Korean Job Discussion Forums

[karmarooster]

I just received an offer from CDI; i chose the hourly pay option and was offered 28,000 RKW per hour. Isn't this the bottom-line offer?

I read a post on here a while back from somewhere from Berkeley who was offered 33,000 RKW. I know Berkeley is golden in Korea. However my degree is from the University of Virginia which is ranked 23rd while Berkeley is 21st according to current US News and World Report rankings. I know that Koreans are more familiar with Berkeley bc its on the West Coast and has a certain "name recognition" in Korea that perhaps UVA doesn't have.

My degree is also in Literature, not just some generic humanities study such as sociology. Additionally, I am in the process of completing an Online TEFL certificate of 100 hours.

Can I reasonably negotiate the salary? I was thinking of asking for 30,000 based on my degree and major, and then 32,000 contingent on completion of the TEFL certificate.

Please advise if you work for CDI and negotiated your salary.


FINALLY, anyone out there work for CDI Anyang??? Hopefully I'll be seeing you in November!

[ldh2222]

make sure you take other variables into consideration as well... i.e. phone "interview", written essay, etc. etc.

[karmarooster]

not a kyopo

[PRagic]

Wow, that's the first time I've ever heard a lit major dis another major. LOL. I was always under the impression that lit was the major of last resort - somthing comparatively easy, and the department never rejects anyone.

[huck]

The bottom hourly wage is now 25000/hr. An instructor at my branch just started on that. 28000 is about average.

I don't think you can negotiate. If you do well, though, and depending on your bosses, they can adjust your hourly after six month if you deserve more.

They make their initial offer based on your university (they have their own ranking system), your relevant employment history, and your essay.

[PRagic]

Are they offering any vacation yet? Plus, I wonder what they garnish per hour. Bet THAT statistic would pop some eyes.

[pkang0202]

[runlikegump]

[yingwenlaoshi]

[karmarooster]

[karmarooster]

to add some more info:

only 7 days vacation, but i think that's CDI standard. I wanted 10 or 14. Arg.

I have no teaching experience, and little work experience - in a restaurant and in real estate. I graduated only 1 year ago.

Not sure what the poster meant about how they "garnish" the wage... housing, pension, etc isn't included in the hourly option. However they do provide 5 mil key money deposit.

Does anyone out there work for CDI, specifically in the Anyang branch? Looking for opinions about the life there.

ONE MORE THING - does anyone know the formula for real estate commission in SK? I think someone said its something about the key money + total rent, so if they key money is 5 mil and rent is 500,000, it would be like 11 mil total, some percentage of that. Is it possible to stay in a nice, new officetel in Anyang for 500k/month?

[PRagic]

1) You probably don't want an officitel if you can avoid it. The monthly 'management fees' are stupidly expensive. Try to find a decent one or two bedroom unit (not a 'one-room' place). Not only are these generally cheaper, but you pay less on a monthly basis and don't have to put up with the foot traffic in an officitel.

2) By what they 'garnish', I meant what they make off of their teachers. Do they take 75% of what students pay? By comparison, other hakwons are paying hourly teachers up to 50% of the total intake.

3) I've always considered CDI a type of con operation. Koreans love Ivy League schools, so we'll hire only Ivy. Oh, wait, that was just to begin with. Now we'll take anyone. Kyopos have no visa problems so we'll only hire Kyopos (who also don't usually get housing). Oh, wait, well, now we'll change that. Vacation? You need to be dedicated to make 'this kind of money!' Do the math. It's not really that much for the hours you work. Mandatory training! Stick to our set plan! Uh, yeah, ok. Why don't you hire real teachers rather than people with any degree (from decent schools...whatever that means) and a pulse who know how to teach. I would never work for them, now would any of the people I know. The place is leach on the wound that is mandatory English in Korea.

4) Sorry, there, runlikegump. I just calls-em-likes-I-sees-em. Sure, there are people genuinely interested in the field, I'm sure. Even my Harvard, Berkley, North Western, and Cornell Eng. Lit friends, though, couldn't find work. My buddies who went to state schools and majored in math or computers, though, are raking it in. And at all the private schools, people who HAD to pick a major eventually flopped into either Communication or Eng. Lit. It was a coin toss, and at least in Lit, you didn't have to give a lot of public talks. So just take it for what it's worth.

[runlikegump]

[PRagic]

Sounds impressive, but really all you have to do is read the books and go to class. Cliff notes do the trick for a number of classes. Plus, the prof tells you what you should think about the books. Go to class and you'll be fine.

Just like in many of the 'soft' majors, you write for the prof. You don't get an opinion unless you can finish your Ph.D., and then you can push your view on your students. Sorry, but not much weeding out happend that I saw.

The choice for many to major in lit IS indeed economic; they paid for a couple years at an expensive school, and have to choose a major they know they can graduate in or they have to leave.

For what it's worth, my Harvard lit buddy did an MBA. The Berkley lit friend did a Ph.D. and is now a prof. Took her years to finish and then get a position. Cornell lit went communications for the MA and is in PR.

Hey, I work in academia, and I don't undervalue the dicipline. My point is just that there are too many people out there trying to peddle their skill set in an unrealistic way. A lit degree does not an ESL teacher make. A lit degree is not a journalism or communication degree, where writing for specific audiences and technical writing proficiency are mandatory. And, hey, let's be honest. You don't really get into very much at the undergrad level. So, given the admitted propensity for undergrads to roll into a lit major and finish it, I'm just saying that the value of the skills earned in an undergrad degree program in this particular field should not be overemphasized, no matter the degree granting institution.

[runlikegump]