Korean Job Discussion Forums

jdog2050 · Joined: 17 Dec 2006

Wow, I just had my consulate interview...the guy who gave it seemed pretty bored. He flat out told me that very, VERY few people were going over to Korea to teach these days. Not only that, but the interview became a lame cold-call for EPIK's new "TALK" program (where undergrads teach 3 hours a day out in the boonies).

I told him that this was the hardest time, flat out, I've EVER had getting a visa (I don't even wanna go into it). No, criminals shouldn't be teaching, but there's vastly better ways to do virtually every step of this process as it is now.

First of all, make the criminal check mandatory, but how about giving a grace period so that you can come to Korea while the criminal check is processing? Let's face it, teaching in Korea is going to be a "*beep* it", spur of the moment type thing for a lot of people. Having to wait three weeks for the criminal check ruins the spontaneity of it, and options like thailand, taiwan, etc, become more attractive.

Second, the apostille; get rid of that shit. How hard is it to hire one or two kyopo's to call the appropriate office and find out if someone is legit?

Bibbitybop · Joined: 22 Feb 2006 Location: Seoul

jdog2050 · Joined: 17 Dec 2006

rumdiary · Joined: 05 Jun 2006

I didn't even get interviewed. I made an appointment, showed up at the consulate and was handed a form to fill out ( it asked information they should have already known like what university I graduated from).

jdog2050 · Joined: 17 Dec 2006

KrazyInKlamath · Joined: 14 Apr 2008 Location: Gyeongsan, South Korea

I went home in September 2006, stayed home for about 5 months and was required to make the trip to the Seattle consulate because I was "getting a new visa and it is part of the new rules." It was the most useless thing I ever went through. The "interviewer" asked me two questions from the form I already had filled out and said he would approve giving me a visa. I wanted to scream because I had spent $300 to fly up to Seattle (if I had driven it would have taken about 12 hours due to the fact I would be going over winter passes) for a five minute interview. It is ridiculous. Sorry to tell you Korea, but it takes longer than 5 hours to get to many places in the US. At least I didn't have to go to San Francisco from Wyoming.

isak · Joined: 14 May 2008 Location: South Korea?

My Chicago interview was non-existent, and my turn around time for the passport was like 2 days, but it's nothing to what Toronto is like.

My friend said he essentially camped out at the consulate for 5 days, and kept getting hassled by some chick who worked there. In the end he said that she was forced by her boss to give him an apology for her actions.

Sorta rediculous, I'm glad I just had to send my check in and call it a day.

SirFink · Joined: 05 Mar 2006

It blows my mind that anyone who doesn't live within, say, a 30-minute drive of a consulate, would even bother with this crap. I remember a guy on here a few months back saying he drove 4 hours to Houston for the interview. Now a guy says he spent $300 to fly to Seattle for a 5 minute interview? I can't believe it. I told every school I interviewed with, flat out, that I wouldn't do the in-person interview. They want to call me and ask me a couple stupid questions, fine.

rumdiary · Joined: 05 Jun 2006

jdog2050 · Joined: 17 Dec 2006

I didn't even wanna post this tidbit because I'm still super annoyed by it, but I forgot my transcripts (I should have called, but going to the immigration website, there's NOTHING about having transcripts for the consulate too, and that's if you can even find the f'in requirements anymore because someone seems to be playing hide and seek with them), and, after asking the office drone if I could just have fedex ship them to *her* so that she'd have them first thing in the morning, she's like, "oh no, it must be handed in"...WHY? How in the hell am *I* more official than the documents coming *straight* from the school? Again, luckily I'm just staying with family in Seattle and was planning on being here for a week anyway. If I'd flown in and something weird happened, I'd flip my shit.

So here I am, wasting yet another transcript despite the fact that two or three of the damned things are collecting dust in file cabinet somewhere; point being that they have multiple copies of my transcript from my previous tenures in Korea...but they need another, and another, and if I apply again, another. It's insane.

Tarkaan · Joined: 09 Mar 2008

Bibbitybop · Joined: 22 Feb 2006 Location: Seoul

jdog, were your transcript sent to Korea first, or sent to the consulate first.

In Korea, I can give my documents to my employer and immigration. Then all I need is the visa issuance number, my passport, the money, some photos and the visa form. No repeat documents are needed (like degrees or transcripts).

It does say on either the immigration or consulate website I looked at that a video conference interview could be conducted when face-to-face isn't possible. Traveling more than 4 hours one way should be excluded if a video conference will suffice.

jdog2050 · Joined: 17 Dec 2006

DongtanTony · Joined: 22 Feb 2008 Location: Bundang

icicle · Joined: 09 Feb 2007 Location: Gyeonggi do Korea

I did my visa application through Sydney ... and didn't need the interview because I had been before ... But did have a "different" experience with the transcript issue ... I knew that I might need transcript as part of that process (even though Seoul already had them) ... So I had sealed copies of the transcripts with me ... In approved format ... And they didn't want sealed transcripts they just wanted a copy of one ... So opened the sealed transcript ... took a photocopy of it ... I even offered the original ... and gave me back the now unsealed original ... I could live with it (I have more copies ...) ... But after all the hassle of signed/sealed transcripts ... It was strange more than anything ...