Korean Job Discussion Forums

[Soulman]

I'm a new graduate with a Bachelors degree in Visual Arts/Art History.

I want to teach but I don't think I'm ready.

I currently reside in Canada and I have dreams of living somewhere scorching hot and tropical (south east Asia comes to mind).
I've always enjoyed and am fascinated by oriental culture, lifestyle and landscape.

I'm fresh out of University with no true academic teaching experience.

I have taught but not in any academic subjects.
I use to be a childrens Karate instructor for 2 years.
I did enjoy that sort of environment but I understand that an academic classroom has much different requirements.

I've been searching these past 5 months for some sort of internship/ job but I can't seem to find anything or get any calls back.

I've just recently (past week) come across job postings on my University's website advertising entry level teaching positions in Korea being offered by placement agencies. (1 year contracts)

They ask for 0 experience as long as you hold a bachelors degree and that English is your primary language.

I'm not too sure what to think of this.
Some of them seem "scammy", some of them don't , all of them look "complicated" and it's kind of overwhelming me due to me not being able to foresee every possible angle and complication that might arise.


I just don't know were to start.

[Dodge7]

you are a visual arts/history major looking to teach? Why didn't you just go into teaching in college?
Anyway, if you like the hot tropical sun (I do too!) then try Thailand. Korea has wicked cold winters, but hot humid summers.

[Soulman]

[jonpurdy]

Here's an anecdote for you:

I came to Korea in 2008 right after graduating. I wasn't sure if I wanted to go into teaching or pursue another field so I figured I'd do a year in Korea. After three years in Korea I went back to Canada to do my B. Ed. and am on my way to teach at an international school starting in September.

It's a great way to determine whether the international lifestyle and teaching are a good fit for you. Keep in mind that your teaching workload and expectations are far simpler than those of certified home country or international school homeroom teachers.

[Cacille]

Soulman I can understand your idea that the jobs sound too good to be true or scammy. That was my EXACT first thought when I came across an ad on Craiglist about teaching in China. Upon looking into it a bit more, I found Korea to be a bit better for me. So I started on the paperwork, asked people questions, joined these forums and others, and did a TON of research.
I came to Korea last year and I plan to stay 3, possibly 4 years so I can pay off my bills. It's not a scam, as long as you do your research. These forums and Waygook.org are great places to research. Plus look at "Teach in Korea" websites of different types. This website has a huge amount of jobs listed, none of them scams, but not all of them good jobs. Some are great. Some are "doable, soso". Some are outright horrible, in which case you leave, get another job, and see if that one is also horrible, soso, or better than your last job. Or, if you're lucky and you've got a TEFL, you can try for a public school position which is Definitely a decent paying, stable job (Gotta watch out for your coworkers though. Some schools will love ya, some might not - but you're from canada so you'll have a bit of an easier time than some here).

Are you ready to uproot your life? Depends on you. It is just a year, or longer if you want but you are under NO obligation to teach for longer than a year. You can travel a bit, you can pay off some bills here in that year. You can go back and have a bit of confidence and worldly experience and quite possibly a better outlook on what you do and do NOT want to do for a career.
Is it warm here? No, warmer than canada though. It's similar to the middle usa, chicago, etc in terms of temperature extremes. What you might want to plan is do a year in Korea, and then go to Thailand from there, having paid off your bills cause Thailand does not pay quite as much as Korea does.
Complications and problems? Sure, there are some. It's a part of life, you'll have em, you do your research on them to figure out the best solution, then implement the solution and see what new thing arises from that. As long as you don't do anything obviously illegal, you'll be fine in most Asian countries, and if you go in with a touch of knowledge and respect, you'll be great.

[jjajangmyun]

Yea man do it.

[silkhighway]

A penny for my thoughts? Jump in and learn to swim, and have enough money for a plane ticket home in case you really need to use it. What's the worst that could happen? A story to have a laugh about with your friends over a beer about that awful Korean experience you had? It'll most likely work out or it will point you in the right direction.

[Julius]

Get a CELTA first. Then you'll be ready.

[World Traveler]

Definately get a CELTA first. That is good advice. A CELTA will teach you so much about how to teach more effectively.

[silkhighway]

[World Traveler]

Without knowledge about teaching it will be hard to control the class (Korean students are becoming increasingly rude; good lessons may help to mitigate this). Also, it's a good feeling to teach well rather than wasting the students' time and at the same time feeling like you don't know what you're doing.

[silkhighway]

[The King of Kwangju]

[Julius]

[le-paul]

i must admit, id done some lecturing at uni and at a mountain guides training school before coming here and it didnt prepare me much for teaching in korea.

What did though, was my tefl course because it showed me how to play games and keep kids occupied. i also took a look at my grammar skills. Following the books was easy, it was all the other stuff that i hadnt thought about.