Korean Job Discussion Forums

[shroob]

Hello everyone,

I'm contemplating Korea as the next location to teach in and would very much like your assistance.

First of all I'll give you a brief summary of myself:

*25 (I've been told this is too young for Korea)
*British citizen and native speaker
*MA Applied Linguistics with TESOL (to be completed late summer 2014)
*BA First class with honours
*CELTA
*2 years' experience in China at university level
*On-going part-time work at an international college in the UK
*Pre-sessional experience at a UK university

Now onto my questions..

1) I'm only interested in university employment - with my qualifications / experience I think this is realistic - what sort of package should I be looking for e.g. salary, number of hours teaching, housing, airfare, paid holidays?

2) My MA degree in Applied Linguistics with TESOL is still on-going - will this be a problem for employment? Would I have to wait another year before looking for work?

3) When are jobs advertised? I'm posting this now as the country I'm familiar with (China) is just entering recruitment season. However, I have so far seen very few adverts for Korea.

4) Recruiters vs. doing it solo. Would you recommend going through a recruiter? If so which one? Or would you recommend I try and do it solo? How easy is it to contact universities directly?

Thank you for your assistance.

[SeoulNate]

1. Without being in the country your chances are petty much zero. Unless you have a PHD in a related field they are not going to hire you from overseas. As far as your chances go if you come into the country, that would depend a lot on you. The uni scene here is fairly competitive, but if you interview well, can sell your experience in China, talk up up your CELTA and MA you have a shot.

Job conditions are all over the place. You might get here and get stuck at a smaller school outside of school with crappy pay and benefits or you might land a better one, again this all depends on your interview skills and, tbh, how much the uni interviewers like you.

2. It will be a problem getting a job, but depending on what 'later summer' means, you should have it in hand before the semester starts.

3. Our spring semester just started here. You will start to see advertisements for the uni positions starting in a few months and run all the way up to when the semester starts. Be warned though, many schools do not advertise and expect candidates to apply directly through their website.

4. Don't think any unis use recruiters? At least when I was looking for a job last year all of the ads were direct hires.

[Milwaukiedave]

I like Nat's answers, but will just add a bit.

For universities it does help being in the country. The problem is the hiring seasons are generally for March and September (some hire at other times depending on their need). For September expect the job announcements to start with in the next few weeks. The interviews could start as early as April and run through the end of June depending on what the university's timeline is for hiring. At the end of June stuff will start drying up and there maybe last minute openings if people decline positions or if someone they hired is not able to get a visa.

In terms of your MA in linguistics that should help. Whether a university would accept it before you receive the diploma, I don't know. Generally they want the diploma in hand (for instance I am working a doctoral degree and even though I am ABD most schools won't consider me if that is a requirement). Universities usually hire teachers with a master's degree (though I have worked for schools who had teachers with only bachelor's degrees).

Nat is right about the university hiring process being competitive. The other factor is whether you are willing to take a job outside of Seoul for a year. That might increase your chances.

Most you have to apply directly to and as Nate said some don't even advertise so you have to network (something I'm just terrible at). Keep a close eye on the job board here though.

[shroob]

Thanks for the reply, useful information.

I'd have to think seriously about flying into the country without a job offer, that would put me off. Especially if things are as competitive as they seem to be.

With regard to not working in Seoul at first, that suits me fine. I really prefer smaller cities, I've no desire to work in Seoul, Busan, or any other large city.

The issue with the MA is annoying, as although I'm 99% sure I'll pass, and be MA 'qualified' by September, I won't actually have the piece of paper until November time.

Thanks again.

[SeoulNate]

If you wont have the paper until Nov, I wouldnt bother with flying over until then. The spring semester hirings begin as early as October so you would be in time for most of those (interviews happen in November usually).

You might be able to get a crappy offer without it in hand, but it wont be one that you will be happy with I would imagine.

[wonkavite62]

I am teaching in a rather quiet place on the south coast of Korea. I met 2 western people who are teaching in the university here. I asked one of them how he had managed and he said "I just applied." Like so many western people here, he's from Canada.
The other guy told me that at the local university, the students' spoken English is at a lower level than students at other universities. It's quite a provincial area, and a bit far from big cities, but if you are set on university jobs, you should not just be applying to those in Seoul. Perhaps getting a list of universities and e-mailing them your C.V. is a good idea.

Be aware that some Chinese universities, e.g. Henan University in Kaifeng have been paying much higher than normal salaries for people with master's degrees. Like 20,000 yuan per month. It's not fair. The only thing stopping me from getting a master's degree is a lack of cash.