Korean Job Discussion Forums

[Sebastian777]

Hello all! I'm a University student from Canada looking to teaching English in Korea for a year or two. I was on exchange in Kyoto, Japan last year and took a two-week trip to Seoul in early August and absolutely LOVED it. Ever since that two-week trip, I have been set on eventually returning to Seoul at all costs.

I originally intended to go to Seoul via a program recommended to me by some friends called "EPIK" (English Program in Korea). I heard that it was safe, stable, and offer decent wages. I noted that the requirements for EPIK were such that I had to finish my undergraduate degree (which I will be doing this April) and also take a TESOL or CELTA course, which I'll likely be doing in September. This means the earliest time, should I stick with EPIK, that I could get over would be Feb. 2013. However, I recently received the following email from a friend of mine who taught in Korea for 7 years:

"I spoke to another friend who returned from Seoul in January. He told me that, I can't remember the exact number, either 800 or 1200, teachers who were brought over last year to do the in-school placement program were turned away after they arrived, the government having no positions for them. Some of these potential teachers sued the government successfully for lost air fare etc. This was apparently in the news there at the time. One of the English language dailies there is the Korea Times. Please, for my own peace of mind, do a google search either generally for a link to this story or check online content from one of the english lang dailies in Seoul to make sure you're fully informed before you accept offers and sign contracts."
I also found these: http://www.rjkoehler.com/2011/12/08/seoul-to-sack-all-native-english-speaking-teachers-by-2014/
http://english.chosun.com/site/data/html_dir/2011/12/08/2011120800743.html

Would anyone be able to tell me if this is true? And if so, are there any alternative programs or agencies you may recommend to apply to in Seoul? If EPIK falls through, I don't have much of a backup plan at this point, so any help you could offer would be VERY MUCH appreciated. Thank you for your time and help!

[Chimie]

There are thousands of private schools. It's not hard to find... Just click at the top of this page on the "Jobs" link.

As far as EPIK goes, it's true there have been some cuts, not to mention the influx of teachers from the shyte American/World economy and the recent cuts in JET.

Just look around for some adverts, talk to some recruiters, test the waters. Just be sure to ask here before signing any contract.

[ttompatz]

Current case: jobs in Korea have gone down from a peak of 30,000 to about 23,000.

Jobs in the private sector (hagwans) remain pretty steady (currently at about 18,000).

Demand in Shina is picking up at a huge rate (adding some 50,000 new jobs per year at rates that are approaching those in Korea).

Have no fear. When you are done your degree there will still be lots of jobs in Korea. (EPIK, GEPIK, private hires to public schools, private (K-12) schools and at the bottom of the list, hagwans (language academies)).

And to answer your questions, yes, SMOE released just over 100 teachers in that debacle (and fired their head bureaucrat as well) and had to refund the airfare. Most of the unemployed teachers (who still wanted to stay) found other jobs in Korea in short order.

.

[Otherside]

[hossenfeffer]

Don't let Otherwise discourage you from applying to SMOE. Lots of people with only a degree have been hired and are teaching in the public school system in Seoul. It is probably true that the job market is shrinking due to government cuts but that doesn't mean you don't have a chance. Take a very professional looking picture, fill out the scads of paperwork and see what happens.

Hoss

[Weigookin74]

[Weigookin74]