Korean Job Discussion Forums

[Warhammer820]

1. I read a topic a while back that talked about student management; is there really a serious problem with student behavior in public school settings like in America?

2. If I have about $500 left in my bank account after I pay for all my expenses to go to Korea, would I still be accepted? (I mean would my bank account determine passing or failing an interview or visa)

3. Are public school jobs easier to get than a hagwon job? I really would rather a public school.

[ttompatz]

[Modernist]

[1] I teach at a PS. It's not so cut-and-dry as TP says. It depends on the school, the level and the co-teacher. Some classes are just not interested in learning English and they WILL talk and yell and more or less ignore much of what you say. Korean schools are hugely focused on test-taking for grades, and you have NO power over student grades. So some students feel FTs can be ignored. It doesn't really matter though as long as you don't take it personally.

[2]Assuming you meant AFTER you paid for your ticket [~$1000 if you take Korean Air or Asiana], I think $500 is enough to get to the first paycheck. It does depend where you live, Seoul and Busan are more expensive. Make sure to convert all of it to Won at Incheon, as USD doesn't do you any good here. FYI, US credit/debit cards work here and are pretty widely accepted in the big stores, if you need a backup.

[3] I say, take the PS. Yes they have different problems, such as being the only Westerner out of hundreds of Koreans, but hagwons are worse. They expect MUCH more work, they can be cheap and dodgy with anything regarding money, and you almost always are teaching super-young kids. Unless you've taught them before, I would advise caution.

[Warhammer820]

what do you mean by not pre-paying for the ticket? How do i get one if i don't pre-pay?

[ttompatz]

[Modernist]

Before you get the flight reimbursement at a PS, you need to have a bank account [don't think many schools will hand you an envelope with 1.3 M in it]. To get the account you usually need your ARC, which can take more than 14 days to get.

So you have to build that cost into your traveling budget. I suggest assuming you'll have it no earlier than 1 month from arrival to be safe.

I agree, never take a hagwon job without a prepaid ticket from the school.

[Squire]

If you can get hold of more money before you get here then do so. I didn't get my settlement allowance until I got my first paycheck, and it was a while after THAT before I received my airfare. I brought �500 (somewhere around 1k USD) with me and spent it all before I got paid. There are quite a few little expenses involved with settling that add up after a few weeks

I can't remember if you said you will bring $500 or $250 with you. If 250 you might just get away with it if you get your settlement allowance early and are prepared to live frugally for a while. Pester your school about it as soon as you arrive. Tbh even if you do run out of money if you can make a few friends here you could borrow a bit to see you through to payday.

[Zanniati]

If you work at a hagwon, there's definitely a chance that they would be willing to give you an advance. My school told me I didn't need more than a few hundred dollars because they would give me an advance. I ended up getting 1M in advance around my 2nd week.

[Warhammer820]

hagwons, after extensive research, worry me. So i am going to seriously try for a public school.