Korean Job Discussion Forums

[VanIslander]

With all the complaints on other threads about bad job situations,

let's hear from those of us with good jobs

(pay and/or conditions and/or accommodations and/or coworkers, etcetera)

[Fresh Prince]

I like my job. No major problems yet. Accomodations and pay are decent. My coworkers are supportive and honest people. There are issues but as of yet they have been minor.

[lover.asian]

[robot]

i LOVE my job!

kids are bright & hardworking. coworkers are wonderful people. the specific subject i teach is a passion of mine and i love the chance to further develop expertise in an area i hope to do more in. lots of opportunities to do extra paid research work. free korean lessons. only four days a week.

[tophatcat]

I really like my job! Overall, it's a great place to work!

[oneofthesarahs]

My students make my job for me. For every unruly obnoxious kid I have, I've got 20 who are wonderful, caring and intelligent. And even the unruly ones are still cute as hell. I have a student in one of my kindy classes who I am constantly disciplining and scolding. But I saw him out on the street last weekend and he yelled "Sarah sem!!!" at the top of his lungs and ran over to hug me. I haven't been here that long, but I've genuinely seen kids make progress in their English and their behavior. To know that I could even be a small part of that progress makes any small annoyances seem trivial.

Also very important: my boss is very respectful and thoughtful to me. She's a bit of a hard-ass sometimes, but she takes everything I tell her very seriously. I once complimented her shoes, and she bought me a pair the next day! Everyone I work with is very aware of the difficulties I face being the only foreigner in the school and the town and have always made themselves available to help. When my bike got stolen, a couple of my coworkers offered to pitch in and buy me a new one, although I declined their offer. I didn't think it would be fair. I'm fairly certain I make more money than they do.

[sock]

I love my students. They are well-behaved, eager to learn (okay, well, most of the time, and when they're not they politely pretend that they are), and they are fun. Most of them actively participate in class with a little encouragement. They bring a joy and satisfaction to my work that I've not found in any other field of work.

I love that even though my job can be demanding at times, for the most part it's not particularly difficult. The salary and perks are sufficient--excellent, considering that my contribution often feels like a part-time job. I can save money, have free housing, cheap utilities, and the Korean health care system is inexpensive and efficient.

That's been true for all of the places that I've worked at in Korea, not just my current workplace.

At my current position, I really like the director. He's a nice guy, he values me as an employee, and from time to time he makes sure that I know that. Staff is a bit on the incompetent side, but they are decent people. Korean teachers are generally friendly, supportive, and helpful.

In the classroom, I'm given enough materials and curriculum to provide me adequate resources to do my job--and then they trust me to do just that. There's no interference in the classroom, nobody tells me what to do, they just let me do my thing and magically (miraculously?) everyone is reasonably happy.

It's not perfect by any means, but I have had very good work opportunities and experiences while in Korea, for which I am very grateful. In Korea, all of my basic needs have been met more than adequately and I feel that anything above and beyond that is my responsibility. And I find that when my attitude sucks, my environment suffers. When I'm grateful for what I have, my environment blossoms. Kinda corny, but true.

[Whistleblower]

I am in the moment of switching employers but my current employer is terrible. The directors have no understanding of the English Language yet alone the knowledge of how to teach it.

One of the directors (who is single) is having an affair with a married Korean Teacher. This Korean teacher is part-time and she has more say in the operational running of the school. But she has no knowledge of the English Language and ends up chatting to students in Korean.

I have a crappy salary for completing a CELTA Course and have small breaks in between classes. Overall total cr*p!

[Vancouver]

[lover.asian]

[gsxr750r]

[Whistleblower]

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[faster]

My last job was good because it was stable and reliable, actually focused on teaching, had great curriculum, and top students at all levels. In addition, my boss didn't micro-manage me (or manage me at all, really, after six months or so). I stayed for 4 1/2 years.

My new job is good because my pay basically tripled, I only work 3 days a week, I have tons of vacations, and I have some of the best students in the country.

Maybe I've just been lucky?

[The Chewbacca Defense]

I love my job. 9.5 hours a week. 2 million a month. A nice apartment with a view of the surrounding area (Dobongsan and Seongbuk-gu) with a balcony, and a great BBQ area on the roof. 20 weeks paid vacation. And best of all, all the people I work with are very sound people. I have Hyewha just down the road. Best of all, most of the places I like to hang out in are less than a 10,000 taxi ride away.

[English_Ocean]