Job Discussion Forums

[matchstick_man]

It took me more than three months in Taiwan to save what I earned in six weeks in South Korea. However if you find a good paying job have savings already behind you Taiwan would be easy. In Korea it would also depend whether the school sponsors your apartment or not.

[Wonder]

I guess I'll throw in on this, even though I'm very sure it's appeared in this very same forum before.

Anyway, I miss S. Korea, for sure. If you ask me, the overall feeling toward western people, and the means to accomodate them, is slightly better. And I personally feel the need to learn Korean is much less than then need (and pressure) to learn Mandarin.

What else? Didn't even have to THINK about buying a scooter in Seoul. Stayed with the zillion miles of subways that take you everywhere and the cheap taxis. So road rage just wasn't part of the equation. Mind you, the subways are good and bad in many ways. And riding a scooter is kinda cool when the traffic is good or cruising elsewhere. But it is added costs that you don't have to deal with in Seoul.

And I am talking about Seoul city here. Can't say a thing first hand about the provinces. I heard it's hickville all the way.

If you want to teach adults, the money is equal to teaching kids, and there's much more call for adult/university instruction there. Here in Taiwan I pretty much had to teach kids because that's where the money and opportunity is.

The weather is iffy in both places, but Korea is much colder of course. And much more humid in the summer.

MOD EDIT

And like I said at the top of my post: If you're into red meat, there's nothing that beats a Kalbi dinner in my book.

I would move back to Seoul soon but I couldn't stand the hardcore confuscious lifestyle, if that makes any sense. I would visit there again if I wasn't so hooked on the Philippines.

[wood]

[daily chai]

Taipei's got 3 million people, and Seoul has 11 million. How much of a big city do you want/need? Remember the air quality in Asia will be different than that in NYC. It's common here in Taipei to get chronic bronchitis occasionally. I've had it twice now (lasting 3 months). Ewww...

I've lived in Korea & Taiwan both, and prefer Taiwan. My hair thins every time I go to Korea--weird. So glad that someone else mentioned that--it's not just me. I could run my fingers through my hair and out came a small handful. Scary. Just think if your hair follicles are doing this how the rest of your body is faring.

I'm surprised no one mentioned this yet, but Korea has a decidedly more conservative society. Korea is a Neo-Confucian society. I only visited Japan but in comparison Korea is worse. Chauvanism is not such an issue in Taiwan. It's much easier, IMO, to live here as a woman. Two years ago Taiwan had a bill for allowing same-sex marriages. Taiwan is a more liberal place, in general.

Taiwan has a much larger variety of food, as its populated by refugees from all over China as well as the indigenous people. Korean food is pretty much kimchi and boiled food, and that's it. Once you get the taste down (which is good) then there's not a lot to surprise you. Taiwan is the easiest place to live in if you're vegetarian, as the Chinese Buddhists fled here and their veg food culture flourished. In Korea, there is no vegetarian tradition. Monks and nuns eat meat. Also, the climate makes Taiwan suitable to a wide range of foods while it's limited in Korea. I keenly remmeber eating kumquats, pomagranates, and cherry tomatoes along the usual triad of apples/oranges/bananas. In Taiwan I eat a guava daily, several types of mangos are sold, pineapples and papayas are here... Food culture is more interesting in Taiwan.

There's more of a drinking culture in Korea, similar to Japan; and more smoking there too.

The writing system in Korea is ingenius, and easier to learn than the Roman alphabet. You can easily learn it by studying for 2 hours in the evening for a week. It's easy to pick up Korean words on an ad hoc basis because you can read and pronounce them. The large foreign troop presence (Americans) has made a lot of places cater to long-term contact with English speakers. Taiwan is trying to drum up tourism... but NO, that is not going to happen. Why would anyone vacation here when SEA is next door and cheaper? However I get by in pidgeon Mandarin quite well.

Privates are good money in Korea, but I knew people in both places who live off them and don't otherwise "work." I knew more teaching that way in Korea, though.

The apartment scheme gives me the willies. I lived once in employer-supplied housing, and will never do so again. Too much power over you.

[mr.bojangles]

I have lived in Korea and have visited Taiwan. I felt Taiwan is more open to those from foreign shores wherewas some Koreans feel they are superior to others because their skulls are larger (!). This I read at their national monument expaling why they are more intelligent...EEK! Taiwan is more open to western movements such as the green, gay, women's etc. The food in both places are excellent, but if I were to choose a place to go to, I would pick Taiwan.

[Miyazaki]

Korea has higher earning potential with free flights and accommodation and Taiwan has a warmer climate. However, Taiwan is more polluted, has lower salaries, and doesn't provide airfare or free accommodation.

Korea is a better option as an EFL destination.

Japan would be the best, if you can afford the start-up costs.

[jotham]

This is from an editing point of view. I've heard that $60,000 a month is the highest salary to expect for editing in Taiwan, which is lower than what teachers make. That's too bad � with that attitude, truly talented people will be dissuaded; and these positions will be perpetually filled with Joe Schmoes. The bar needs to be raised for the sake of the publishing industry, and for the sake of Taiwan, and for the sake of the English I've seen churned out at most translation firms.
Japan, on the other hand, seems more editor-friendly: I've noticed on Japanese job posts, editing and proofreading jobs are offered with handsome salaries; and they openly advertise their magnanimous salaries because they want to attract suitable talent. This one MOD EDIT is roughly $60,000�$80,000 US a year, which is great compared to Taiwan ($21,600) � even after taking into consideration the high cost of living in Tokyo. Many editing positions in Japan offer around $50,000�$100,000 depending on experience. This is such an outcry from Taiwan, where salaries are kept secret, and where the emotional emphasis of personal negotiation, social skills, and connections seem to trump the objective emphasis of raw talent and experience when determining salary or even the prospect of being hired. Japan seems to be a more just and equitable society in this regard. In Taiwan, a night-market mentality reigns where cheapest means value, and where excellence is superfluous and not willingly rewarded. It just doesn't pay in Taiwan to be bright on the job or particularly better than others, and that's why most of them don't try.
Japan also has a professional editing association called SWET � The Society of Writers, Editors and Translators: http://www.swet.jp/

[Miyazaki]

In Taiwan, a night-market sentimentality reigns where cheapest means value, and where excellence is superfluous and not willingly rewarded.

It just doesn't pay in Taiwan to be bright on the job or particularly better than others, and that's why most of them don't try.

Very well put.

I would agree with this statement and have oftened considered this aspect of life on Taiwan.
Mediocrity is the name of the game in Taiwan.

People are not rewarded if they are too good and punished if they aren't average. So, the system rewards mediocre performance.

Amzaing, isn't it.

[jotham]

Yes, interesting that you bring this up. I recently read the most popular American novel in the twentieth century: Ayn Rand's Atlas Shrugged. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Atlas_shrugged
I was so shocked; it seemed to be the perfect description of the differences between Taiwanese and American culture � Japanese is probably somewhere in between. In her book, society puts down singular individuals to encourage social "equality," but ends up achieving mediocrity. All the bright inventors, managers, engineers get together and rebel, because they're not being rewarded for their talents � and society crumbles as a result.
My eyes popped out reading the dialogues: they were strikingly similar to ones I had at work. All the main antiheroes in her book just as well be Taiwanese, or have Taiwanese names.
The movie was scheduled to show in 2008 starring Tom Cruise and Angelina Jolie: be sure to see it. The status is in turnaround now, which means the producer is wanting to sell the rights, so it's uncertain now...
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Atlas_Shrugged_(film)

[just4u]

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[naturegirl321]

[pest2]

[Mr. Kalgukshi]

Please restrict your comments here to issues regarding living and teaching in Taiwan.

If you wish to discuss living and teaching in Korea or Japan, please do so on the appropriate forums.

Separate registration is required for the Korean Job Forum.

[twiddle_dee]

I've been in taiwan for about three years and definetly prefer it to Korea or Japan. Good medical, easy to save money, good employers. Check out my website for more information: http://www.glowfishtw.com/jobs.asp

[JZer]