Korean Job Discussion Forums

[JethroCariaga]

Hello all,

I'm new here and no doubt this question has been asked countless times so apologies to all the veterans! I've noticed alot of people saying that recruiters are not the best way to go, but as a newbie teacher I feel alot more comfortable going through them for the time being.

I'm currently dealing with Korvia and Footprints. Both have their advantages and disadvantages. I've found that Korvia is very responsive but the process has been a little haphazard and confusing for my liking, whereas Footprints seems to be very simple and step-by-step but it takes an age for them to reply!

So, I thought I'd come here to ask your opinion on the very best recruiters for Korea. Thanks in advance, looking forward to hearing your experiences and recommendations!

[zombiedog]

I've only used a couple, but I'd suggest you try Gone2Korea.com. they do help you jump through all the hoops. That's my experience at least.

[NYC_Gal 2.0]

For my first job, I used Alistair at Korea Horizons. It was an okay public school job, but Alistair was amazing. He helped me with my renewal for a second year, even though he had nothing to gain (but praise.)

[thebektionary]

I am going through GMSC because they got me a public school job but I was very impressed with Appletree and highly recommend them.

I don't have a problem with GMSC either, but I heard on here that a few people do.

Star Teachers is also good.

Avoid Hands Korea. I used them my first time - they were horrible, lied to me, and got me into a terrible situation. They also accused my friend of something illegal that he didn't do which made him have to deal with a lot of crap he wouldn't have had to deal with otherwise.

[Dalton]

I used Korvia three times to find work at hogwons. That was three years ago but give them a shot.

[caerdroia]

I am using Footprints as well, and have to agree about them taking ages... they seem to have lots of experience with the application process, and give me lots of good information, but consistently take WEEKS longer than if I were applying directly

[Chimie]

Give up on Footprints already. They're not really worth your time with how long they take.

[apaek6]

What are your opinions on Ask Now?

[pmwhittier]

I used several recruiters at the same time, and made sure that none of them knew about the other. That works great if you're not going into public schools. The ones that didn't work out failed to try. They spent time telling me how busy they were, so obviously didn't need my business. The one that came through for me was ASK-NOW. They've been around a while, and Brant in the Seoul office has been great.

[Times30]

Rowan at ESL planet has always been touted as the best on these forums.

I've used him and he is definitely the most helpful. He walks you through step by step. But I think now he's only doing public school atm.

[HocusPocus]

I had a great experience with David Ball at Korjob Canada Recruiting. He walked me through the whole process and set me up with a great school in a great location. He was responsive the whole way and helped me prepare for the interview and the visa process. Highly recommended for first time applicants to Korea.

[teatoast]

I've had a brilliant experience with eslStarter. It's run by a British couple living in Bangkok and they've been awesome at talking me through everything, answering any questions I have and getting me the placement I wanted. I applied to EPIK but I think they recruit for private positions too x

[Wanda]

[zoeksk]

So are you only supposed to go through one recruiter? In England recruiters usually have one or two positions and they try to get as many candidates as they can so that they look good to the employer, they don't really care about getting the employee in a position that suits them.

The recruiter(s) I have spoken too all seem really nice, but since I'm not paying them a penny I bet they are more interested in using me to fill a position than making sure I'll be in the best position that I can get. On the other hand I'm sure they don't want to source people that will run away if the job isn't to their liking so they will make sure the job isn't too terrible (I hope)

[Chet Wautlands]