Korean Job Discussion Forums

[basic69isokay]

Assuming F5/6-----

Ironically, a lot will depend on your Korean language ability to yuk it up with the Moms. Barring that, your wife's/husband's (prob. Wife) social skills/networking skills/knowledge of the industry.
Your actual class is kind of secondary. I know some absolutely great teachers who don't get privates because they can't speak Korean or their wife is in another industry/uninterested in dealing with Moms.

Likewise, I know some guys who put little to no effort into teaching, literally just play board games and watch movies, but theyre swimming in students because of wife's networking.

[Handsome Boy]

basic69isokay,

I have no doubt what you are saying is absolutely true for kids! However in my case I teach Adults only, high school and up! so you can earn 5 to 6 mill a month, give or take, and that's with a full schedule, five to six hours teaching a day. My rate was 50.000 won an hour, however you also have to factor in the travelling costs and time which can turn into a 10/11/12 hour day. NOT GOOD!

For the OP and yourself.

When I started teaching privates, I had to take a job at a hogwon to supplement my income so it was a sort of 50/50 split until I had acquired enough privates to go it alone, hence the money figures in the first paragraph. Doing the 50/50 split I earned around 3.5 mill a month, 4 on a good month not much more.

Fastforward 3 years: I now have my own adult English academy with my wife so I now teach groups and earn the money that Coltronator quoted. A bad month about 6 mill, good month up to ten mill but again there are many factors at play, including the rent, electricity, and whether you have kids etc, which I do.

I have 15 years experience, 1999 to 2004 Korea, I've done the lot, Hogwon, Uni etc. 2004 to 2009 Royal Air Force Oman, 2010 to 2011 British Aerospace Saudi I have celta etc etc. Blah Blah blah.

So how did I crack it?

1, My wife is a fantastic marketeer.
2, I wear a suit! no tatoos! Jeans or T Shirts! You learn this in the ME
3, My Academy is very professional.
4, I had referrals.
5, I'll close a class if they're not serious about learning English.
6, I love teaching English, I've been doing it long enough.
7, Koreans can tell if you are only in it for the money, bye bye! You lose your students.
8, My students are not getting ripped off or entertained.

So there you have it! Hope that helps you all out!
Cheers.

[swashbuckler]

[swashbuckler]

[Handsome Boy]

Swashbuckler,

Ok! without going off topic as this thread is about Potential Private Lesson earnings, I'll answer your questions.

1, Definition of a serious class? = Those that want to learn English!

2, Definition of a serious teacher? = This is a moot point but in my own opinion, those that love teaching, good rapport with the students, etc etc, the list goes on.

I do agree with your post about the entertaining white monkey etc, but I only accept the 20% who actually want to learn English, the other 80% can F*&$ off!

Yes! I may lose money over this but I'd rather teach 2 people who want to learn as opposed to a group of 8 who are just wasting my time but that's just me. My business now has the 20% who do want to learn, the 80% don't apply. Nice!

[GENO123]

Doing it for a few months is one thing, doing it every month for an extended period of time is another. There . I have seen people go up to five than drop down to three then go back up to six then drop back down to 2.5.

Some homes schools do well, others fail. It is very often hit or miss.


There is 2 sides to every story for every big paying job you see adds like the following:

[Bran]

I really appreciate all these extremely informative replies, thanks! I knew before posting that my original question that there just wouldn't be a standard answer but I definitely have a greater sense of the market now just from this thread.

As I said, my aim would be to have a more flexible lifestyle rather than make a lot of money (not that I may have a choice anyway!). If I earned on average 24m won a year while working as much as I would be in a hagwon or through EPIK, I'd feel my minimum goals were being met.

It sounds like I need to work in EPIK for a year, make lots of friends, get involved in the local culture, improve my Korean language skills and then look for part-time gigs while advertising myself as the EPIK contract ends (I know I can't work while on that programme). I've been a freelancer in other areas for years so I'm quite prepared for the wildly varying income once my rent and food bills are paid for.

Give me 18 months and I'll post again and let you know if this is a reasonable plan!

[Slaps]

If you only want to earn 2 million a month that is a piece of piss. It's just 2hrs per day at w50,000 per hour. You should be able to pick up 2 classes a day through any one of the agencies offering Biz classes. Do that in the morning and throw in an after-school gig and you're looking at 5 mil a month for a 7/8am to 5pm (with breaks) schedule M-F.

[Bran]

[edwardcatflap]

[nicwr2002]

[Coltronator]