Korean Job Discussion Forums

[poet13]

I'm looking to change locations at the end of this contract. I don't want to leave the province cause in EPIK I'm eligible for level 1+, 2.7 million. If I leave the province, I go back to a 2 or 2+. Because it's Kyeong buk, there's also a 100K stipend.

Currently I'm in a city with less that 20 stoplights. That's pretty small. I have one more year in Korea after this contract and I want to use it to, let's say, maximise my income potential.

So, those of you out there in Kyeong buk, where's the biggest and best place to be?

PS - Article 9 section 3 of the 2009 EPIK contract is funky. Says that if the employee doesn't work all of the normal work days in a pay period for whatever reason (sick leave, unpaid leave, etc), that the employees pay shall be prorated for the corresponding number of days worked.
Fairly sure that's illegal.
Sparkle away Korea.

[poet13]

Anyone?

[afsjesse]

If your looking for a big city, I'd say Pohang, Gyeongju and Gumi are your places to look into.

I'd prefer Pohang. Lot's of western amenities for a mid-sized city. Lot's of malls, decent downtown and spitting distance from Daegu, Busan, Ulsan and Gyeongju.

Gyeongju is of course smaller but it's still pretty big.

Gumi is close to Daegu, which would be cool if you are into nightlife.

Suerte,
Jesse

[poet13]

Thanks. I know a little about Gumi. Been there a bunch of times. Don't care much about the night life. Pohang and Gyeongju I know nothing about.

I'll do some research. Anyone else with ideas?

[jinks]

Try Gyeongsan; it's not huge, but it's only a hop and a skip from Daegu.

[cruisemonkey]

[poet13]

I read the contract on the EPIK website. I really think that smart people write the contract in Korean, and then they give the contract to the person in the office who speaks the most english to translate. That might just be the janitor, or the accountant.

[afsjesse]

From what I've experienced in both cities.

Gyeongju: Ancient capital of the Shilla Dynasty. It's loaded with architectural beauty and has a couple of UNESCO Heritage sites around it. (Bulguksa and the Grotto). It's close to both Daegu and Busan and is quite quiet in my opinion. In downtown there's a bunch of coffee shops and it has a couple of good grocery stores on a smaller scale. If you're into Korean culture and the like, i'd say this is by far your best option.

Pohang: Is a medium sized city of about 500,000 people and is an important industrial city in Korea. Due to the many factories near the coast, it is often polluted and air quality varies. However not all parts of the town are bad. The bus terminal and downtown are quite nice. Right next to the bus terminal is a Homever/Homeplus with a good movie theater. Downtown is nice with a pedestrian street that has a small creek running down the middle. Lotte Department store isn't too far away from this. Pohang does have some beaches away from it, most famous is Homigot about 25 kilometers or so from the city. It has a big hand sticking out of the water that is interesting to view at sunrise.
Pohang is also close and more of a transportation hub to other cities in the province and throughout the country. It is the city I go to from Uljin County to go shopping and get some descent western food.

Hope this helps.

[sinsanri]

My vote would be GyeongJu as Pohang is a steel town witha huge posco plant in the south part of the city. Though there is a lighthouse museum not to far from there, further south and right on the coast. The drive is great.

i do not know about the night life in GyeongJu but the historicalsites are plenty with the ancient observatory and forest tright near downtown and the national museum. There are Shilla tombs in several locations, with a couple right down town.

If you like Gyeongju bread, you will get overwhelmed by the many bakeries producing it. Also if you drive 20 inutes to the south,on the way to Bukoksa, there is Bomun resort with Gyeongju land amusement park and an expo right across the main road.

hwaseong park has a nice treed area with traditional games, a modern stadium for sports and a smaller wrestling arena next to it. There used to be a nice wine store in the town but it was expensive.

There are two mcdonalds and a home plus (north of hwaseong park) and it is a hop from the coast where the only underwater royal tomb is located. On road 4 headed towards Daegu is another famous temple whith a 'golden' buddha on top of the hill.

The drives out of the city (except if you use the freeway to Busan) are quite beautiful.

hope this helps.

[spitfire]

Gyeongbuk just isnt a great province for exciting cities.

There is Poohang (gross).

Next biggest is Gumi but what is the point of living there? The nightlife will only be OK and if you'll probably end up going into Daegu often if thats what your into. Which you can do if you live anywhere. Otherwise its just a standard borefest.

I would vote for gyeongju. There is only really one street of crappy nightlife but the city is cool and its on about 6 highways so you can get anywhere quickly.

[yeremy]

If you know what you want and are looking for, you can find it even in Gyeongbuk.

Gumi is an often dissed and underrated city. I worked with a few people in Gyeonggi do who really hated Gumi and left as soon as they could. I moved from Gyeonggi do to Gumi and I like the city and area. However, Gumi is a rural city and like a bedroom suburb, it really quiets down at ten pm. If you don't like the idea of living in a quiet city of some 400,000, Gumi is not for you.

The city isn't that pretty but the countryside around it is. Gumi is very quiet, but a lot of the foreigners here leave Gumi on the weekends and Daegu is only 30 to 40 minutes away by car. Gumi is also very good for hiking and cycling, particulaly MTB'ing, as there is Geumho Mtn and there are quite a few cycling sidewalks, too. If you need constant nighttime diversion, you won't like Gumi. The best public school job in Gumi is probably at the Gyeongbuk Foreign Language High School.

Gyungsan is a popular place for foreign teachers in Gyeongbuk. It's smallish but it's proximity to Daegu is popular with both the NET's and the KT's, or so I have heard.

Gyeongju is not that close to Daegu. It's at least a 50 minute drive from there to Daegu. I've done the drive a couple of times and it' s not my favorite piece of road in Korea, which would be along the East Sea from Sokcho to Pusan, in case you were wondering.

Andong, the confucian capital of Korea, would be an interesting city to spend a year working in. Andong has four universities and a number of public school jobs, too. I've heard you can go fishing in the reservoire nearby. Andong is small but it's liveable and has the strongest locally made soju in Korea.

Daegu is the largest and most diverse city in Gyeongbuk, but it is an EPIK island all to itself. Daegu is the most popular party place in the province and it has the only Costco, too. Daegu has a number of good universities and the food is really spicy. The Immigration office that handles Gyeongbuk is located in Daegu not that far from the airport.

[FUBAR]

You could move to Chilgok, if it is considered Kyungbuk for EPIK purposes. I'm not sure how it works for EPIK, but for Korean Teachers, Chilgok is Kyungbuk province and not Daegu. It's just as close as Gyeongsan and there are buses that can get you into Daegu pretty easily.