Korean Job Discussion Forums

[asmith]

Man, the world is changing. Teachers are flooding the market because the American and British economies imploded. Soon it will be tough to get a job in Korea. Never thought I'd see that day. Just glad I have an f-visa. If you see me on the side of the road, please buy one of my pencils.

[Carla]

Tough for the new ones to get a job I think, because people who are only here because of the economy will break down pretty quick. Public and private schools will get tired of runners and give experienced teachers first chioce even if it means slightly higher pay.


(But just in case..... I don't like pencils, can you sell some pens too? ^^)

[asmith]

[Carla]

[iggyb]

I was in Korea for the economic meltdown of the late 1990s. I don't want to sound all doom-n-gloom, but things are likely to get worse for the TESOLers in Korea --- and I say that as someone about to get back into the business:

The US and UK economies have crashed. The new US government is spending money like they print it --- well, they do --- but also like they can print gazillions of it with no ill effects......WRONG...

So I don't look for the US economy to spring back into shape in the near future.

All this means ---- South Korea's economy is going to be hurting much along with everybody else...

...Which means families in Korea will start tightening their belts.

It will hit the adult hakwons first - like it did in the late 1990s. When I arrived in Korea in 1996, getting an adults-only gig was not hard. Within 2 or 3 years, most schools had gone to at least a mix of children and adults and soon it became hard to find a non-kids, adults-only hakwon.

With the US and other mega economies leading the downward spiral this time, unlike in the late 1990s, the cut backs in ESL spending in Korea will probably be steeper.

Add to that the flood of teachers ---- the market isn't going to be good.

You will probably see a lot of hakwons folding like in the 1990s.

Which makes the big growth in public school jobs since the 1990s a good thing.

I just wonder if the Korean government will start to feel too big a money pinch itself and start cutting back on its drive to bring in so many native speakers...???...

[asmith]

[wesharris]

I can honestly say you sir or lady are a Troll.
Please go away.
The market isn't flooding. Believe me, if it was we would
have already replaced several teachers.
_+_+
Wes

[Chambertin]

Every week we have a few new students, and less dropouts.

The number of applicants are exploding, thats all.
Thank you Reuters on yahoo.
You made an article that makes ignorant unemployed people think Korea is magic money, which it kinda is, but not that kinda money.

If anything the brand new teachers will take a pay cut, and those whith experience, or those in country will be more in demand and possibly get a raise. So come, quit, act a fool, anything to make the money go up for those who can hack it at teaching, well whatever it is we do.

I'll take the one to three year minor social backlashes and a nice paycheck, come all ye ESL heathens.

[bassexpander]

I can't tell if asmith is trying to scare current teachers or scare people into not coming to take his job?

[asmith]

[bassist33]

[iggyb]

I'll avoid getting into an American political debate for the most part. On the spending, what they are spending it on in such gigantic amounts means little unless it is investment, and you'll have to give me reason to believe it is "investment" for the future.

Anyway - I'm not on asmith's same level of negative in his thinking - but I think he is in the ballpark.

Was anybody else reading this in Korea during the late 1990s economic meltdown?

A lot of ESL places went bankrupt. A WHOLE LOT of people were not getting paid or were getting paid significantly less than their contract stated - at a time when the Won skyrocketed. It was not a pretty picture. It also fundamentally changed the shape of the ESL market by driving it toward K-elementary school hakwons.

And that was with the IMF coming to the rescue with a massive bailout of the troubled Asian economies. Now, the main IMF nations are the ones trying to bail themselves out.

It will be interesting to watch how that changes this period we'll be going through compared to the late 1990s. Back then, Korea became a less attractive place for TESOLers. The exchange rate slashed the value of the contracts, and the American TESOLers looking to come over significantly dried up.

Now, the initial trend is for Korea to look more attractive due to higher unemployment in the US and elsewhere. I wonder how the Korean economy will hold up - especially in terms of exchange rate.....Americans and others might not flood the market if the contract value drops too much...

Time will tell...

[bassexpander]

Well, after what I read yesterday, I'm worried about a China meltdown.


http://finance.blogrange.com/finance-news/chinas-stimulus-fueled-stock-boom-alarms-beijing-ap/

[DCJames]

[Demophobe]

A house is only worth market price if you are selling. Otherwise, these numbers don't mean anything.

If you have to send money out of the country, I feel your pain. Otherwise, business as usual.