Korean Job Discussion Forums

[supernaut]

If anyone has any advice, I would greatly appreciate it.

First of all, I am from Nova Scotia, Canada, graduated from a French high school and a French University, but my English class all the way through (primary to 12) was English as a first language, the reason for this is they want to save the French language because we are surounded by English speaking people.

We are 100% bilingual (my dad is technically French and mom is technically English, but they speak both languages equally well). Both have always worked in English businesses, as did I for the 3 jobs I had before coming to Korea.

I applied for a job, did a phone interview, they hired me, and I did the whole visa process, however a plane ticket was bought before going through the Korean consulate in Montreal. My flight was leaving on a Tuesday and my visa got rejected the Friday before.

I guess I panicked, my visa got returned and I jumped on the plane, because I don't understand why I got rejected. After doing this, I found out that the same thing happened to a guy who graduated from the same high school and university as me, and he got his visa in Fukuoka (after he got rejected in Montreal. He said he got a new visa # and told the Consulate in Japan that he had his visa rejected in Montreal. He didn't go in any details, but he told me that his school and recruter had to get involved.

I'm not sure what to do because it takes 3 months to get a new visa # (i'm almost 1 month in), but I'm already in Korea and need to start work pronto. Any advice would be appreciated, I don't understand why I got rejected because my English is flawless (there are plenty of longtimers in Korea now from my region), my recruter had no objections in helping me and the director hired me. I've even helped (assistant) at an ESL school in Nova Scotia in the past.

I would like to go to Fukuoka within the week to apply for my visa and not get rejected. Help please!!!

[Fresh Prince]

So, your visa was rejected but you flew to Korea anyway? When I was in Canada they checked for visas before allowing people on the plane. It sounds odd that they would let you board without a visa.

So, you live in a French speaking city where your day to day life was speaking French, except for your English classes and trips to out of town shopping malls where you spoke English. You went to a French speaking high school, went to a French speaking university, and now are trying to pass yourself off as a native English speaker? That's probably why the Korean government denied your E-2 visa.

Have you considered looking for work as a French teacher? It sounds like you would have more luck in that field.

[BigBuds]

Which university did you attend?

Some french Candaian university BAs are no longer accepted by Korean immigration for an E-2 visa. I have the ist of them but not right now. I'll put it up later.

[jay-shi]

I think the French university was the red flag at the consulate for denying your visa. If anything the Montreal consulate is probably wise enough to know which universities are French and which are English. I am from a francophone background but did all my post-secondary studies in English and never had a problem. They usually only grant visas to people who attended English universities, in E2 granted countries. Although I've read on here that people from other countries were granted E2 visas if their major in uni was English. What was your major?

[Mr. BlackCat]

Well, I worked with a guy who went to a French University in Canada and still got a visa. He's from NS as well but that was almost 2 years ago. You know how things change here. But his English was very, very good. Fully bilingual. I worked with French guy who went to an English University but his English was questionable at best. You want to 'play' ice skating? Okie-dokey...

I've also worked and met fully English people here who could, to put it mildly, brush up on their language skills.

I'd say give it a shot in Japan. Its better than working without a visa.

[jay-shi]

[tomwaits]

I guess the lesson here is when in doubt go to the Toronto or Vancouver consul..

It's pretty aburd though

[poet13]

OP's English is better than many posters here.... ok, ok, a few run-on sentences, but you wouldn't know his first language wasn't English...

Goes back to the question of who should be allowed to have a visa.... should it be based on Nationality, or fluency....

[gsxr750r]

Looks like another illegal tourist visa worker just arrived in Korea.

[Gord]

I can't imagine how they may have thought your English might not be good enough to warrant a work visa.

[supernaut]

Sorry sir, but these Korean keyboards keep on doing random things to me (switching from Korean to English, erasing, etc) and after spending 1 hour in a PC Bang, I needed to leave.

I prefer writing in English (I haven't written in French in 2 years), but I didn't even do spell check after I wrote that, so sorry for the mistakes. I write quickly; so when I do professional writing, I need to check things over many times.

[Boodleheimer]

[Yu_Bum_suk]

What uni did you graduate from? The University of Ottawa is the only officially bi-lingual university in Canada.

[Pyongshin Sangja]

Immi don't accept degrees from Laval, Sherbrooke, Montreal or Moncton. Probably others, too, but what would I know.

Nobody cares where you went to high school.

A woman I know with a French first name who went to McGill even got hassled once, although that wasn't for a teaching visa.

However, be sure to try again; Immigration over here probably aren't as knowledgeable about Canadian universities and which ones are French.

[Pyongshin Sangja]

Ottawa is fine, I know a few people here who went there.