Korean Job Discussion Forums

[2toke]

I posted this question on the Japanese board, but I thought I would do the same here just in case.

I am wondering if my weight is going to be an issue to Korean schools/ recruiters. I am 6'1", 325lbs, but I have been told that I carry it well. Is this going to be a strike against me? Will it keep me from gaining employment in Korea?

[Squaffy]

Are you paranoid or what?

If you're a teacher, you're a teacher - the weight issue in SoKo could be to your favour - when wrestling with the younger kids - you'd win hands down with a body slam. You'd rule your school

Seriously though - have you tried a diet?

Experience counts more than looks - you could put a pic of a slim blond on your resume, get the job, turn up and say: sorry, I put a bit of weight on

[rudyflyer]

I'm sorry to say this it will be a major strike against you. I remember my first year here meeting a horribly obese woman who worked in a hogwon (hired without a picture but thats another thread) and the students would call her all sorts of nasty names, then her boss docked her pay like 50% saying that she was "fat and ugly" and costing him business. She finally got fed up and did a midnight run. She was a good teacher as I had the chance to observe her but the students were so obssessed with her size they didn't pay attention to what she was teaching I've also heard other stories about people who were not even obese but heavy getting treated the same

given how this country is so image oriented you will find it very hard to get a job here given your weight and I personally would advise against coming here. You will be the subject to considerable abuse especially on the street and if you got a job I'm afraid the same problems I mentioned above will occur. My wife has been called "fattie" all the time by Korean kids and she's not fat, just a large sized woman. I know my size (I'm 6'3" 230 lbs) is a huge intimidation factor with my students..

Its simply not worth the risks. You're probablly a good teacher but the Koreans won't see that they'll see your size and that stinks.

[Squaffy]

rudy - she didn't say she was obese - she just posted her height-weight ratio. Me thinks she would do well out here. As a mod - I'll call you on being 'orrible to a newbie.
Get off your high horse rudy.
This gal can get a job here if she wants to.

2toke: go for it, send out your resume, see the replies girl, don't be afraid. The world is your Oyster. If you wanna go SoKo, come here, just make sure you have a back-up plan in case you don't like it

[rudyflyer]

squff read the post I didn't call the OP obese, I was telling a story about an obese woman I knew.I was pointing out the reality anybody over 250 lbs and 6'4" here is going to have problems. Its nothing personal its reality here and I've been here 7 years

[waterbaby]

[rudyflyer]

great advice waterbaby. you do need a thick skin to survive here especially if you don't fit "the mold" that Koreans think westerners "should" look like. I know me and my wife have developed it. Just look at how hard it is for an African-American to get a job here and do well its the same problem

[itaewonguy]

simple answer! dont think about teaching KIDS!!

kids say the darndest things we all know this...

adults wouldnt dare do it to your face..

so if you are thick skinned and would like some adventure in your life..
korea is a place for you... hey if you are serious you could knock off some pounds eating korean style!!!

the japanese love sumo wrestlers they even date supermodels!
there are many over weight koreans, I think you will do fine..
I suggest you look for adult employment just to not have to deal with the BS from the kids!!
they will find anything and try to hurt your feelings..

man sometimes if I have a pimple they will make a huge deal of it!!
I can shut them down in a second with a korean name calling word if I wanted to, they really dont know!! I would have the whole class laughing at him/she, but I dont because that student will cry and then I have parents to deal with, so I know how to change the subject to move!
so yeah, adults man.. you will have fun.. and hey, get on a diet man, being that large is not good for your health, I am sure you loose pounds here, all the walking up and down the stairs and eating korean food, you will leave here a changed man!! have a dream!!!

[Marathe]

[Blue Flower]

I also agree that the adults will say just as much as the kids. One of my male co-workers said i looked very "strong", when we were pigging out on fried chicken

Lorean women seem to be very image conscious, everywhere you look, the chicks wandering round have thier little mirrors out, checking thier looks, doing there hair, etc. I was in the body shop today, and the sales chick had a hair straightener out, and was doing her hair in the shop, while working!

I've received more compliments here, than I ever have before. I say give it a go, if you get burned, try not to take it to heart, as they are the ones that will be missing out.

[captain kirk]

hahaha, one of my favourite subjects.
if you get your job in korea, you will hear 'dwea-gee' alot. ajummas when you walk down the street will mutter this. or teens. or guys. just about everyone will be muttering that you are a 'pig' (dwea gee) and a kind of public eyesore. and they will be muttering this with great confidence, with a kind of hiss. as if it is entirely their right and business to be uttering their disregard of your physical form. and not for your sake, either.
yup, there is a cult of physical beauty here in korea. koreans are meticulous about 'image'. good looking things. neatness. fashion. fit and trim bodies. which is ok, if that's YOUR business. but there's a groupthink going on which makes a fat person no bystander. a fat person is in the game and has lost. he or she is therefore a pig. publicly displaying their piginess and attracting 'necessary' comment. go figure.
kids in the school will be calling you pig-teacher, as well. but so what? they're kids, who cares. and a lot of korean kids these days are fat. which is a big problem. later they might get diabetes at a relatively young age and have to live with the complications longer (as opposed to getting type 2 diabetes when elderly). fat kids will be calling you 'pig teacher', too. it just means they like you.
I came from taiwan four months ago. was in on a mass-hiring for teaching english in public school. at the end of semester one four of us were fired, out of some thirty teachers total. we were all guys with husky waistlines.
have you ever noticed how little korean women eat BEFORE they get married? yesterday i noticed that the 28 year old korean english teacher, a female, merely nibbled on a sort of sweet bun all day. six hours block houred teaching. i could see the little nibbles since she left it in the staff room. nibble, nibble, nibble.
but heh, i go to the gym to combat this 'dwea gee' collecting tendency i have, it seems. which is developing a thick skin by armouring with muscle. while continuing to eat like a ......uh, .....horse.

[2toke]

Thanks for taking the time to shed a little light on this for me. Let me clear a few things up...

1) I am a male.
2)I teach kids everyday here in the states, and have been for years.
3)I know how brutally honest they can be and I have a much easier time dealing with it from them than I do with adults, although you can body slam an adult.
4) I have NEVER thought of a diet! Gee, thanks. All my troubles are gone! "Happy days are here again!"

Actually, I have had a thyroid problem since I was a kid, although it seems to be close to normal now. I have actually lost close to 75lbs in the last few years, and am continuing to try. Keep your fingers crossed for me! Thanks again

[Squaffy]

2toke - what can I say? You just made me have one of them funny moments where you look inside yourself and something goes ping. What I'm trying to say is - I assumed you were female. I never realised I thought that way until now / reading your post. I seem to connect being overweight with females.

*lost in deep thought now*

My bad - sorry all you girlies out there - didn't mean to offend any of you.

[rudyflyer]

2toke:
Sorry if we thought you were a woman, we've heard so many comments about large western women here we just assumed (you know what assume means) and we transferred that to you.

With that said I'm still inclined to stick to my original thought. Even if you explain you had a thyroid condition that messed things up, the Koreans won't understand this. As I said before and others have posted this place is so image driven its not funny. You could be the greatest teacher ever (and I have no doubt you are a very good teacher) the size thing is going to hinder you. Heck I'm 6'3" 230 lbs and my boss said last week that the students "aren't comfortable around me because of my size" which she somewhat blames for few of my students signing up for univ hogwon classes (BTW I don't teach hogwon classes) and I teach at a univ. Just a little example of how "image is everything" here.

Wish you luck in trying to find employment here. If you do want to come over, I'd advise you look at univs. they are a little more forgiving since qualifcations are considered more than looks

[crazylemongirl]

I get away with being overweight due to the fact I have very blue eyes (even my optomterists back in nz thought they were very blue) , and heaps of freckles... thus far more interesting things to look at than the flab.

CLG