Job Discussion Forums

[some waygug-in]

Hello,
Just wondering if anyone else out there has been through this and could maybe give me some pointers. From the title, you already know where I'm at.

I am quite fed up Korea, except that I can earn a living here. The ESL industry here has become nothing more than a joke (a very bad one at that) and I am just wondering if it's me.
I am not a "real" teacher. I just have a BA and a TESOL cert and now 3 years of "teaching" experience. Are other countries better to work in?
Can one earn a living? (I don't mean get rich, just pay the bills and be able to save a bit)

I taught in Mexico, which I found 1000 times more enjoyable than Korea, but I couldn't really make enough to live on. I squeaked by, but if there had been an emergency, I would have been in big trouble.

I would like to work on getting an MA in TESOL or Linguistics, but I don't think I can do that here in Korea. The teaching here has become so stressful that I don't think I could really focus on furthering my education.

I am wondering if there is a place where I could work, and still have enough time and energy at the end of the day to study.

Any thoughts would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks in Advance
Some waygug-in

[bnix]

Sounds like you are burned out.Yeah...I like the country fine...but the TESOL industry Truthfully,it is not that much better anywhere else.There is really no Shangri-la in this business.
About the only places you can make enough money in order to save some money are in Asia(some countries)...and in the Middle East.Not much money in Latin America or eastern Europe.
It sounds to me like you might be wanting to try something else.This is not an easy one.The world economy is in pretty poor shape.But if you are basically unhappy in this business,why waste your time and money on an MA in TESOL or Linguistics, if you may leave the field anyway.Unless,of course,you just do it for intellectual reasons,which are fine.

[Marcoregano]

To tell the honest truth....the easiest I ever had it was in Korea. I was there two years and could easily have paid for and completed a distance masters. Here in HK you have to work for a living...at least most do. Seriously, Korea is king of the easy money from what I can gather. Maybe try a different employer, but if you need a change of scene, maybe Japan can offer what you need. There aren't many places where you can earn enuff to live, pay for and do your MA at the same time....unless of course you have savings you can burn.

[Celeste]

JAPAN. It is a great place. I lived in Daegu, South Korea for 2 years, and then went back to Canada for 3 years.

I came to Japan and had sort of mentally prepared myself for it. I was ready to "do my time" in Japan in order to save money and then either go back to Canada or get a student visa in a "good country" like France or Spain or Italy.

For the first 6 months I was telling myself, this is all too good to be true. All these nice people, fun things to do, lack of spit and vomit on the sidewalks and on the subway platforms. It must be the honeymoon phase...I'll wait for the other shoe to drop.

It's been nearly a year, and I'm still thrilled with the place! I am starting to think about not going back to Canada because my lifestyle is so good here. I'm starting to think that this is the "good country" where I might like to do a bit more studying.

[Wolf]

You can do a lot of Distance Learning MAs in South Korea (the University of Burmingham - for example - has a special setup for teachers living there.)

I loved my time in Japan - except that as I was not "qualifed" (about the same place on the ladder as you). I also had a similar experience. After 3 years of scraping to get by (student loan plus save for MA plus Japanese lessons plus 3 unavoidable changes of address,) I was burnt out as well. I wasn't enjoying anything - or appriciating what I knew I ought to.

So I opted for a dramatic change of pace and to start that MA. Although I do not regret leaving - I probably will go back if I ever find a job I could live with once my time here is over. (Life in rural China will help you appriciate the little things in life. Like cheese.)

If you have any money, you could try the Rising Sun. I've never set foot in Korea - if that matters when reading what I wrote here - but from my lurking I'm fairly certain I got my facts straight. No guarantees. The Japan stuff I lived through first hand.

Korea - Need a new visa with every new job.
Japan - Ha. Can technically self sponsor. Need only to be currently employed by someone willing to sponsor to get a new one.

Korea - Privates on the side get you deported.
Japan - I think there might be regulations about this. But no one ever, ever gets in trouble over this.

Korea - No labour unions for EFL teahers.
Japan - Far from perfect, but they are there. Technically, there are quite a few provisions in Japan's labour laws that - if you can actually get them applied to you - make life easier. Don't get starry eyed here - but some legal protection available is better than none.

Korea - Employers know to refuse payment, threaten blacklisting, sick immigration on people, steal passports, lie over housing.
Japan - They can be jerks. They might tug your chain over housing. Getting your own place is pricey, but if you plan to stay, you may as well. One or two pay late, but not paying at all - most that don't go out of buisness that month are likely to pay you.

Korea - Visa renewal. Annual "visa shuffle."
Japan - Drag yourself down to immigration. Pay. It took me 20 seconds. I kid you not. (Company did all the work + gave me what I needed.)

Korea - still cheap especially when compared to ....
Japan - it costs an arm and a leg to do stuff. Having a family on an EFL salry is doable - but tight - esp if Mr/Ms Right are not working and kids are involved.

Japan - Conversation school (which they call Eikaiwas) students can be pretty unmotivated. Not all, but I'm just saying to give you an idea. Uni students are supremely so (go to the J forum and ask - or read their old threads.) Public/private elemtnatry/high schools are a very mized bag.

I'm only trying to give you another (closeby!) option. Do your own research.

[Capergirl]

[chi-chi]

Taiwan may have worked out for you, and I'm happy for you, but things can seriously go wrong there and the money is not nearly as good as in Korea (in my opinion.)
Without going into detail about my Taiwan experience, I will mention to some waygook-in that there will be people without college and without teaching experience making just as much, if not more, money than him.
Experience counts for shit over there and you will NOT be paid accordingly.
Waygook, most people in Taiwan, at least in Taipei, have to get several roomates, and many drive a scooter around to 2-3 different part-time jobs.
I call it the University lifestyle for people who didn't go to University. Young people (19 and 20 year olds) working without degrees, living with roomates, driving from job to job.
Many people on the Taiwan forum admit that it is not a good place for the qualified or the experienced.
All of this without any personal details of my horror story of working there.
I am currently BACK in Korea after three months working there, and let's just say that I originally left because I was sick of Korea, but at least in Korea your bills get paid and you don't have to worry about suddenly becoming homeless.
Waygook, the other places to make money are Japan and the Middle East. Hong Kong is iffy because I hear they pay by the hour (as in Taiwan) and as a University graduate you deserve a real job with a guaranteed monthly wage regardless of how business is doing that month.
Chi-Chi

[Capergirl]

@Chi-Chi...My experiences were very much the opposite of yours. In Korea, I had a hard time getting paid on time (and a hard time getting the amount that was in my contract, my employers tried to re-negotiate it every month), not to mention problems with housing, frequent and inconvenient scheduling changes (I was responsible for getting to several different schools a week via bus or taxi on my own), and the general lack of support from my company. Add to that the fallout of the economic crisis and you have one hell of a bumpy ride.

In Taiwan, I worked at one private language school and although I worked 6-7 days a week, the pay was great and the students were phenomenal. I was always paid in full and on time, and I was even paid for my overtime (something which was problematic in Korea). My then-boyfriend and I had our own place in Taiwan, although small and dorm-like. None of the foreigners I knew in our little Taiwanese "town" had less than a Bachelor's degree...many had TESL/TEFL/CELTA certification as well as experience...a few even had Master's degrees. I did not run into any "backpackers" there, although I met many in Korea (however, Taipei might have been different?).

All in all, I would rate my Korea experience a 2 (out of 10) and Taiwan a 7. (That is a generous 2, by the way, and only because I liked the "mogatongs". )

[some waygug-in]

Hello and thank you everyone for your helpful advice. I have never had trouble getting paid in Korea, but as far as enjoying the job.........#$%^&*
No way!!!!!!!!!!!!
I don't believe that I am "burnt out" from teaching. I feel like it's just the opposite. It's the not teaching, and all the babysitting BS that is getting me down. Even when I was teaching adults here, I didn't feel like I was really teaching. They have this insane notion that you can study English by just simply enroling in a conversation class and never have to do anything remotely related to grammar.
At least in Mexico, I felt like I was accomplishing something. Students who wanted to learn, who weren't scared off by the big G word (grammar). I just had the frustration of trying to live on next to nothing.

Anyway, thanks again. I don't know what I'm going to do next. The bank account is looking a bit better this year. If I can just find a job that I can stand, then I will do the distance Master's thing. If not, then quien sabe?
Saludos
Some waygug-in