Korean Job Discussion Forums

katiej37 · Joined: 02 Mar 2007

Hi, I havent taught english since doing my 2month course in TEFL teaching in Canada in 2004.

I am english, currently living in NZ with a business degree thinking of heading to S Korea to do some teaching.

Wondering if any tips on where good to go, names of good employers, average salary and addtional stuff should be in a good contract.

Anything in particular to avoid.

Have been told as an english lady I can earn good money teaching privates but that this is illegal is that correct?

any info would be great

thanks everyone in advance

alabamaman · Joined: 25 Apr 2006

Mea · Joined: 24 Mar 2006

The best advice I can give you is to spend a lot of time reading these boards. I spent about a year reading a few pages worth of posts a day in this forum and the General Discussion forum, and I think it really prepared me the job hunt and for living here. Obviously you can't be totally prepared, but there's no harm in being educated about what to look for in a contract.

Before you post something asking "is <whatever> school good?" or "review my contract!" use the search function here to investigate the school. If you don't have any luck with it, you can put the name of the school or the location you're wondering about in quotes plus "site:eslcafe.com" into Google and you might have better luck. You might even find that someone here has already reviewed the exact contract you're looking at! (That's why I turned down many jobs).

I'm a newbie too, fresh out of uni with no experience teaching before I came. I make 2.3 million a month, working about 20 hours a week including prep. It took me a few months to find the right job. Don't rush into things.

katiej37 · Joined: 02 Mar 2007

thanks both of you, good info to work on

Mea can I ask if you are working in a private college or for public.

Mea · Joined: 24 Mar 2006

I'm at a hagwon, so the place kids go to after school. It's part of a small chain.

Homer · Guest

Good advice here.

I agree you should do your research and decide what you want before you start applying.

About reading these boards...please do so but always with one gigantic grain of rock salt.....

Ced · Joined: 27 Feb 2007 Location: Korea

What part of NZ are you living in Katie? I'm a NZer, and enjoying Korea in my 2 months so far.

I'm at a private school, and find it to be pretty good when compared to some horror stories on this site.

michi gnome · Joined: 15 Feb 2006 Location: Dokdo

a good rule of thumb is to talk to teachers who work at the school you're applying to. See if anyone renews their contracts...

mooncalf · Joined: 30 Jan 2006

APARTMENT ADVICE

Ask your potential employer about your apartment before signing a contract or you run the risk of living in a dog box.

Also, Koreans have different apartment teminology than Americans. Two important points:

1) A "one bedroom apartment" is what American call a "studio" (one room, often no divider separating the bedroom from the kitchen).

So be very clear about how the number of rooms and thier functions.

2) Apartments are measured in "pyong" (3.3 square meters - not to be confused with 3.3 meters squared). A 4 pyong room is about 10 feet by 12 feet.

5 pyong = too small for one person
10 pyong = small for one person
15 pyong = reasonable for one person
20+ pyong = big for one person, possible for two people

3) If you'd like to rent your own apartment rather than that which your employer provides, ask for a) key money of W5,000,000 to W10,000,000 and b) rent of at least W400,000. You'll struggle to find a decent place for less outside of the "foreign zones" in Seoul.