Korean Job Discussion Forums

[Novalis]

Hello all. Thanks to the regular posters for all the useful information on this site. Right now I'm in Mexico. I've been here six weeks. The first city I went to here, I was in for a month, and I couldn't find any work, so I took a job in another city that I've been working in for a little over a week, but the salary is so low that I will be losing money even though I'll be working 35 hours a week, six days a week. Jobs most likely won't open up again in Mexico until December/January. Here's the thing. Basically, I want to get out of here as it looks like I'm not going to be able to find anything in Mexico that would actually allow me to save some money, and I don't want to go to Mexico City. Korea is what I see as my next best option because at least there I could get paid for being lied to, cheated on, and stolen from.

This crappy job I'm working right now in Mexico is my first real EFL job. I just know that I want a better job, I want it to be teaching EFL, and I want it ASAP, but there's so much info on Dave's that I don't know where to start. I noticed several sites of blacklists, for instance, on the Korea Forum. I know it takes time to negotiate a good contract for a job in Korea and that there are more directors of hagwons who are scoundrels than not. How long should it take before I can get a decent job for a newbie set up in Korea, by the way? I suppose I should just keep working this crappy job in Mexico to gain experience teaching, even though I'm losing money. Can anyone throw me a bone/help point me in the right direction? Thanks in advance for any help.

[marcy]

If you can afford a plane ticket than buy one and come over here, that's your fastest route. If you want to stay in Mexico and take the time to try to find a half-decent school by phone my estimate would be two to three months before you're over here, maybe more if they want you to process your visa before you get here. For that you need your original degree, official transcripts and a Korean embassy. If you have those things mailed to you now you might save some time. Anyways, that's my guess.


Good Luck

[Austin]

If you are attractive by Korean standards, know how to dress appropriately, and have a dynamic personality, I would agree with Marcy and advise creating your own opportunities by coming to interview in person in Korea. However, if you are uneasy on the eyes, unfit, unaware of the importance of first impressions, and amazingly dull, I would suggest going through a recruiter. Though using the latter method will allow you to at least get in the door, it will not prevent you from being treated poorly, if your employer ends up being unhappy with you.

Understand, it is a business. The more students you can attract and maintain, the more secure your position will be, and the better your experience will be.

Best of luck.

[ratslash]

hey dude.

you have to take what the blacklists say with a large pinch of salt. people blacklist schools for the most pathetic of reasons. but there are plenty of bad schools out there.

and remember also, nobody ever writes about how much of good time they are having in korea. nobody ever writes how good their school is, how nice the director is. and think about it, if there were more bad than good schools there would be no english teaching industry over here.

people may disagree with about this but if i was on your situation i would apply to one of the big schools like ybm if you are worried about being screwed over. then at least you know you will be paid at the end of the month (probably!)

i'd say just fly over here if you are that fed up with mexico. it is real easy to find work over here. or you could just try and find work over the internet. but then you don't get to see the school, you don't get to meet the director (easier to lie people over an email than face to face) and you don't get to meet your fellow teachers.

good luck.

[waterbaby]

Have a look at my FAQ Sticky on the Question and Answer forum as there's lots of links there to common questions.

Here is a sample of the links provided that I think you might find useful:

Should I Just Come to Korea and Then Find Work?

A lot of people think that this is the way to go if you have the funds to pay for your own airfare and to support yourself for up to 2 months. The disadvantage is that you won't have accommodation and co-workers awaiting you.

1. Landing in Korea Without a Job?
2. Case Study: Help Me Get Over to South Korea in 4 Weeks
3. Cheap Hotels for One Month

and

How Much Money Should I Bring With Me?

Some people land in Korea with barely a cent in their pockets but manage to survive until their first pay day (usually a month later). Many hakwon Directors will give their employees an advance on their first paycheck, but don't rely soley on this. Some people come with thousands in the bank. Most people advise to come with enough money to get back to your home country in case the need arose in an emergency.

1. How Much Money to Find Work in Seoul?
2. How Much Money Did You Bring With You?
3. How Much Will I Need to Live in South Korea for 1 Year?

[chi-chi]

mods you may delete

[Novalis]

Thanks for the advice everyone. If it would take me 2 to 3 months to negotiate a contract, then I could really be in a pickle.

I'm low on money, so I really don't think flying to Korea and waiting until I find a job is an option for me. I'll need an employer to pay for my plane ticket. The problem is that the longer I stay in Mexico, the more money I will lose because the pay I'm getting right now is so horrible. I'm tempted to contact that recruiter, EZ Consulting, so I could get out of here fast. The thing is I really really don't trust recruiters at all. That leaves that recommendation for me to apply to YBM as my next best option, as far as I can tell so far from the responses I've gotten to this thread.

I checked YBM's last post in the Job ads here on Dave's. They asked for applicants to specify locations that they would consider. I'm not sure how to answer this one. How many people are in Seoul? Pusan? I just don't want to end up someplace that would be too fast paced, smoggy, crowded, full of crime, basically all the bad things I've heard about Mexico City.

At any rate, it looks like I'll be contacting YBM soon to see if I can get a decent newbie contract setup relatively quickly. How quickly do you think I could get a decent newbie contract setup with them? Regarding contracts, what and how much should I insist on as a newbie? How many hours per week? Pay per month? No split shifts or Saturdays? How many paid sick days? How many vacation days? How much should I expect to get from the language school for relocation allowance/a plane ticket and for financial assistance with the work visa? I wouldn't mind shared housing at first because I don't know anyone in Korea, but I'd like the option of being able to find my own place after a month or so. One question I have about housing is whether I'm locked into it, i.e., could I just stay in the language school's housing for a month or so until I find another place, or is staying in their place the whole year part of the contract? As a newbie, can I get away with insisting that it not be? Also, of course, I prefer teaching adults, but I'll probably need to budge on this, right? (I've heard most teachers prefer to teach adults in Korea). Alright, that's all for now. Thanks again to all who've responded.

[Son Deureo!]

NO!!!!!!!!!!!! Don't work for YBM, unless it's their adult hogwon in downtown Seoul. I've met too many YBM and ex-YBM teachers who were stuck with horrible hours and low pay. Make sure you also avoid Wonderland and Kids Herald. These are the chains with the worst reputation in Korea, and unfortunately, they're also the biggest.

Whoever said it will take you 2-3 months to get a contract is smoking crack. The job market here may have slowed down a bit, but when Korean hogwons need you, they need you ASAP. If you apply in earnest over the internet, they should be able to get you to Korea in a matter of weeks, if that.

[marcy]

About location -

Seoul is big, smoggy, not too full of crime, and not overly fast paced. If you want something smaller you might try Ansan, (a satellite city of Seoul), or Busan.

About the time frame, if you take the first school that offers you a job then yes, they could put you on a plane quite quickly but if they insist that your visa be processed before you fly then it will be longer. I looked a little suspisciously upon schools who 'suddenly' had an opening, everyone signs a year contract so really, unless someone pulls a runner, schools should know when they will need a new teacher way in advance. (I know there are various other reasons positions may open but when you're choosing a job from overseas you have to look for all the clues you can). Took my visa about five weeks to be processed and sent back to me, then I had to go to the Korean embassy and give them the paperwork for 24 hours, then you can go.

You'll probably want to stay in the housing provided because you have to put down a really, really, really large deposit on any rental and you rarely if ever get it back. Some people do negotiate an allowance instead of a place but the deposit can be a pain.

Also almost all jobs teaching adults are split shifts, so if you want adults you'll have to give in to them, but try for no Saturdays. As for contracts, do a search for contracts on this site, some people have posted theirs, you can get an idea of what's standard.

Good Luck

[Blue Flower]

It only took three weeks for me to get here, and that included an E-2 visa. Some people it can be as quick as one week. 2 - 3 months is bullocks. Depends what you're looking for. If you want a primo job, maybe at at varsity, or only adults, etc, then it will take longer, but if you don't care too much what you teach, then you will be sweet. I went through a recruiter, a NZ recruiter though, and I am in a really sweet position. Granted i am the only foriegn teacher at my school, try not to do that, it is harder to meet people, but once you do, you're sweet. I always get paid on time, got a good chuseok bonus, etc etc etc. So there are horrer stories, and to be honest i was freaking out about them, but i was lucky first time round.

Just think if you want to teach kindy or not, that is basically the biggie. and where you want to live. around seoul i think is the best. and then disco! good luck!

p.s. I could do with some duty free goodies!