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nicwr2002
Joined: 17 Aug 2011
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 Posted: Sun Apr 19, 2015 6:29 pm Post subject: |
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| These new requirements are Korea's way of saying, "Hey look how good our country is now because we require people to have a TESOL certificate!" They still don't care about quality. This will just create a flooded market for hagwons now because I know I couldn't afford to spend $1500 straight out of college. |
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wooden nickels
Joined: 23 May 2010
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| Posted: Sun Apr 19, 2015 7:37 pm Post subject: |
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It's costing more and more to get into Korea, with less and less savings potential. It's Japan without the benefits of Japan.
China is the new frontier. |
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Mr. Pink
Joined: 21 Oct 2003
Location: China
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| Posted: Sun Apr 19, 2015 10:47 pm Post subject: |
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| wooden nickels wrote: |
It's costing more and more to get into Korea, with less and less savings potential. It's Japan without the benefits of Japan.
China is the new frontier. |
With the strength of the RMB, I am really surprised more people haven't jumped ship and gone to China.
Well, actually I am not surprised as I have lived in Korea for 10 years and I am now in my 6th year in China. China is MUCH harder living than Korea in terms of "comforts". The pollution here is mind boggling, the traffic is insane, the fact people will smoke EVERYWHERE, even in elevators and dept. stores is a bit  and that's just scratching the surface. No comfy LTE unhindered internet here folks.
If you are willing to give up the comforts of Korea and trust me, Korea is VERY comfortable as much as people complain on this forum about it, then yes the money can be quite good in China.
I don't work in ESL but I know people who have and their 15-20,000 RMB a month paychecks are way better than that 1.8-2mil I keep seeing is the norm in Korea. (15000 is about $2500US)
I'll most likely be in China for 3+ more years too as the job opportunities here are nuts.
Yup China definitely already is what Korea was back in the 1990s. Except the beauty is here the xpat community is MUCH different. Hard to explain except that you don't have soldiers or ESL teachers making up the majority of it...you have diplomats, businessmen and professionals like engineers making up the majority. I guess a lot less "freaky wagkook" like.
I don't post on the China boards here btw as I am not making another account. |
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Adventurer
Joined: 28 Jan 2006
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| Posted: Mon Apr 20, 2015 2:09 am Post subject: |
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| Mr. Pink wrote: |
| wooden nickels wrote: |
It's costing more and more to get into Korea, with less and less savings potential. It's Japan without the benefits of Japan.
China is the new frontier. |
With the strength of the RMB, I am really surprised more people haven't jumped ship and gone to China.
Well, actually I am not surprised as I have lived in Korea for 10 years and I am now in my 6th year in China. China is MUCH harder living than Korea in terms of "comforts". The pollution here is mind boggling, the traffic is insane, the fact people will smoke EVERYWHERE, even in elevators and dept. stores is a bit and that's just scratching the surface. No comfy LTE unhindered internet here folks.
If you are willing to give up the comforts of Korea and trust me, Korea is VERY comfortable as much as people complain on this forum about it, then yes the money can be quite good in China.
I don't work in ESL but I know people who have and their 15-20,000 RMB a month paychecks are way better than that 1.8-2mil I keep seeing is the norm in Korea. (15000 is about $2500US)
I'll most likely be in China for 3+ more years too as the job opportunities here are nuts.
Yup China definitely already is what Korea was back in the 1990s. Except the beauty is here the xpat community is MUCH different. Hard to explain except that you don't have soldiers or ESL teachers making up the majority of it...you have diplomats, businessmen and professionals like engineers making up the majority. I guess a lot less "freaky wagkook" like.
I don't post on the China boards here btw as I am not making another account. |
If the pollution wasn't so horrible in China, I wouldn't mind. Korea does have many comforts, for sure. I would rather go to Japan than China.
If Korea makes things more difficult, more might want to go to Japan.
Sure, some would head to China, but with the horrible visibility in some areas, good luck is what I would say. |
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metalhead
Joined: 18 May 2010
Location: Toilet
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| Posted: Mon Apr 20, 2015 2:23 am Post subject: |
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| You guys assume that China is a small place made up of only ten cities with equal pollution in all of them. If you can't figure out for yourselves that not every city in China is the same, then maybe you deserve to be stuck in polluted Korea earning a 2003 salary. |
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jazzmaster
Joined: 30 Sep 2013
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| Posted: Mon Apr 20, 2015 3:10 am Post subject: |
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| Korea has become popular enough for them to raise the standards. But what I've also seen is a lot of long termers leaving. I've seen two friends return to England, and two friends are preparing to return to Canada/USA. |
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nicwr2002
Joined: 17 Aug 2011
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| Posted: Mon Apr 20, 2015 3:14 am Post subject: |
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| metalhead wrote: |
| You guys assume that China is a small place made up of only ten cities with equal pollution in all of them. If you can't figure out for yourselves that not every city in China is the same, then maybe you deserve to be stuck in polluted Korea earning a 2003 salary. |
That is true, however, it is hard to argue with this pollution map.
http://aqicn.org/map/#@g/24.5741/113.6432/3z Even if you don't live in one of the polluted cities, the air will carry that pollution to you. |
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jvalmer
Joined: 06 Jun 2003
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| Posted: Mon Apr 20, 2015 3:16 am Post subject: |
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| jazzmaster wrote: |
| Korea has become popular enough for them to raise the standards. But what I've also seen is a lot of long termers leaving. I've seen two friends return to England, and two friends are preparing to return to Canada/USA. |
I don't see the popularity lasting. I think in the near future, they might have to scale back the requirements. |
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Mr. Pink
Joined: 21 Oct 2003
Location: China
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| Posted: Mon Apr 20, 2015 4:05 pm Post subject: |
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| nicwr2002 wrote: |
| metalhead wrote: |
| You guys assume that China is a small place made up of only ten cities with equal pollution in all of them. If you can't figure out for yourselves that not every city in China is the same, then maybe you deserve to be stuck in polluted Korea earning a 2003 salary. |
That is true, however, it is hard to argue with this pollution map.
http://aqicn.org/map/#@g/24.5741/113.6432/3z Even if you don't live in one of the polluted cities, the air will carry that pollution to you. |
There are a few clean cities, but those aren't the ones paying 2-4k a month for doing ESL. You will find the demand for English services higher in the bigger, more polluted cities.
For those thinking to make the jump, if you can get into the elite academies or as an ESL teacher at a Chinese high school you should be making 2-3k a month for reasonable hours. A lot do universities which give really part time hours and low pay and then people do massive tutoring to make up for the shortfall. In the bigger cities = way more chances for tutoring.
Anyways, I don't do ESL but the few people I've met in my area that do make more than they would in Korea and they are treated better here than in Korea. (In Korea it seems society looks down on the ESL teacher, whereas in China you will be looked up to due to how many people are so much worse off than foreign teachers.) |
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Yaya
Joined: 25 Feb 2003
Location: Seoul
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| Posted: Mon Apr 20, 2015 4:18 pm Post subject: |
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| Requirements for teachers are going up, but have the hakwons gone up in quality as well? I'd say no. You still hear about sneaky owners who try things to screw staff and the like (and Korean staff have it the worst) or simply still hire people based on looks and asskissing. |
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Adventurer
Joined: 28 Jan 2006
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| Posted: Mon Apr 20, 2015 4:28 pm Post subject: |
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| metalhead wrote: |
| You guys assume that China is a small place made up of only ten cities with equal pollution in all of them. If you can't figure out for yourselves that not every city in China is the same, then maybe you deserve to be stuck in polluted Korea earning a 2003 salary. |
I looked at the pollution map yesterday of both South Korea and China. A lot of the major places where you would get a decent amount of coin ARE quite polluted. A French girl I know left China to come here. Many expats have.
Of course, there are some areas where you won't be affected as much. Southeastern China is not as bad as the North. That's true, but it's bad enough, I'm afraid. |
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Yaya
Joined: 25 Feb 2003
Location: Seoul
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| Posted: Mon Apr 20, 2015 4:33 pm Post subject: |
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| Mr. Pink wrote: |
| wooden nickels wrote: |
It's costing more and more to get into Korea, with less and less savings potential. It's Japan without the benefits of Japan.
China is the new frontier. |
With the strength of the RMB, I am really surprised more people haven't jumped ship and gone to China.
Well, actually I am not surprised as I have lived in Korea for 10 years and I am now in my 6th year in China. China is MUCH harder living than Korea in terms of "comforts". The pollution here is mind boggling, the traffic is insane, the fact people will smoke EVERYWHERE, even in elevators and dept. stores is a bit and that's just scratching the surface. No comfy LTE unhindered internet here folks.
If you are willing to give up the comforts of Korea and trust me, Korea is VERY comfortable as much as people complain on this forum about it, then yes the money can be quite good in China.
I don't work in ESL but I know people who have and their 15-20,000 RMB a month paychecks are way better than that 1.8-2mil I keep seeing is the norm in Korea. (15000 is about $2500US)
I'll most likely be in China for 3+ more years too as the job opportunities here are nuts.
Yup China definitely already is what Korea was back in the 1990s. Except the beauty is here the xpat community is MUCH different. Hard to explain except that you don't have soldiers or ESL teachers making up the majority of it...you have diplomats, businessmen and professionals like engineers making up the majority. I guess a lot less "freaky wagkook" like.
I don't post on the China boards here btw as I am not making another account. |
I hope your lungs are OK. |
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