Korean Job Discussion Forums

[Mirabilis85]

Is it possible for a US citizen to obtain a notarized copy of degree in Korea? (I obviously have the original in my possession). This has nothing to do with employment in Korea, but rather for a different job overseas. I have a bunch of other documents to be notarized here as well....Any notary locations you guys know of? Thanks.

[yoja]

Had it done a few years ago at the US embassy. As far as I know, that's the only place it can be done legally outside of the US.

You may want to check the website & call ahead...my memory is fuzzy but it seems like I waited awhile for someone to get back from lunch.

Also they totally overcharge. I believe they take Korean won, though, although you may want to check that out too, as it may have changed.

[djsmnc]

I suppose if you don't have to do it at the embassy as the last poster mentioned (depending on the requirements of the job you're moving on to), a regular Korean notary, called 공증 (Gong-jeung) should run about 30,000 won or so and can be found in a number of places around Seoul.

[Mirabilis85]

Maybe Im not reading this correctly...but according to the embassy's website:

[yoja]

My suggestion is to double check what your documents actually need, as explained in the job advertisement for which you are applying. You might ask whomever is in charge of hiring you, and then call the embassy and see if they can provide the specific service you need. If not, perhaps they can make a recommendation for someone who can provide those services. I have no way of knowing what you need.

If you need to vouch for the diploma's authenticity, then only your university can confirm whether or not it is a valid document. That's why universities provide official sealed copies of transcripts, as they are harder to fake than a diploma. A quick phone call/fax/email to your university's registrar would honestly be the easiest and fastest way to prove whether or not your degree (which, honestly, a diploma is only a symbol of) is real.

Notary publics can only confirm your identity--that YOU are in fact who you claim to be. (This is needed for you to enter into certain legal contracts or for financial or other services where there is not an alternative way of confirming your identity.) In other words, having something notarized doesn't confirm the validity of the document, only the validity of your identity. That being said, many people don't understand that and only want some kind of stamp to make whatever document appear more official, especially if they are too lazy to bother with verifying the document themselves (I'm lookin' at you, Korean Immigration service!).

Hope this helps.