwan in the university) is also NOT considered.

For your experience to count, you need to be hired as a faculty member for the university and work for a department. This includes all the extra work and duties that are assigned to those positions.

This rule came into full force last March. There WAS a 2-year 'blurry' period before that were some departments were able to get gov't funding for their faculty w/o the required experience + credentials. Those days are past now. If you don't have these requirements when hired, no funding. Simple as that.

Going out in the sticks to get hired is easier since there are fewer applicants willing to work there, but you still need to fulfill the hiring criteria.

This is especially a pain in the ass for those who were doing their MATESOLS at whatever shitty 3rd or 4th tier university and expecting to have their work experience count while they were studying. It doesn't.

Having documents ready doesn't mean anything unless you're meeting the criteria. Universities are surprisingly looking about 6 weeks earlier this year since the number of unfulfilled positions was unprecedented last March. I saw uni's advertising for positions to start in April (that went unfilled).

The gov't is quite serious in upping the hiring requirements for faculty. I would suspect they do not want graduates who did their studies here (for obvious reasons). They want people who studied in the West and are able to bring their work experience from abroad into their departments.

There have also been quite a few threads posted both on boards and facebook groups about people losing their jobs because they didn't meet the now enforced requirements. Very few were able to find replacement positions (in uniwons) and quite a few positions are now showing a bi-polar mentality. Some uni's think there are lines of qualified people just waiting to apply and are offering lack luster packages. Others are offering better salaries and conditions to ensure they can attract and keep the faculty they have (I suspect because they had so much difficulty last spring replacing anyone who left).

So regardless of what anyone here says, if you don't have the requirements listed above your chances are extremely poor (unless someone is willing to hire you against gov't policy).

[SeoulNate]

The problem with the above is simple:

How do you get experience when you are barred by law from getting experience?

Personally, I graduated with my M.ED a year and a half ago and was hired by a big uni in Seoul the following semester. They used my previous public school (in the states) experience to count for the 2 years of experience.

I know a number of other people in the same boat.

The 'law' creates a situation that precludes anyone that did not have experience pre-2013 to actually gain any uni experience. This is obviously impossible and thus has been bypassed by many schools.

[TheMeerkatLover]

[Euthanatos]

Before I came to Korea, a scant year and change ago, what was required for a uni job was 'BA + two years teaching' for crappy jobs and 'MA + some time in country' for most everything else. So, before I left the states I banged out an MA in Adult Ed and signed up with EPIK with the expressed intent of working at the university level. I never wanted to work with kids, but was willing to hold my nose and do it as a stepping stone to teaching university courses.

During my time with EPIK they have changed the rules and moved the goal posts on me so that it is now impossible for me to get a Uni gig in Korea without leaving Korea to get the Uni experience they say they need. Well, sorry Korea, but once I leave I doubt I'm coming back.


This kind of 'you must have done the job before you can do the job' bullshit is part of why I left the US.


All that said, if anybody knows of an even mediocre uni gig that will hire someone with an MA in Adult Ed and two years of EPIK that starts after August 25th (when my current contract ends), please help a brother out!

[PRagic]

Somebody who just got hired on at a university just posted on another thread. He has his MA, but only one year of hagwon one-on-one teaching experience.

AND the ad to which he applied stipulated that they only wanted someone with 2 years of university teaching experience. Not too bad of a job in terms of pay and conditions, either.

So, yes, by all means continue to pepper the market. In some programs, particularly at small schools, knowing someone can still help you, but as a previous poster inclined, the decision will most likely ultimately be up to the staff K faculty.

You never know. Just because they WANT someone with XX and YY credentials and experience doesn't mean that they'll have their pick of the litter on any given day.

[Shimokitazawa]

[piglet44]

Jumping in here,I have MA,30 years experience,EFL cert and 3 years Uni experience in Chinese Uni.SNU is nibbling right now,but I am looking for other options (not in Korea yet).Not interested in the "reputation" of the Uni,just a nice work environment,pleasant students,and free time,and decent salary.What say you all?

[PRagic]

If you're getting a university offer from a school in Seoul and you're still not in Korea, I'd say take it. SNU isn't the be-all-end-all, but it's a good CV pumper and you can start looking for other positions once you're here. At least you'll get here, have housing and decent job. Bird in the hand and all that....