Korean Job Discussion Forums

mistermasan · Joined: 20 Sep 2007 Location: 10+ yrs on Dave's ESL cafe

a korean student has realized that i have a large extended family back home and has asked if he could live with (a part of) my family back home for a semester.

the kid is smart and has wonderful english skills. he is korean but has been living in china for sometime. right now he is enrolled in chinese highschool and is bored out of his gourd.i have no doubts that he could hack it back inthe states.

anybody here ever arrange such? anyone have a fair "price"? any imput greatly appreciated.

TheUrbanMyth · Joined: 28 Jan 2003 Location: Retired

mistermasan · Joined: 20 Sep 2007 Location: 10+ yrs on Dave's ESL cafe

yes, the idea (it is still just that) is filled w/ potential footfalls. we do know that last autumn korea was added to the US visa waiver program, ROKs can stay in the US 90 days no problem.

i am merely in the discovery stage of things. this new wrinkle in the waiver process is a potential goldmine for folks so inclined to organize small scale (such as 1-on-1 or 1-on-3 summer programs).

Goku · Joined: 10 Dec 2008

I've heard prices for arranging abroad homestays vary greatly depending on how much the standard of living costs are.

If you are willing to be ultra generous and not charge for your troubles

I've heard a flat $1500 USD would be an appropriate price, or aproximately around 2 million won a month.

That price is including food, room and boarding and sometimes price of schooling. Of course that is depending on where you live. Obviously if you are in the boonies that sounds like a lot but if you're family is in a rizty area that's less than reasonable.

All hersay, I have no proof to back this up but hopefully that can at least give you some kind of idea

mistermasan · Joined: 20 Sep 2007 Location: 10+ yrs on Dave's ESL cafe

goku,
thanks. the word i'd didn't know was "homestay." that should keep me busy googling sometime. 90% of everything is vocab.

poet13 · Posted: Thu May 07, 2009 6:23 pm Post subject:

Charge him as much as possible obviously. I wouldn't let a Korean kid live in my house for any amount of money.

McGenghis · Joined: 14 Oct 2008 Location: Gangneung

My friend's daughter is staying with my folks in Canada. Basically, I let the Korean ma do all the legwork (visas, tuition) and just helped out by emailing the principal of my hometown high school.

But I'm a foreign teacher so I don't really care about Korean students.

sinsanri · Joined: 20 Apr 2009

OP-- There are credible organizations in Korea and possibly the U.S. which arrange homestays for Korean students who want to live in the U.S. I had many a student use them and it might be advisable to check into those so you know what you are getting into.

poet13--that is just racist and uncalled for.

Goku · Joined: 10 Dec 2008

poet13 · Posted: Thu May 07, 2009 6:48 pm Post subject:

"poet13--that is just racist and uncalled for."

Racist? Nope. I wouldn't let any kid stay in my home for the purposes of learning. I already have to deal with kids for 8 hours a day. My home is my sanctuary. I don't care where the kid is from.

And if you're going to open your home to someone and ask for money, then do it properly, and get what you can.

Rory_Calhoun27 · Joined: 14 Feb 2009

Could such homestays be arranged for the Chinese cheerleaders from last summer's Oympics? It'd be a win-win for my brother in English lit grad school.... he could help them with basic English in an academic setting, and they could help him straighten out his Longfellow. Wink

Countrygirl · Joined: 19 Nov 2007 Location: in the classroom

My husband and I did homestay for a long time in Canada. I cooked Korean food so we charged $1,000 and we lived around Vancouver. If you went through a homestay organization and feed the kid cheap American food (ie pasta and cereal for breakfast) the going rate was around $600 - $750. The families that charge that much tend to be cheap, never eat out and have the homestay student make their own breakfast and lunch. I've also heard of some who made the student wash dishes or help with yard work. Everything costs money so if the student needs to be driven to school or wants free reign in the kitchen then the cost goes up.

The younger the students the higher families charge. In Canada, underage students need a guardian or have to stay with a family member. (Of course Koreans can find ways around that).

Doing homestay for fun or for the experience is okay and can be interesting. Doing homestay to help offset the cost of living makes homestay stressful. We've had some really interesting students, some rejects that came to Canada because their families wanted to be rid of them and everything inbetween.

If your student wants to live with your family it must be that he likes you and trusts you. There are some really weird families who do homestay so it can be really hit and miss for the students as well.

Oh yeah, the student and family deal with all visa issues, school issues etc.