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tlord1986
Joined: 18 Feb 2009
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 Posted: Fri Mar 06, 2009 9:42 am Post subject: Salary |
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| What is the typical starting salary for an English teacher in a hagwon? I have a BA in English and an online TEFL cert, so I have some background. I have heard very different figures from some people, so I thought I better ask if there is a general amount I should be expecting. |
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berrieh
Joined: 10 Feb 2009
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| Posted: Fri Mar 06, 2009 11:59 am Post subject: Re: Salary |
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| tlord1986 wrote: |
| What is the typical starting salary for an English teacher in a hagwon? I have a BA in English and an online TEFL cert, so I have some background. I have heard very different figures from some people, so I thought I better ask if there is a general amount I should be expecting. |
I just went through the rigamaroll to find a job recently. In my experience, it depends upon:
-Where you want to work (hagwon or public - uni is hard to do from overseas)
-How good your pictures are
-How good your voice sounds/phone interview
-How many hours you want to work/how much work you want to do
-What location you want/how picky you are about age group
But mainly:
-How patient you are at sifting through offers
Recently, my range of offers was from 2.1-2.9 hagwons (I didn't pick the best pay as the hours were ungodly); in a public school, I'd make between 2.0-2.1 (non-rural), depending on what region.
There's plenty of information on Dave's. Do a search and just keep looking at various job offers. I chose a school when I felt fully comfortable with it... but I was very picky and looking for something very specific in terms of the type of school but more open to start date, age range, and location. I had a salary range in mind, but it was pretty broad. Salary is not everything (unless it is too low, and then it becomes quite a big deal!). |
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linky123
Joined: 12 Feb 2009
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| Posted: Fri Mar 06, 2009 12:02 pm Post subject: |
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It all depends how you apply and present yourself. Unlike the PS jobs, the salary ranges is not set with hagwons. Some will offer you 2 mil while other offer you 4 mil. You should also do your homework and go over every detail of the employment. Some may offer you 4 mil per month but you'd have to put in 10 hours of work including overtime while some institute can offer you 2.5 mil with minimal hours. Watch out for split shifts like 6:30 am to 11:30am and 7pm to 11pm. You will burn out or worse catch some chronic disease.
Apply to any and all positions until you find what you like and do some research s to the location, the hagwon you are applying, age of the students and any other loop holes or traps. |
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tlord1986
Joined: 18 Feb 2009
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| Posted: Fri Mar 06, 2009 2:17 pm Post subject: |
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| So, in essence, the best thing I can do is know what I want? I know I'm not going to be picky about what hours I work (as long as they are not split shifts or really excessive hours). I'm not too picky about location either, but I would prefer a slightly smaller city than Seoul or Busan. (Bucheon and Ansan sound nice from what research I've done.) I am interested in working for a public school or a university, but I will be okay working at a hagwon too. |
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Milwaukiedave
Joined: 02 Oct 2004
Location: Goseong
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| Posted: Fri Mar 06, 2009 10:57 pm Post subject: |
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| Most universities hire for March and September. The hiring for September will likely start in May or June (for March it starts in December). Positions at universities are competitive and often require some experience (though I have heard of some hiring people with no experience). |
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eIn07912
Joined: 06 Dec 2008
Location: seoul
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| Posted: Sat Mar 07, 2009 6:35 am Post subject: |
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| tlord1986 wrote: |
| So, in essence, the best thing I can do is know what I want? I know I'm not going to be picky about what hours I work (as long as they are not split shifts or really excessive hours). I'm not too picky about location either, but I would prefer a slightly smaller city than Seoul or Busan. (Bucheon and Ansan sound nice from what research I've done.) I am interested in working for a public school or a university, but I will be okay working at a hagwon too. |
with no teaching experience? coming from overseas? semesters just started, hiring was done long ago. i'd say ur pretty SOL on that end. better start taking the hagwon offers more seriously as thats gonna be 99.9% of the offers u get this time of year. if a uni or ps is trying to hire to start asap there must be something wrong with that job. ask urself why wouldnt they have someone working now or at least be looking for someone in country?
i get sick of newbies thinking they can just hook up on the jobs some of us have put years into trying to get. hagwons were made for n00bs. most of us have paid our dues there and others should too. plus a ps or uni jobs comes with tons of extra responsibilities for that pay and vacation time. hagwons r great to just come in, punch the clock, speak a little engrish, then go do ur own thing. workout, take taekwondo lessons, date, drink, party, travel, whatever.
who's to say ur gonna like teaching and living here anyways? some people think its gonna be great and then they pull a runner two months in. get a hagwon job dude/lady. try it on for size for a year. if it fits u then uve got every right to be considered for one of the few hundred coveted uni or ps school jobs. if not, then ur just one of the thousands each year that did the hagwon thing and left. thats what hagwons expect. ps and unis want someone they know is gonna be here and know their way around a classroom. thats y they tend to hire people that already have a visa and r in country. |
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twaddle
Joined: 08 Jan 2009
Location: seoul
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| Posted: Sat Mar 07, 2009 7:39 am Post subject: |
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| Milwaukiedave wrote: |
| Most universities hire for March and September. The hiring for September will likely start in May or June (for March it starts in December). Positions at universities are competitive and often require some experience (though I have heard of some hiring people with no experience). |
So in August they'll be scrambling as usual...after their "sure things" have peed off. That is when your "no experience" guys jump. Same stuff, another round. |
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berrieh
Joined: 10 Feb 2009
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| Posted: Sat Mar 07, 2009 1:01 pm Post subject: |
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| eIn07912 wrote: |
| i get sick of newbies thinking they can just hook up on the jobs some of us have put years into trying to get. hagwons were made for n00bs. most of us have paid our dues there and others should too. plus a ps or uni jobs comes with tons of extra responsibilities for that pay and vacation time. hagwons r great to just come in, punch the clock, speak a little engrish, then go do ur own thing. workout, take taekwondo lessons, date, drink, party, travel, whatever. |
I'd think a PS job would be easier for a newbie with no teaching experience whatsoever - less teaching hours and a co-teacher with them in every class. That's more support than many of the hagwon jobs I considered. Of course, there are likely some low stress hagwon jobs, but finding them seems like a crapshoot.
I didn't go with PS because of the recruitment times, pay scale, and most of all - having no idea precisely where you would be placed and no way to talk to your supervisor before accepting (if coming out of country), but I don't see why it's a bad option for newbies. PS recruits plenty of newbies each time from what I can tell. |
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DCJames
Joined: 27 Jul 2006
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| Posted: Sat Mar 07, 2009 5:52 pm Post subject: Re: Salary |
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| tlord1986 wrote: |
| What is the typical starting salary for an English teacher in a hagwon? I have a BA in English and an online TEFL cert, so I have some background. I have heard very different figures from some people, so I thought I better ask if there is a general amount I should be expecting. |
At least 5 million won. |
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linky123
Joined: 12 Feb 2009
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| Posted: Sun Mar 08, 2009 12:46 am Post subject: Re: Salary |
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| DCJames wrote: |
| tlord1986 wrote: |
| What is the typical starting salary for an English teacher in a hagwon? I have a BA in English and an online TEFL cert, so I have some background. I have heard very different figures from some people, so I thought I better ask if there is a general amount I should be expecting. |
At least 5 million won. |
lol. What are you smoking? Whatever it is, I'd like to have some. |
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Big Mac
Joined: 17 Sep 2005
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| Posted: Sun Mar 08, 2009 5:52 am Post subject: |
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Berrieh, you seem to be one of those people who knows everything about Korea before even stepping foot on Korean soil.
Public schools are not the walk in the park you think they are. Dealing with a co-teacher can actually be more stressful than teaching by yourself in a hogwan. You are often very isolated in a public school. You are usually expected to run the class by yourself because your co-teacher often cannot even speak English.
How can you suggest that something is good for a newbie when you are a pre-newbie yourself? |
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berrieh
Joined: 10 Feb 2009
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| Posted: Sun Mar 08, 2009 5:58 am Post subject: |
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| Big Mac wrote: |
Berrieh, you seem to be one of those people who knows everything about Korea before even stepping foot on Korean soil.
Public schools are not the walk in the park you think they are. Dealing with a co-teacher can actually be more stressful than teaching by yourself in a hogwan. You are often very isolated in a public school. You are usually expected to run the class by yourself because your co-teacher often cannot even speak English.
How can you suggest that something is good for a newbie when you are a pre-newbie yourself? |
I'm saying it seems to be. Many people suggested PS would be easier for me... people here and elsewhere who aren't newbies, including 2 close friends currently in Korea. True, others suggested hagwons would be easier, but most told me PS. I opted for hagwon, based on the ability to speak with the people I'd be working directly with beforehand, knowing the exact location, and far better pay. But I put in a lot of research on everything to assure myself I'd be paid on-time, etc. And I also have the finances and temperment to weather problems.
I thought I'd made it clear most times I posted that I'm responding based on a compilation of research and advice. That said, I've been researching intently for a long while, and I've cast a wide net in fact-finding. There are those that say direct experience is the only experience worth having, but I think research useful too because it allows one to see a wide range of experiences.
There's going to be stress either way. It really depends on the person which stress is best for them (at least that's my belief, based on research). My point was that many newbies start at PS because I know that to be factually true. Your post implied everyone starts at hagwons.
Last edited by berrieh on Mon Mar 09, 2009 10:39 am; edited 2 times in total |
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eIn07912
Joined: 06 Dec 2008
Location: seoul
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| Posted: Sun Mar 08, 2009 6:14 am Post subject: |
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| berrieh wrote: |
| Big Mac wrote: |
Berrieh, you seem to be one of those people who knows everything about Korea before even stepping foot on Korean soil.
Public schools are not the walk in the park you think they are. Dealing with a co-teacher can actually be more stressful than teaching by yourself in a hogwan. You are often very isolated in a public school. You are usually expected to run the class by yourself because your co-teacher often cannot even speak English.
How can you suggest that something is good for a newbie when you are a pre-newbie yourself? |
I'm saying it seems to be. Many people suggested PS would be easier for me... who aren't newbies. Others suggested hagwons would be easier. I opted for hagwon, based on the ability to speak with the people I'd be working directly with beforehand, knowing the exact location, and far better pay.
I have two friends in Korea - one works at a hagwon (7 months now), another started with SMOE just now (he said more than half of the people he met there had never taught anything anywhere before and almost everyone was new to Korea - then again, they may not make those not-new take the orientation, I don't know for sure). So, I've heard their experiences directly too, in addition to advice.
There's going to be stress either way. It really depends on the person which stress is best for them. Not getting paid on time could be more stressful to many than dealing with 2x the number of children; some people can't work at 9pm, but work brilliantly at 9am... some are different. My point was that many newbies start at PS because I know that to be factually true. Your post implied everyone starts at hagwons. |
i dont know where people keep getting this "better pay at hogwons" stuff.
ive been at a PS and hogwon and my ps salary far exceeds my hogwon pay. by a million won a month to be exact. and most hogwons i know pay their teachers like 2.0-2.4 max. new teachers at my school start at 2.9 i make 3.0 and get 3 months paid vacation a year. i dont have a co-teacher, my class is my class. yeah there is some extra work, like making lesson plans, tons of meetings, curriculum building and such. but i teach less than 30 hrs a week so i have tons time for it. at my old hogwon i was teaching 35 hrs a week.
so in my opinion, except for the extra course building work, PS jobs r easier and better than hogwons. but i believe they should be reserved for teachers with some level of experience here and have paid their dues and put the time in to deserve those jobs. not for some n00b thats gonna make a run 2 or 3 months in
also, theres not much job security in hogwons. they could literally be open on friday and closed down on monday. dont laugh, ive seen it happen. hogwons r business first, schools second. so its about the money. usually u get some greedy hogwon owner that doesnt care about the education they r providing just getting those tuition fees each month. and they will be quick to take advantage of u if u dont know ur rights. im sure we've all heard tales of not getting paid on time, not getting over time pay, etc... |
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berrieh
Joined: 10 Feb 2009
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| Posted: Sun Mar 08, 2009 6:21 am Post subject: |
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| eIn07912 wrote: |
| ive been at a PS and hogwon and my ps salary far exceeds my hogwon pay. by a million won a month to be exact. and most hogwons i know pay their teachers like 2.0-2.4 max. new teachers at my school start at 2.9 i make 3.0 and get 3 months paid vacation a year. i dont have a co-teacher, my class is my class. yeah there is some extra work, like making lesson plans, tons of meetings, curriculum building and such. but i teach less than 30 hrs a week so i have tons time for it. at my old hogwon i was teaching 35 hrs a week. |
I meant better pay for newbies, specifically. The PS scale would start me off at 2.0-2.1 (2.2 rural) depending on location, and I wouldn't get to pick my school directly from abroad. I signed a hagwon job for much more than that - sure, I teach 30 hours instead of 22, but I wanted 30 hours and couldn't be assured I'd get a PS where there would be overtime available since I couldn't pick my school.
If you're in-country and can pick a specific PS, I'd think PS would be great! But I'm talking about going through EPIK, GEPIK, SMOE...
How do you not have a co-teacher in a public school? Isn't that the rule? I'd be curious to know...
I think the "pay your dues" attitude is silly in terms of "newbies shouldn't get ____ job". Should or shouldn't doesn't matter. Sure, there's some merit to the idea, and sure time spent in-country should be considered, but newbies get PS jobs. They get lots of them.
Probably if you're in-country you can pick the better PS jobs first. But everyone is going to have a completely different set of variables they bring to the table and a different amount of luck in leveraging those variables.
P.S. Yes, the job security thing is a concern. Then again, I'm no stranger to low job security...and I tried to do my research.  |
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Big Mac
Joined: 17 Sep 2005
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| Posted: Sun Mar 08, 2009 6:42 am Post subject: |
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I guess your careful research didn't factor in some other things that make public schools lucrative, berrieh.
Like I said, it's no walk in the park at a public school. But I also make significantly more money at a public school than I did at a hogwan. If you look at my base pay (2.3 for 3 years of experience) it doesn't look that great. You can't just look at the base pay.
First of all, my sucky location gives me an extra 300,000 Won a month in rural allowances on top of that base pay.
Then there are after school classes that you can teach during the hours that you would otherwise be seatwarming. Depending on how they pay you, you could make a million or more doing those classes.
The things I have learned working at hogwans have made me a much better public school teacher. I can't imagine being able to do this job well without that experience under my belt, because you certainly don't get the same kind of support or training in a public school that you would get at a hogwan. So it isn't a job for newbies, in my opinion. A newbie can do it, but probably not as well.
You're right, doing your research can be very valuable and good on you for doing it. But don't go talking like you know it all until you've done some time in the trenches.
Last edited by Big Mac on Sun Mar 08, 2009 6:47 am; edited 1 time in total |
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