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Korean Job Discussion Forums
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caniff
Joined: 03 Feb 2004
Location: All over the map
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 Posted: Wed Apr 15, 2009 10:19 pm Post subject: |
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| Zantetsuken wrote: |
| caniff wrote: |
| eamo wrote: |
Housing is not free for English teachers in Korea. You work for that house. It's part of your compensation for the job you do. That's why you can get housing allowance if you don't want the apartment provided.
For years I've heard teachers gush about how great it is to get "free" housing......I've never understood how it could be seen as "free". |
I know, eamo. I've had it out on Dave's in the past on this subject, but the opposition (often newbies) can't seem to wrap their head around the concept.
It's no big deal to me, but let's call it a pet peeve.
Newbie/ignoramus = "I've got a really cool studio apartment!! And it's FREE!!"
Caniff =  |
Ignoramus....yeah you're definitely from Beantown..... |
What can I do? |
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Whitey Otez
Joined: 31 May 2003
Location: The suburbs of Seoul
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| Posted: Wed Apr 15, 2009 10:23 pm Post subject: Re: What is it about Korea? |
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| vegemite99 wrote: |
| I would love to know what it is exactly that everyone loves about living in Korea. Im still a 'newbie' here so I genuinely want to know what it is exactly that keeps you here?? Cheers |
An old friend called Korea, specifically Seoul, "The Velvet Ditch." It's comfortable, but it's nevertheless a ditch. You won't get promoted, you won't make enough money to support a family, but you do make enough disposable income to not worry about how you're going to make your rent and car insurance.
Most happy people in Korea have hobbies that are accessible here. Health clubs, computer games, and martial arts are common enough to do every day, and weekend hiking and travel is easily possible.
My advice to any newbie: stay two years. After that, you become one of those jaded lifers, sitting in a bar making cynical comments like those old muppets in the balcony. Try to get out and see everything, and do everything. And in your second year, move to Seoul. |
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pavement burns
Joined: 24 Sep 2006
Location: Pocheon, Kyonggido Korea
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Emeliu
Joined: 31 Mar 2009
Location: Korea, i'm OMW
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| Posted: Thu Apr 16, 2009 1:51 am Post subject: |
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| Most of these comments make me lament my choice to choose Korea with my future TESOL degree (in a few years). Seems most people are just lazy, want free housing, and an easy work load (Also, girls). Makes me feel sad and lumped into a crowd I don't like. |
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DCJames
Joined: 27 Jul 2006
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| Posted: Thu Apr 16, 2009 2:51 am Post subject: |
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| Emeliu wrote: |
| Most of these comments make me lament my choice to choose Korea with my future TESOL degree (in a few years). Seems most people are just lazy, want free housing, and an easy work load (Also, girls). Makes me feel sad and lumped into a crowd I don't like. |
The Saint of ESL Teachers is coming to Korea.
Let us worship you.
If you're too good for us, DON'T COME. |
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Whitey Otez
Joined: 31 May 2003
Location: The suburbs of Seoul
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| Posted: Thu Apr 16, 2009 2:54 am Post subject: |
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Well, Em, the thing is you gotta be you. Maybe you'll come here and never need this board again. A lot of my coolest friends never come on here, dismissing it for the riffraff that it is. You can't associate yourself with the things you see and hear, but I see your point. Think of any ordinary man, then imagine him choosing to go to Thailand on holiday. What immediate associations do you make about him, honestly?
Now imagine the thoughts running through a potential employer's mind when she sees your resume/CV and it says you were an EFL teacher in Korea. |
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crossmr
Joined: 22 Nov 2008
Location: Hwayangdong, Seoul
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| Posted: Thu Apr 16, 2009 2:59 am Post subject: |
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| tzechuk wrote: |
| eamo wrote: |
Housing is not free for English teachers in Korea. You work for that house. It's part of your compensation for the job you do. That's why you can get housing allowance if you don't want the apartment provided.
For years I've heard teachers gush about how great it is to get "free" housing......I've never understood how it could be seen as "free". |
You are so honest.. LOL.
It's *free* because there's no hard cash involved. If there's no transaction, they don't think about it, and it's free. |
And whatever housing allowance you would get is worth far less than the apartment itself, so if it isn't free, its certainly at a reduced cost.
If I got 300,000 as an allowance (3,600,000 for the year) its certainly to my advantage to take the apartment unless I can find a good landlord and I plan on staying multiple years. Anyone staying 1 or 2 years who doesn't have good contacts could be throwing out 5 or 10 m and hoping and praying they're ever going to see that money again. |
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jinks
Joined: 27 Oct 2004
Location: Formerly: Lower North Island
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| Posted: Thu Apr 16, 2009 3:07 am Post subject: Re: What is it about Korea? |
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| Whitey Otez wrote: |
My advice to any newbie: stay two years. After that, you become one of those jaded lifers, sitting in a bar making cynical comments like those old muppets in the balcony. Try to get out and see everything, and do everything. And in your second year, move to Seoul. |
I'm not sure about the 'jaded lifer' after two years thing. I'm in my fifth year in Korea and I don't sit around in bars making cynical comments. After my second year, I moved from rural Gyeongnam to a university closer to Daegu. Now I'm at a university nearer Seoul (just started my third year at this job). You are right about finding interests that are accessible - but that applies to wherever you live, at home or abroad. The same goes for being a jaded barfly. I think it is the individual's personality that (to a large degree) influences how content/jaded he or she is - not where s/he lives. |
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gregoriomills
Joined: 02 Mar 2009
Location: Busan, Korea
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| Posted: Thu Apr 16, 2009 3:12 am Post subject: Re: What is it about Korea? |
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| Whitey Otez wrote: |
| My advice to any newbie: stay two years....And in your second year, move to Seoul. |
Expand on this pls. |
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Mr. Pink
Joined: 21 Oct 2003
Location: China
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| Posted: Thu Apr 16, 2009 3:22 am Post subject: Re: What is it about Korea? |
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| Whitey Otez wrote: |
| vegemite99 wrote: |
| I would love to know what it is exactly that everyone loves about living in Korea. Im still a 'newbie' here so I genuinely want to know what it is exactly that keeps you here?? Cheers |
An old friend called Korea, specifically Seoul, "The Velvet Ditch." It's comfortable, but it's nevertheless a ditch. You won't get promoted, you won't make enough money to support a family, but you do make enough disposable income to not worry about how you're going to make your rent and car insurance.
Most happy people in Korea have hobbies that are accessible here. Health clubs, computer games, and martial arts are common enough to do every day, and weekend hiking and travel is easily possible.
My advice to any newbie: stay two years. After that, you become one of those jaded lifers, sitting in a bar making cynical comments like those old muppets in the balcony. Try to get out and see everything, and do everything. And in your second year, move to Seoul. |
Won't make enough to support a family? I disagree on that one. I supported my family, plus saved enough to come back to my home country and do 3 years of university education. The cost of living in Canada is crazy compared to Korea. The taxes alone here are almost killing me.
Also, I didn't really even start saving for coming back to Canada until about 3yrs before we came back. So in 3 years I supported a wife and kid AND saved up quite a lot.
Oh, and I was only working 1 job at a school. If I had been doing like a lot of F2 visa ppl and doing a morning + afternoon job, I probably could have made enough in 2yrs instead of 3yrs. |
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Xuanzang
Joined: 10 Apr 2007
Location: Sadang
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| Posted: Thu Apr 16, 2009 3:24 am Post subject: |
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| Emeliu wrote: |
| Most of these comments make me lament my choice to choose ______ with my future TESOL degree (in a few years). Seems most people are just lazy, want free housing, and an easy work load (Also, girls). Makes me feel sad and lumped into a crowd I don't like. |
Let`s substitute Korea with many other EFL destinations. The result is the same. Your highness. |
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air76
Joined: 13 Nov 2007
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| Posted: Thu Apr 16, 2009 4:11 am Post subject: |
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| eamo wrote: |
Housing is not free for English teachers in Korea. You work for that house. It's part of your compensation for the job you do. That's why you can get housing allowance if you don't want the apartment provided.
For years I've heard teachers gush about how great it is to get "free" housing......I've never understood how it could be seen as "free". |
Yes...to a point it is symantics to say that housing is "free", but in 99% of the other places in the world where you can go to teach English there is no accomodation included in your compensation package. So when you couple that together with the fact that your salary in Korea is at least 50% higher than you get teaching in other countries then it is in essence free when you compare teaching here versus teaching anywhere else in the world. |
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kingplaya4
Joined: 14 May 2006
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| Posted: Thu Apr 16, 2009 4:13 am Post subject: |
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| Unless you know how to find the right school, you can't fault most of the posters for their attitudes. At most hagwons the so called managers want entertainers, and unless you teach young elementary kids, the so called students aren't interested in English. Your esl degree will do little to remedy this problem. |
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Whitey Otez
Joined: 31 May 2003
Location: The suburbs of Seoul
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| Posted: Thu Apr 16, 2009 5:03 am Post subject: Re: What is it about Korea? |
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| gregoriomills wrote: |
| Whitey Otez wrote: |
| My advice to any newbie: stay two years....And in your second year, move to Seoul. |
Expand on this pls. |
Well, from my experience, the first year in Korea is a lot of learning, such as language, customs, how to get food delivered to one's apartment, and most importantly how to teach. After the first year, it makes good sense to stay in Korea and put your knowledge and skills to use. I find that after the second year, it's a good idea to simply move on. Yes, I'm still here, I know, and there are simple but drawn-out reasons for that. Anyway, if done right, you can see it all and do it all in two years, and move on.
Recruiters tend to send newbies to the available openings, usually outside Seoul. The OP lives in Hanam City, which has its charms and all, but it doesn't have readily available the full "Korean experience." I know many teachers that spent a lot of time and money commuting to Seoul for nightlife, concerts, sightseeing, shopping for books and western goods. Yes, it can be done from Podunk-do, but it's just a lot more convenient and statistically better for your social life if you live less than ten thousand won away from the major metropolitan area. I suppose Busan and Daegu are also recommended. It's just that in Hanam City, you can't pop out to see a movie after work without it being a big ordeal. |
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Privateer
Joined: 31 Aug 2005
Location: Easy Street.
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| Posted: Thu Apr 16, 2009 7:32 am Post subject: |
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| Aelric wrote: |
| 10. Looks good on a resume |
Maybe it looks good for one year, but otherwise it's a black hole on your resume, as someone once said.
| The brilliant Harry Hutton wrote: |
| A degree in social sciences makes you radically unemployable, like a facial tattoo. Having spent all this time teaching it is probably too late to rehabilitate back into society |
http://chasemeladies.blogspot.com/2004/07/i-hate-teaching-english.html
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