Korean Job Discussion Forums

[JJA7246]

Hi everyone,

I'm new here, but I did spend a good amount of time poking around this forum trying to find what I was looking for, but I could not. I apologize if this has been addressed, but I tried.

I am a recent college graduate with degrees in communication and English. I have been hoping to teach English abroad, but I have been a little overwhelmed regarding where to begin. After searching around, I came across an organization called CIEE (Council on International Educational Exchange) and they have a few programs for teaching abroad. The most appealing to me is South Korea.

Essentially, you pay the organization roughly $3000 to do the program and this gets you TEFL certification, set up with a job, a free studio apartment, airfare, language classes, and other benefits. The compensation is 2-2.7 mil won/month (roughly $21-29k for the year) with additional bonuses upon contract completion.

My questions:
Has anyone heard of this program before and, if so, good or bad?
Does this seem like a solid deal or would I be better suited with taking a different route toward finding work?

Thank you!!

[Allthechildrenareinsane]

$3000 is pretty steep for some run-of-the-mill TEFL certificate that's not even a prerequisite for getting a job in Korea. You can do the CELTA for cheaper and that's recognized internationally. If you just want to teach in Korea, then go on the job boards here or any of the other TEFL sites a simple Google search will turn up and apply directly to schools that are hiring. Alternatively, you could work w/ one of the public school recruiters for Korea like Footprints or Teach Away and apply for EPIK. Don't ever pay to get a job.

[ttompatz]

[le-paul]

Yeah, I d agree with Ttomp. Once you get your foot in the door, you have exp. and that counts for more than some piece of paper that no-one will ever look at. You could say you have a tefl on your resume and id bet no-one would ever want to see it anyway.

It seems like they're taking alot of money from you and then acting as a recruiter. So in effect they're probably getting paid twice (once from you and then once from the hogwan they drop you on).

[beentheredonethat777]

[quote]Essentially, you pay the organization roughly $3000 to do the program and this gets you TEFL certification, set up with a job, a free studio apartment, airfare, language classes, and other benefits. The compensation is 2-2.7 mil won/month (roughly $21-29k for the year) with additional bonuses upon contract completion.

@JJA7246: Do not give anyone a Pence, Penny, Rand, Peso, Quetzal or a Zambian Kwacha to "set-up" a job. Ever.