Korean Job Discussion Forums

[thematrixiam]

Hey... we're about to have a baby

and my wife refuses to work because she believes that day care will cost more money than she will earn...

Any1 have any clue how much day care costs?
I live in Bupyeong, Incheon

[kprrok]

Most day cares I know of only take children 18months or older unless you have connections.

And honestly, do you really WANT your wife working instead of being home with your little one and building a good relationship?

My wife stayed home for 19 months with our girl and it has been wonderful. They both adjusted well, too well since she still won't call me daddy, and now they're happy to be back at work and at the day care.

[cert43]

Kudos to wife OP for wanting to do it all. Good luck raising a baby in KoreaOP. I hope you have a great job with LOTS of support.
Assuming you are both foreingers: You might just be better off the USA ( unless you can afford live-in help 24/7)/

Facts based on friends' experience:
Daycare is certaintly ones personal choice and probably all the Montessori/Educational types ( similer to the ones you would find USA) have HUGE waiting lists at HUGE costs ( more then you could afford on an ESL salery).and the other poster is right to say: most won't take a baby before he/she is 18 months.

It is good she wants to stay home. It wouldn't't help your wife( or you) if you were both working all day and then had to come come home and try to care for a small infant. Imagine being woken up at 3 am by loud/screming crying when you both have to wake up again at 6am to go to work? Never going out? I mean honestly talk about souring your entire life with resentment ( not saying your baby will do this, but most babies to require middle of night feedings in the first months' of thier lives)

So based on these facts: It doesn't even look like a feasiblabe thing
to attemp as you need lots money, support and stabilty.

[teretere]

Around 350,000 won per month in Seoul for Monday - Friday type things...but suitable only after the kid is 2-3 years old IMO.

[cert43]

350,000 =cheap

For a Korean Kindergarden right? Part-time or Full-time?

The ones we looked at were as high as International School Costs' (6,000/semester) It was EXPENSIVE.

Anyways,OP, you will have quite a commute from Incheon. Aren't most daycares in Seoul?

[teretere]

[Lolimahro]

Daycare fees are on a scale based on the baby's age.

My son's current daycare has taken children from 6 months old, but they advertise that they will take newborns. It all depends on whether the daycare teachers at a particular center are certified to care for newborns. There are different certifications that teachers have to go through by the age of child they will teach - it all depends on where they go.

As for the fees, here are the ones for Seoul (and I think they are standard pretty much throughout Korea, as far as public daycare centers go - I know they are the same for Incheon (Seo-gu) where I'll be sending my son to daycare from this week):

0-1 year: 383,000/mo
1-2 years: 337,000/mo
2-3 years: 287,000/mo
and it gets cheaper as it gets older.

The fee includes food and snacks, as well as a little backpack and lunchbox. You must supply your own formula, milk, diapers, wipes, There may be supplementary classes (such as music, English, dance classes) that cost extra. When I move to Incheon (Seo-gu) this week I will be paying 30,000 extra per month for my son to take classes at the center there. Neither the center we use in Seoul now nor the center we'll be using in Incheon have a bus but my son was driven to daycare by car during the winter. Transportation for field trips costs us extra.

Is your wife able to navigate the web in Korean? If so, have her check out: http://incheon.childcare.go.kr/ for more information on centers and finding one near you.

That said, are you sure the costs of daycare aren't just a front for her not wanting to work because she (probably for a variety of reasons) would rather just stay home? Lots of moms prefer to stay home with their little ones during the early months, especially the first year. Additionally, the pressures of being a working mother can be tough and women can be made to feel guilty by society or even well-meaning friends and relatives for not staying at home with their young children.

My husband and I worked alternating shifts during our son's first year. I just couldn't think of putting him in daycare in the States. Plus, my family really pressured me to stay at home, even though we would have been living in poverty if I had. Now that my son has been in daycare for almost a year (and he LOVES it!) and I have seen what wonderful teachers he has and how nurturing the environment is (and you have to work hard to find a good daycare like this sometimes) I am glad I made the decision to send him to daycare in Korea, but I am also glad that my son was watched mostly by his parents during his first year. We were lucky enough to be able to do both.

Perhaps you and your wife could just look at some places together, to see what's available for you, and maybe she'll see some place you both are impressed with. Talking to parents who send their kids to different centers you may be interested in may give you a feel for what they are like, also.

Best of luck to you and your wife in whatever the two of you decide. ^_^

[Leonidas]

My daughter was in daycare at 5 months old and my son at 3 months. The fees are age based with infants and toddlers in diapers being the most expensive.

Most of the day cares will operate from 8am to 8pm which is nice if you need it. We only kept out kids that late when I had an end of semester meeting and my wife was working late on the same day. Most of the time they were there only for a few hours.

[cert43]

Well, it is good toknow there are feasiable options out there ( I wouldn't

be leaving my child with the in-laws) nor staying home.

Re: Korean Daycare: Do they still take the baby if it is

breastfeeding or would it need to be weaned already?

[Daniel1981]

Wow, those prices art dirt-cheap compared to day care prices here in Vancouver. I don't have kids, but my friends are paying ~700,000 KRW per month or even 1,200,000KRW per month often.