Korean Job Discussion Forums

yjo086 · Joined: 04 Jun 2009

I have a contract with GEPIK, which I'm about to send off to my recruiter, however, my recruiter has been quite vague with me in regards to my living conditions. I just want to know, what I will have in my apartment. While I don't expect to live in Buckingham's Palace, I would think I would have the basics right? (bed, bathroom, t.v. stove, etc..). Any thoughts people?

Someone throw me a beach ball because my head is swimming.... Shocked

E_athlete · Joined: 09 Jun 2009 Location: Korea sparkling

one thing i learned is that if your recruiter is not answering questions he/she is probably hiding something. I'd bug him/her about it more.

My apartment is a one-room as they call it in Korea. Has a kitchen, washroom, bedroom and balcony. It looks really clean but to my horror I saw tiny cockroaches start appearing when I settled in. I was pretty horrified because I have never seen cockroaches thus far in my life. I had to buy those poison bug food kits and I think the situation has improved.

Other than that I have a tv with cable, a bed, 2 dressers, one closet, washing machine and air conditioning. It's also a 3 minute walk from work. Not bad, except for the insect problem.

iggyb · Joined: 29 Oct 2003

Look at your contract. It should tell you what the basics are that the school has to supply.

My experience is with hakwons, and I'd bet it is similar to public school jobs -- that it really depends on your particular school -- and the situation when you arrive.

Some people at the school might have better or worse conditions than you just depending on what the school was willing to locate at the moment each arrived.

I lived in some pits and some fair apartments. the single residency ones were always very small.

I don't know if you'll get a TV (unless it is stated in the contract), but you should get the other things mentioned.

iggyb · Joined: 29 Oct 2003

Oh --- on the bathroom ---- since it is single occupancy, I would guess that you could end up with something that basically only has a toilet and small "shower" area which is a line connected to a faucet with a drainage hole in the floor...

Koreans frequent public baths and in a couple of the hakwon-provided places I lived, the set up was as described above.

Then other times, when I stayed in an official "officetel"/studio - I had a real small bathroom with toilet, sink, bathtub, and so on...

DCJames · Joined: 27 Jul 2006

Gepik is usually pretty reliable when it comes to housing. Although there are exceptions, they have do have minimal standards in place to ensure their teachers are taken care of.

Talk to other Gepik teachers out there and get their opinions.

thoreau · Joined: 21 Jun 2009

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BD4eG1Q5k1I

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rBhk_JeVxbE

etc.

VanIslander · Posted: Sat Jul 25, 2009 5:08 pm Post subject:

who was the poster who had to shower on his balcony?

climber159 · Joined: 02 Sep 2007

When I worked with GEPIK I lived in a shoebox. They bought new furniture, which included a single-size bed, wardrobe, TV and stand, desk, chair, washer, A/C (after I pleaded and begged), and a very small dining table with 2 chairs. My clothes drying rack took up the remainder of the floor space in the apartment. My bathroom didn't have a sink and the kitchen sink had a decent sized rust hole patched with masking tape. With SMOE I had a beautiful office-tel, and with the hagwon I had an apartment of a size and quality falling somewhere between the other two. In short, it's a crap-shoot. Good luck!

iggyb · Joined: 29 Oct 2003

I don't know --- if you had all those things in your apartment, it wouldn't be the size of a shoebox. It might after you crammed all that stuff in -- I'm just saying...

My wife and I lived in a real shoebox our first year of marriage, and I actually think it was a good thing for us --- you really, really, I mean - REALLY - have to get along with someone if you barely have enough space for the two of you to lie down.

And that was without having a bed taking up much of the floor space.

yjo086 · Joined: 04 Jun 2009

Thanks for the advice everyone. I just unsure what to do, since I'm with GEPIk I don't know if I should just cross my fingers and hope for a decent apartment or just try to find a new recruiter fast. The school seems pretty nice, so hopefully they care enough to give me a reasonable place to live... Confused