Korean Job Discussion Forums

cubanlord · Joined: 08 Jul 2005 Location: In Japan!

http://www.eslcafe.com/jobs/korea/index.cgi?read=31237

Do you guys think this is better than the others being offered at like 1.7 (does anyone have that link...I can't find the thread)?

makemischief · Joined: 04 Nov 2005 Location: Traveling

Better than 1.7 sure, but not great. It's a good starter- there's a Facebook group called survivors of Wonju- might want to ask them. Smile

Here:
http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=2354919704

ajgeddes · Joined: 28 Apr 2004 Location: Yongsan

Not much pay for 24 hours a week.

Ut videam · Joined: 07 Dec 2007 Location: Pocheon-si, Gyeonggi-do

Sounds like a unigwon, what with the mention of "auxiliary programs" in there.

I echo the previous poster re: 24 hours/week being a lot of contact hours, and in light of the unigwon clues I'd be interested to know if split shifts are involved.

cubanlord · Joined: 08 Jul 2005 Location: In Japan!

purple_buddha · Joined: 18 Apr 2003

PRagic · Joined: 24 Feb 2006

Even if it is a 'university position', it's a farce. The ad screams of a culture of disrespect toward foreign teachers.

Basically, the deal is, "Ok, so we have foreign instructors to teach our basic English classes, but can't we get them to do more?"

"Oh, well, why don't we have them [add innane classes and money making schemes here]."

When I was in ESL, I couldn't stand places that did this. Notice that you only get 12 weeks of vacation, not the full 5 months, too.

And someone asked on another thread what the true meaning of 'professor' is. Well, in Korea, this job pretty much sums up what ISN'T, and how Koreans translate this into work duties!

prairiemaker · Joined: 02 Jan 2008

I work at another university in Wonju. I have met a few people that work there, but have never worked there myself. Two people I met were very unhappy with Yonsei's academy because they could not stand the two Canadians who where running the place. For whatever reason the contracts were not renewed and they were very angry and vocal about this. They were not professors as Yonsei�s Wonju campus has only two full time English professors. They get the five months off and other perks that go with being a professor in Korea. I have met one of the professors.

Like all jobs, the job you�re asking about has some problems. I have met really nice people there and a couple of people who honestly I can not stand. I would say it is better than some jobs and worse than others. The three months off beat my first job by 70 days. It is not a professor�s post and is a university hagwon, but it seems at the top end of university hagwons.

On Wonju, some people really like it others do not. The biggest complaint is not much night life.

Hope this helps.

PRagic · Joined: 24 Feb 2006

For what it's worth, I was offered an interview with Yonsei's campus there when I was finishing up my Ph.D. It was for a tenure track gig in a non-English department. They wanted the newbie to carry a 4 course per semester load, pretty much double what other programs demand. When I found that out, I turned the interview down over the phone.

I think that their reasoning is that people who apply there can't get jobs elsewhere so they're more apt to bend over. If someone has the right qualifications, I just can't see bothering.

Thiuda · Posted: Mon May 19, 2008 6:52 pm Post subject:

I think the Yonsei gig is pretty good; as a starter position for someone who does not have a masters, or does have a masters and no teaching experience.

Like prairiemaker, I've gotten mixed reviews from people who have worked there. Some say there is too much infighting among teachers and that coordinators behave terribly towards their colleagues, others feel that the job enabled them to take better positions afterwards.

Personally, I think that teaching more than 15h/w is too much. Even if one isn't teaching content courses that require a lot of prep, the sheer amount of administrative work would be a drag on teacher performance, especially if one is expected to hold office hours as well. Also, the fact that teachers are expected to share an office among four instructors is unbelievable - it's indicative of the disrespect that Pragic was writing about.

What are the NTP positions like?

squexx · Joined: 24 Mar 2008 Location: Korea

I have some friends who worked there until last Jan. It seems they got some kind of administration change and around 14 out of 24 left. Many of them were there 3-5 years or more. There is a lot of campus theft as well, from bikes and locked scooters/motorcycles being stolen to break ins.

jodyray · Joined: 02 Jun 2008

I don't understand why the respondents to this Univ ad each have yahoo.com as an email domain name.

Isn't this an obvious red flag?