Korean Job Discussion Forums

darkcity · Joined: 13 Sep 2007 Location: SF, CA

I can't believe I'm doing this. After 1.5 years in Seoul, and times that were sometimes rough and lonely, I'm considering going back.

Part of it is the job market in the US, the other part is how difficult it is to get back into the social scene when all my friends have up and left or changed. Doesn't help that living cost is so high in the Bay Area, and what with my mother breathing down my neck every 10 minutes, it's been a hard month and a half adjusting back to American life. Living abroad has changed me. I can't stand to see fat people waddling through the supermarkets, sorting through the ice cream cartons and bags of potato chips. I love driving but I hate filling up the gas tank. And the friends here just don't have the same respect that my international friends had for me.

I have a part time job here teaching SAT writing/reading that pays a cushy $30/hr, but hours are few and far between.

So my options are:
1. Go back to Korea. After pressuring some recruiters, I've managed to get some decent offers that have surprised me. I would need to re-prepare all of my documents again. My university was in Australia, so getting transcripts is always a slow process. There were times that I HATED being in Korea, and there were times that I truly felt that it was great to be alive. There was never anything in between. It should be an easier lifestyle now that I know what to do and what to expect.

2. Do a one year working holiday in Australia. I've lived there for 8 years of my life (five as a child, three for university), and I am desperate to somehow get permanent residency. If I go there, I will probably get some shitty cleaning job and tutor English to int'l students on the side. I would basically be treading water but enjoying my life immensely.

3. Stay here in the Bay Area, move out and rent a room, get whatever job I can find to make ends meet. My dog isn't getting any younger, nor is my mom.

4. Try and try and try and try and try and try to get a job in Indonesia (where my best friend lives) or Japan (where I have other great friends). In the former, I can't save much money. The latter is good, but I don't speak Japanese and the job market is flooded.

Please no trolls. I know how difficult Korean life can be for foreigners. Perhaps someone else who's had the same difficulty adjusting back to life at home can chime in.

afsjesse · Joined: 23 Sep 2007 Location: Kickin' it in 'Kato town.

Well, if I were you, which I'm not, I would probably go to Australia. That's assuming you can get a job fairly easy. After that I would say go back to Korea. You've already admitted that you hated it at times and from your post you don't sound to excited about that thought.

Best wishes.

salgichawa · Joined: 18 Mar 2010

DrugstoreCowgirl · Posted: Sun Apr 04, 2010 9:15 pm Post subject:

Go to Australia.

That's my post-Korea plan as well. I thought about staying here another year for the money, but I'm much happier in Australia and I can make money down there as well. Not as much of course, but the trade-off is worth it to me.

darkcity · Joined: 13 Sep 2007 Location: SF, CA

it's funny that all three recommend Australia. My mom and I had a huge fight about this last night. She doesn't want me to go because she thinks I haven't given the Bay enough of a chance. I really, really want to go, but I know that it's not necessarily the smartest move future-wise.

Thanks for the comments guys. To be clear, I don't/didn't hate living in Korea. I worked for a really shitty company, for what that's worth.

DrugstoreCowgirl · Posted: Sun Apr 04, 2010 9:28 pm Post subject:

You only live once. You can always go back to SF after living in Australia.

salgichawa · Joined: 18 Mar 2010

Kurtz · Joined: 05 Jan 2007 Location: ples bilong me

Can't comment on the EFL/ESL scene in Australia, but I know there are thousands of overseas students there, many studying ESL.

I'm not being ironic when I say Australia is getting full. I'll be returning myself at the end of the year and I'm kind of worried about finding accommodation. Most immigrants are moving into Melbourne, Sydney and Brisbane, and the infrastructure can't keep up. There's a huge debate right now happening about populaton growth, try finding a rental place in Melbourne Mad

darkcity · Joined: 13 Sep 2007 Location: SF, CA

caribmon · Joined: 26 Oct 2009

It's amazing, I know, we're 26 years old and we still get in fights with our mothers because they want us to stay here, yet we want to explore the cosmos. My mom is returning to the house and I just had the realization that I gotta find a job in Korea, or anywhere really.

Whistleblower · Joined: 03 Feb 2007

I used to live in Korea for three and a half years and left back in Jan 2009 with the family back to the UK. Well after a year, I found the job market very competitive; everybody has a degree, salary is really really low and the taxes are too high.

My wife and I have decided for personal reasons to return to Korea but we have decided to invest for the future. I am starting my MA in September in English Language Teaching, continue with ESOL Examining, as well as think about sending students over to the UK for a short period in the summer/xmas.

Try to think about further education so you can secure a better job in Korea and possible professional development. Have a three year aim. Best of luck and try to enjoy the journey getting there.

Yahowho · Joined: 21 Jan 2010 Location: Beside the McDonalds

If you want a 1 year working holiday visa then be sure you know your reasons. People tend to think that it is the first step in moving there. Its not. Of all the 1 year WHV's that are issued, a VERY small percentage end up in residency. It's getting unbelievably hard to become a permanent resident. Are you willing to waste a year travelling there on average money? I say waste but I did the same thing and it was the best year of my life! Very Happy

Ralphie · Joined: 24 Mar 2010 Location: Beijing, PRC

I have a friend who is studying like crazy for her teacher's certification/license in LA. The only teaching jobs she can get right now are part-time supply gigs. The little money she earns goes towards rent and gas for the commute. I admire, but also question, her persistance in staying such a dismal N. American job market. Confused

IMO, my lifestyle and standard of living are way much better in Asia. When I left Canada to teach ESL abroad, friends and family thought I was crazy. They thought I should try to find "success" in my own country. Well, my N. American education and Canadian passport have enabled me to do many things that I otherwise would not have been able to do if I had stayed in Canada. To use an old (cliche?) concept, the world is a globalized place and we no longer live in a vacuum; it's time to re-define "success" and determine where and how we establish ouselves.

bossam · Joined: 29 Mar 2010

mate 30$/hour here I know will get you going further than you would in Aus. I used to earn around 50K a year, and believe me after tax, rent, utilities and food(which is unbelievably expensive if you eat out). I would probably have saved less than over here.

Also back home the only days you can really go out are Thurs, Fri and Sat. rest of the days are really quiet. Here in Seoul every night is Friday night!

having said that I do miss my friends, fish and chips and non-korean girls. But there is always going to be a trade off. Im always keen to catch up over beer, if ya like and talk nonsense!

Sadebugo1 · Joined: 11 May 2003