Korean Job Discussion Forums

[naturegirl321]

It seems to be the hot topic of the month at the uni where I work. Lots of people want them, though I think most of them just talk about it. We'll see if they follow through. To date, no one has.

I would like to have one, though I don't know if I want to do one in Education, in fact I'm sure I don't. On my second MA now, this one more geared towards Professional Educaiton and Training, I like it more than the first, TEFL, but still not sure if I like it enough to get a PhD. Maybe something more towards management. Time will tell. By the time I finish this MA we should already have a kid or two, and hopefully enough money so that we don't have to worry about jobs.

[Troglodyte]

Was enrollment in an MA a job benefit where you work? If so, it's a nice job benefit.

[iwillteachyouenglish]

No, because I don't really think it would benefit me. Academic positions (full professor) are pretty hard to get these days, or at least that's the word on the street. A PhD in my field is probably rather useless otherwise and only slightly increases the chances of getting the same work I already get.

[liveinkorea316]

I always planned to follow on to a PhD since I started my MA in Linguistics. But I think I will work at least 5 years before beginning a PhD. I want to be a professor of Applied Linguistics someday. I think there are those jobs available because Professors from back home were often invited for month-long periods to Korean Uni's or other Asian ones to lecture in TESOL to Korean students because there just aren't the qualified people here now.

[naturegirl321]

[Mr. Pink]

I am sort of sick of studying. I have 2 years left in my MA program. I am going to wait and see how my research paper goes.

I put maybe because the field that I am working in is always looking for people who publish and have doctorates. It just depends if I feel like publishing stuff, or continuing with the teaching.

My field is not TESOL or TEFL, and I would not want anything that has to do with linguistics.

[naturegirl321]

[PRagic]

Intersting topic. What I can offer is to not place too much importance on just getting the diploma. Many people seem to think that the world of university employment will open up to you once you simply finish your Ph.D.; not true. The fact is, from there it gets competitive. Finishing the degree is just the first step.

A lot of people end up going into low paid post-doc positions just so that they can pay the bills and publish. I'm on a hiring committee now, and I can tell you that we can't even look at applicants unless they have 1) the Ph.D. in hand, 2) experience teaching in the dicipline after having finished the Ph.D., and 3) at least two SSCI/SCI internationally ranked current publications. We might be interested in a candidate with strong potential, but if they don't have the above covered, they won't make it though the college and university level screening. It is like this at most competitive Korean universities just as it is at universities in the N. America and Europe.

So do the math. Figure at least 4 years to finish the degree, and then at least a year of post-doc and however much time it takes you to publish in ranked pier reviewed journals. After all this, you will be positioned to apply for competitive appointments hoping that someone with even more experience and publications hasn't applied yet!

Don't get me wrong as it's a great job once you get it. It's just that it's a committment to a process that may don't know they're getting themselves into once they start, and this is the primary reason that there are more ABDs floating around than completed Ph.D.s.

[ttompatz]

[naturegirl321]

What is SSCI/SCI internationally ranked current publications?

[Thiuda]

[naturegirl321]

[air76]

For me, personally, I can't imagine a bigger waste of time and money than getting a graduate degree, let alone a Ph.D.....but I don't plan on staying in education and once we get our business up and running I don't plan on ever being an employee again in my life.

[naturegirl321]

I hope it works out for you, just have a back up plan. We had a business plan back home, we were legal to work, had a plan, and the money. After reconsidering all the taxes and bribes we would have to pay, plus the stability of the country, we decided to come to Korea.

[bluelake]

This is my last semester of coursework and I have been simultaneously working on my dissertation. Except for another journal article I have to publish, I should be finished by the end of the year.