Korean Job Discussion Forums

[mararowan]

hi,
I was wondering if it is a bad idea to get a gepik or public school job in seoul starting in dec 2010? does that mean that the previous teacher was a runner etc. Also, what cities have a dense foreigner population b/c I don't think I can handle complete isolation and lonliness. If I do this I want a great experience so am trying to get as much info as possible.

[Oliver]

Is it a bad idea? It's neither a good or bad thing. It's just a thing. IF you find a job during this time it doesn't mean that the previous teacher was a runner. It could mean a number of things. It could mean nothing at all.

Korea is all about being flexible. People come here for different reasons. Chances are if you are in a city there will be other foreigners but you'll have to look. Even in Seoul it can be hard to meet other foreigners.

This is Korea, not USA.

[3DR]

No it doesn't mean the previous teacher ran.

There are tons of gepik schools that hire out of season. To me, it is a good option.

For one, you don't have to wait until February or September and go through the long long drawn out process with EPIK and put your eggs all in one basket.

You also can interview directly with the school, talk with the coteacher/former teacher, know exactly what city and school you'll be going to, and you can find a school all throughout the year.

In my first stint I came over in April, but I met people who came over in November/July/December/May, etc.

[jrwhite82]

This is not at all a red flag. There are a million reasons why they hire mid term. The draw back is that it is midterm so you have to kind of hit the ground running. But it is not at all a deal breaker. The plus is that when you start a new term you will already know what you're doing so it makes it much easier.

Even if it was a runner, there could be a million reasons why someone ran besides their co-teacher was a monster, their students were terrible or they were not treated fairly. Such as family problems or he couldn't handle the culture difference in Korea in general, not just the school. They realized they hate working with children. The teacher himself was unreasonable. He was a terrible teacher and got fired.

Enter into it was an open mind but also with a backbone. Be open to trying new things but have a line you won't cross (working on weekends, OT without pay, etc...)

[lifeinkorea]

Sometimes it is better because they already have a process in place. In the beginning of a semester nothing is available and you running around trying to get things working for your classes.

[sallymonster]

I started at my GEPIK school in June. Like others have said, there could be many reasons why a school is hiring mid-semester. Why don't you get in touch with the current foreign teacher at your future school and get the scoop?

Also, if you're looking for a great foreigner community, live as close to Seoul as possible. Trust me on this.

[Weigookin74]

There's plenty of these around but rarely see Seoul and Gyeonggi public schools advertised on here. Are there specific recruiters who recruits for these schools in the middle of semesters?

[sallymonster]