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| Will I be able to find a job when I start hunting in October? |
| Yes |
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88% |
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| No |
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11% |
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| Total Votes : 17 |
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rooster_2006
Joined: 14 Oct 2007
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 Posted: Wed Aug 20, 2008 4:17 pm Post subject: Is there a teacher shortage at backwater public schools? |
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A while ago, I heard there was a major teacher shortage, especially in the rural areas. So much so, that the ROK government recently lowered the requirements for teaching at a public school to two years of college (I double-checked this at Seoul Immigration and the Korean embassy in Washington, D.C. in case you're doubting this).
Does the teacher shortage still exist, or has the law change filled the vacancies?
I'm hoping to find a job at a public school. Here's what's working against me:
- I only have two years of college, not a bachelor's degree, though this is now okay under the new E-2 regulations.
- I am hunting in the off-season.
This is what's working for me:
- I speak advanced Korean (graduated from the Yonsei University Korean Language Institute).
- I have CELTA.
- I have lived in Korea for over four years, I'm a lower midnight run risk and know how to survive here.
- I am most definitely a "foreigner."
I'm willing to consider any job, even in rural Jeolla or other backwater areas, as long as they pay on time and in full and don't make me commute excessively. |
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IncognitoHFX
Joined: 06 May 2007
Location: Yeongtong, Suwon
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| Posted: Wed Aug 20, 2008 4:24 pm Post subject: |
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Sounds like you belong here, but I'm not sure anyone can answer you because none of us have witnessed a person come without a BA or higher (yet). You might be the first.
Are you sure the two year acceptance thing is just for rural schools? I think it's nationwide. You shouldn't *have* to be in the middle of nowhere. |
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MrRogers
Joined: 29 Jun 2008
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| Posted: Wed Aug 20, 2008 5:12 pm Post subject: |
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they certainly will need teachers in the rural southern provincial provinces...they are good at keeping to the contract regarding salary, etc.
just make sure you have decent accommodations...
one-room bunkers are the mentality |
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bassexpander
Joined: 13 Sep 2007
Location: Someplace you'd rather be.
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| Posted: Wed Aug 20, 2008 5:20 pm Post subject: |
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You will have no problem with the TALK program, given that they take 2 year degrees. The downsides are that it's in rural areas (which you don't seem to mind), pays less (I heard around 1.7, but I could be wrong), and you may have to live homestay with a Korean family.
I bet you'd freak them out with your excellent Korean skills.
The TALK program is your best bet.
I will PM you with an e-mail of a guy who is involved with it. |
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rooster_2006
Joined: 14 Oct 2007
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| Posted: Wed Aug 20, 2008 8:23 pm Post subject: |
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| IncognitoHFX wrote: |
| Are you sure the two year acceptance thing is just for rural schools? I think it's nationwide. You shouldn't *have* to be in the middle of nowhere. |
You're right, it's nationwide. It's just that I doubt I could find a job in a major city, and even if I could, I wouldn't want to. Since rural jobs seem to be easier to find, it's a win-win situation.  |
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Yesterday
Joined: 15 Aug 2003
Location: Land of the Morning DongChim (Kancho)
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| Posted: Wed Aug 20, 2008 11:36 pm Post subject: Re: Is there a teacher shortage at backwater public schools? |
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| rooster_2006 wrote: |
- I am most definitely a "foreigner."[/b] |
F4 visa? Gyopo? (Not that theres anything wrong with that).. |
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hugekebab
Joined: 05 Jan 2008
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| Posted: Thu Aug 21, 2008 4:41 am Post subject: |
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| bassexpander wrote: |
You will have no problem with the TALK program, given that they take 2 year degrees. The downsides are that it's in rural areas (which you don't seem to mind), pays less (I heard around 1.7, but I could be wrong), and you may have to live homestay with a Korean family.
I bet you'd freak them out with your excellent Korean skills.
The TALK program is your best bet.
I will PM you with an e-mail of a guy who is involved with it. |
Everyone on here said it really sucks though. (If it's on Dave's then it must be true.) |
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Underwaterbob
Joined: 08 Jan 2005
Location: In Cognito
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| Posted: Thu Aug 21, 2008 6:23 am Post subject: |
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Honestly it sounds like you are more qualified than most E2 holders with Korean language skills and CELTA, but...
Don't know anyone here teaching without at least a B.A.
That said, yes, the rural schools are desperate for English teachers. I teach in a rural area and I'd say probably 80% of the public schools around here have no foreign English instructor and want one. |
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Draz
Joined: 27 Jun 2007
Location: Land of Morning Clam
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| Posted: Thu Aug 21, 2008 7:09 am Post subject: |
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| Underwaterbob wrote: |
Honestly it sounds like you are more qualified than most E2 holders with Korean language skills and CELTA, but...
Don't know anyone here teaching without at least a B.A.
That said, yes, the rural schools are desperate for English teachers. I teach in a rural area and I'd say probably 80% of the public schools around here have no foreign English instructor and want one. |
Gyopos can teach in public schools without a BA, and without the TALK program. |
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rooster_2006
Joined: 14 Oct 2007
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| Posted: Thu Aug 21, 2008 9:29 pm Post subject: |
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Just to clarify, I'm not a gyopo.
Thanks for your feedback, ladies and gentlemen. I'm glad to see that 88% of respondents think I can find a job.
Not that it really changes anything (I'd still try to go job hunting anyway), but now I have a little more faith in my plan. |
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rooster_2006
Joined: 14 Oct 2007
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| Posted: Thu Aug 21, 2008 9:34 pm Post subject: |
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| hugekebab wrote: |
| bassexpander wrote: |
You will have no problem with the TALK program, given that they take 2 year degrees. The downsides are that it's in rural areas (which you don't seem to mind), pays less (I heard around 1.7, but I could be wrong), and you may have to live homestay with a Korean family.
I bet you'd freak them out with your excellent Korean skills.
The TALK program is your best bet.
I will PM you with an e-mail of a guy who is involved with it. |
Everyone on here said it really sucks though. (If it's on Dave's then it must be true.) |
I have gathered that, too. It sounds like they treat their "interns" like kids -- I can just picture mandatory orientations where they say "and this is kimchi." "Now this is how you hold chopsticks."
No thank you!
Furthermore, the TaLK program has extremely rigid deadlines and only pays 1.5 million a month, I've heard, as opposed to the 1.8 I can make at a public school (1.6 base salary for two years of college, plus two 100,000 won upgrades for my CELTA and teaching in the countryside). I'm desperate enough that I might consider TaLK if it weren't for the set-in-stone deadlines that I simply couldn't meet, but fortunately, there's been a broader deregulation. The main problem is reeducating potential employers to realize this, because these guys don't exactly read about new E-2 regulations over their morning coffee. |
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TheUrbanMyth
Joined: 28 Jan 2003
Location: Retired
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| Posted: Thu Aug 21, 2008 9:46 pm Post subject: |
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| rooster_2006 wrote: |
| hugekebab wrote: |
| bassexpander wrote: |
You will have no problem with the TALK program, given that they take 2 year degrees. The downsides are that it's in rural areas (which you don't seem to mind), pays less (I heard around 1.7, but I could be wrong), and you may have to live homestay with a Korean family.
I bet you'd freak them out with your excellent Korean skills.
The TALK program is your best bet.
I will PM you with an e-mail of a guy who is involved with it. |
Everyone on here said it really sucks though. (If it's on Dave's then it must be true.) |
I have gathered that, too. It sounds like they treat their "interns" like kids -- I can just picture mandatory orientations where they say "and this is kimchi." "Now this is how you hold chopsticks."
No thank you!
Furthermore, the TaLK program has extremely rigid deadlines and only pays 1.5 million a month, I've heard, as opposed to the 1.8 I can make at a public school (1.6 base salary for two years of college, plus two 100,000 won upgrades for my CELTA and teaching in the countryside). I'm desperate enough that I might consider TaLK if it weren't for the set-in-stone deadlines that I simply couldn't meet, but fortunately, there's been a broader deregulation. The main problem is reeducating potential employers to realize this, because these guys don't exactly read about new E-2 regulations over their morning coffee. |
There's been a broader deregulation? When? Last I heard if you were not part of the TALK program then you couldn't teach without a B.A...unless you were a gyopo or something. |
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rooster_2006
Joined: 14 Oct 2007
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| Posted: Thu Aug 21, 2008 10:25 pm Post subject: |
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| TheUrbanMyth wrote: |
| There's been a broader deregulation? When? Last I heard if you were not part of the TALK program then you couldn't teach without a B.A...unless you were a gyopo or something. |
It's a VERY recent deregulation. I think it happened last month. It's real, though. I checked up on it with the Korean embassy in Washington, D.C. and with an in-person visit to the immigration office in Seoul. These are the new rules:
- You still need a bachelor's degree to teach at a hagwon. Not that I had the slightest interest in teaching at one anyway.
- The law only affects public schools (elementary, middle, and high schools are now all fair game if you have two years of college or more).
- The law affects the entire country. In theory, if I wanted to find a job in Seoul, that would be fine if I could find someone who wanted to employ me.
- In some extremely backwater localities (maybe Jeollanam-do, I don't know), you may be able to get away with even less than two years of college. Both my sources at the immigration office and the embassy told me that it's now an issue of getting permission of the provincial Ministry of Education. If they approve you, then you can generally get an E-2.
- Interestingly enough, unlike hagwons, an interview is supposedly not required.
- Credits from a Korean language institute do not automatically count as normal college-level credits. Normally, the Ministry of Education only permits 25% of an applicant's course load to be in the form of Korean language credits from a Korean school, which is kind of ridiculous (read: two years of auto repair is considered superior to two years of Korean). HOWEVER, there is fortunately a roundabout loophole to this rather ridiculous and ironic regulation. If all the Korean credits are transfered to a US university and a transcript is obtained showing them recognized by the US school, then they can count just like a class in auto repair or surfing and beach management would (which are of course more beneficial to one's English teaching than Korean is).
- The salary structure for the new teachers with two years of college is as follows:
1.6 million won a month for just two years of college
1.7 million won a month for CELTA OR teaching in the countryside
1.8 million won a month for CELTA AND teaching in the countryside (what I plan to do)
So as you can see, I've done my homework, and I hope this information helps someone (but not before I've grabbed the best job for myself ).
Last edited by rooster_2006 on Thu Aug 21, 2008 10:39 pm; edited 2 times in total |
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losing_touch
Joined: 26 Jun 2008
Location: Ulsan - I think!
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| Posted: Thu Aug 21, 2008 10:31 pm Post subject: |
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| There have been no updates regarding this on the immigration website. I also think you need to be part of the talk program. |
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rooster_2006
Joined: 14 Oct 2007
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| Posted: Thu Aug 21, 2008 10:38 pm Post subject: |
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| losing_touch wrote: |
| There have been no updates regarding this on the immigration website. I also think you need to be part of the talk program. |
Read my above post.
The immigration website is almost never updated. It's a sad wreck. Don't trust anything on there. They will be especially hesitant to post anything that would allow more foreigners to come and work here -- it's the local Ministries of Education that want us here, not the Immigration Bureau. |
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