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Korea30003000
Joined: 14 Sep 2014
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Posted: Thu Oct 30, 2014 11:18 pm Post subject: Question for male English teacher lifers |
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This is a question for male English teacher lifers. When will you retire from teaching English? As we know it gets harder for males to get work the older they get. So at what point to you call it a day? |
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cmxc
Joined: 19 May 2008
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Posted: Thu Oct 30, 2014 11:51 pm Post subject: males |
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"That's what I love about these high school girls, man. I get older, they stay the same age."
Dazed and Confused |
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FDNY
Joined: 27 Sep 2010
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Posted: Fri Oct 31, 2014 12:13 am Post subject: Re: Question for male English teacher lifers |
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Korea30003000 wrote: |
This is a question for male English teacher lifers. When will you retire from teaching English? As we know it gets harder for males to get work the older they get. So at what point to you call it a day? |
I'll retire when I can. The sooner the better. But life isn't easy in Korea
with a family. Ageism is definitely an ugly factor of living here. I'm fifty
and have noticed it. So, I started my own business. F@ck all those
narrow minded idiots. Cut out the middle man. Take their students and
their money. OWN the means of production. Now when I meet parents
there is no sign of ageism. In fact, many are relieved that their kids are
being taught by a mature, experienced professional. They actually expect
a business owner to be mature. |
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wooden nickels
Joined: 23 May 2010
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Posted: Fri Oct 31, 2014 12:19 am Post subject: Re: Question for male English teacher lifers |
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FDNY wrote: |
Korea30003000 wrote: |
This is a question for male English teacher lifers. When will you retire from teaching English? As we know it gets harder for males to get work the older they get. So at what point to you call it a day? |
I'll retire when I can. The sooner the better. But life isn't easy in Korea
with a family. Ageism is definitely an ugly factor of living here. I'm fifty
and have noticed it. So, I started my own business. F@ck all those
narrow minded idiots. Cut out the middle man. Take their students and
their money. OWN the means of production. Now when I meet parents
there is no sign of ageism. In fact, many are relieved that their kids are
being taught by a mature, experienced professional. They actually expect
a business owner to be mature. |
If you don't mind, I will claim this as my post also. |
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edwardcatflap
Joined: 22 Mar 2009
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Posted: Fri Oct 31, 2014 12:26 am Post subject: |
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Quote: |
This is a question for male English teacher lifers. When will you retire from teaching English? As we know it gets harder for males to get work the older they get. So at what point to you call it a day? |
Why do you want to know? If you're contemplating becoming a lifer yourself, and aren't interested in starting your own hagwan, my advice would be to eventually get into a field or organisation where age isn't so much of an issue. There are threads about this on Dave's all the time. Having said that the only English teacher lifers I've heard about who retired because they had to were over the national retirement age anyway. You get the occasional teacher saying he can't find a job here due to ageism, e.g. Voyager 2, but as far as I know, he isn't a lifer here |
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Stan Rogers
Joined: 20 Aug 2010
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Posted: Fri Oct 31, 2014 12:47 am Post subject: |
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I've heard that some universities are getting away from hiring young people. Maturity and experience seem to be the words that keep coming up. |
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Lazio
Joined: 15 Dec 2010
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Posted: Fri Oct 31, 2014 3:41 am Post subject: Re: Question for male English teacher lifers |
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FDNY wrote: |
Now when I meet parents there is no sign of ageism. In fact, many are relieved that their kids are being taught by a mature, experienced professional. They actually expect a business owner to be mature. |
Fortunately -for you- they don't read your posts here. |
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basic69isokay
Joined: 28 Sep 2014 Location: korea
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Posted: Fri Oct 31, 2014 5:30 am Post subject: |
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Not a lifer yet, but do have a chunk of years here for sure.
The lifers I know never completely got out of teaching, but definitely stray away from it.
Teach PT at a Uni while owning a bar
Work for a newspaper/magazine/website
Own a hagwon/bookstore/study room
None of these are retirement exactly, but it's also a way to bypass slimy recruiters and their racism/sexism/ageism (which is what you seem mainly concerned with) |
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Roman Holiday
Joined: 22 Sep 2014
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Posted: Fri Oct 31, 2014 1:00 pm Post subject: |
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Stan Rogers wrote: |
I've heard that some universities are getting away from hiring young people. Maturity and experience seem to be the words that keep coming up. |
Near all the Korean students I speak to expect the professor to be in his 40s or thereabouts. |
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northway
Joined: 05 Jul 2010
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Posted: Fri Oct 31, 2014 1:50 pm Post subject: Re: Question for male English teacher lifers |
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Lazio wrote: |
FDNY wrote: |
Now when I meet parents there is no sign of ageism. In fact, many are relieved that their kids are being taught by a mature, experienced professional. They actually expect a business owner to be mature. |
Fortunately -for you- they don't read your posts here. |
looooooooooooooooooool field trip to Deokjeokdo! |
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crescent
Joined: 15 Jan 2003 Location: yes.
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Posted: Fri Oct 31, 2014 4:09 pm Post subject: Re: Question for male English teacher lifers |
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Lazio wrote: |
FDNY wrote: |
Now when I meet parents there is no sign of ageism. In fact, many are relieved that their kids are being taught by a mature, experienced professional. They actually expect a business owner to be mature. |
Fortunately -for you- they don't read your posts here. |
Hahaha!
Almost as funny as FDNY labelling himself a professional! |
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Handsome Boy
Joined: 03 Jun 2003
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Posted: Sat Nov 01, 2014 1:01 am Post subject: |
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FDNY! Well said sir, that's exactly what I did, only difference being with Adults not Kids. |
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PRagic
Joined: 24 Feb 2006
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Posted: Sun Nov 02, 2014 12:15 am Post subject: |
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I've known a couple of guys who made it to retirement at university. After that, they moved back to N. America or to points in SE Asia.
All of the guys I know who are possible lifers have plumped up their TESOL credentials and have a lot of university experience. They plan on just working at university. Most, if not all, supplement their incomes by writing, recording, or teaching on the side. All are married, but not all to Koreans.
Some guys opened up their own study rooms. They make bank, but they work for it. Still, they do call the shots and make their own hours. All are married and all to Koreans.
One guy only does translation work for corporate PR stuff. Charges a pretty penny, but he's spot on and has work coming out the ying yang.
Couple of guys I've come to know got out of teaching and opened their own bar or restaurant. Think they're having a pretty good go of it. Not an easy slog at first, but an interesting way to go if you can handle it.
Couple of guys got out of teaching and went into financial editing here. Awesome pay and perks, but not easy jobs to get these days.
Couple of guys, myself included, got out of ESL and did doctorates in other fields. Land a tenure track job, stick to it, get tenure, and you have job until retirement with decent pay and with annual, albeit small, salary increases. Nice perks, too, depending on the university (paid to publish, generous funding to attend international conferences, research funding, housing subsidy, etc...)
Where there's a will, there's a way. |
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GJM
Joined: 27 Oct 2014
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Posted: Sun Nov 02, 2014 12:37 am Post subject: |
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Opening an 'after school' study room or Hagwan is one way to go, and with a Korean wife, that makes it a whole lot easier to negotiate, and understand culturally, socially and academically what Koreans want.
I am not convinced by the option to go into editing, text books etc -- yes, there are opportunities there, but in my experience, these gigs are few and far between, generally found by word of mouth, contacts, and a stroke of luck, and even then, they are rarely regular gigs, and don't pay well anyway. I know there are notable exceptions to the above, but I haven't met many people here (or back home) who've made much money from it.
The newspapers here only employ a very small number of foreign staff, and lots of them are young Kyopos, fluent in both languages and cultures. |
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Cave Dweller
Joined: 17 Aug 2014 Location: Seoul
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Posted: Sun Nov 02, 2014 12:45 am Post subject: |
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I posted a similar thread to this one a few months back.
We are still undecided but if we decide to make a life of it here, the first 2 things I will do is
1. do an online masters and try to get into a uni and
2. start branching out of teaching and into related fields. |
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