Korean Job Discussion Forums

[Juggertha]

I wish the OP luck but I think some ppl need to realize that teaching adults is not for noobs.

For some reason sooo many ppl coe over here and figure if they just sit and converse with some adults that they are teaching them. They just sit there and gab away and have a jolly ol' time of it (while getting paid).

Then the hammer falls (softly) and 5-6 months later they find they are no longer "needed".

Why do you think that just because you can speak English that you should be able to come here and get paid $50 an hour in some of the best positions?

Honestly, my recomendation to ALL coming here without xp is take your first year to get good at it! Take the time to be a good teacher... and the good opportunities will follow.

[shawner88]

[MidwestRepresent]

Dirtysoap-
This is my 2nd post, so take all this with a grain of salt.

A little over a year ago, I was in a similar position as you. I had just graduated University with a 4 year degree in English and was looking to come abroad and teach. Everywhere but Korea seemed to require more credentials than I had and the ones that didn't (JET) required more than a month of planning. Basically, I didn't want to get a "real" job (which is to say an entry-level position working in a cubicle) and was looking for a way to travel and see the world and have a little fun.

I did little to no research and filled out a couple of recruiters forms online. Posting on this board (Which i wasn't even aware existed until 4 months ago) puts you way ahead of where I was in this regard. I was ill-informed and a recruiter sprang upon me, sensing the naivete. I was offered a job teaching at a Hogwon outside of Seoul almost immediately and was prepared to accept it. I WOULD have accepted it, if not for the time it took for my diploma to get processed. Luckily, while waiting to receive my diploma, a friend of my cousin's who had just returned from Korea heard about my plans. We talked and he explained that you can get screwed over at Hogwon's, told me to dump the recruiter and referred me to the company he had worked for, YBM/ELS.

YBM/ELS has received it's fair share of bashing, some of it deservedly. The hours suck (typical schedule 6:30AM-8:30 AM; BREAK; 10-12; BREAK; 6PM-8 or 8PM-10), the pay is a lot lower than your average Hogwon (1.85), vacation is decided by the company (No blocks off, a day here and there). All that being said, it was the best situation I could have hoped for with the qualifications I had, and I had a GREAT time. I taught adults, and I found them receptive to my lessons and understanding of the fact that I was developing as an instructor. The school offer NO, and I mean 0 problems in terms of paying on time or short changing you. The job of one member of the staff was to help the foreign teachers with any problems they had acclimating themselves and with anythings they needed in their day to day lives (paying utilities, finding clothes, food, communicating with your landlord,you name it) so I had less aggravation to deal with. The experienced teachers helped me get used to the job and made me feel at home in Korea, in and outside of work. The students were all about taking teachers out and showing them the country on weekends, and taking them out drinking or to their houses for dinner. I also got to develop as an instructor in a fairly low-pressure environment, and to test what kinds of lessons work and don't work. It was a great place to be as a first year instructor.

So why did I leave if it was so great you ask? Because of all the negatives I outlined above. But the experience helped me land a University Language Institute teaching gig that I'm starting in March. The vacation time I missed out on is more than made up for in this job, and I got it simply based on my one year of teaching experience.

I'm not telling you to go running to YBM/ELS, and I certainly can't speak for all of its branches. But if you put your time in and learn how to teach in relaxed and accepting environment your first year and come to the country willing to put your time in and accept the cultural differences, (rather than with your hand out expecting to be offered the easy life simply because you have graced Korea with your English speaking presence), I think that it can pay off.


I've also heard Pagoda is a good school for newbies wanting to teach adults, although its all hearsay.

[kelly]

I've been teaching at the same Hagwon for the past 19mths, and I love it. I wanted to get away from the stress of High school teaching and this was just what I needed. The moneys good 2.58million and my apartment is real nice. The only thing that sucks is the lack of holidays, although they gave me 20 days at xmas and paid for my flight home. Don't listen when people say all hagwons suck its bull, some are just fine!

[shawner88]

2.58 mill? Wow that IS good. What kind of schedule?