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awbradley
Joined: 20 May 2005
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Posted: Tue May 24, 2005 10:07 am Post subject: the job search |
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It seems it's hard to know what you're really getting into in Korea and Asia in general since so many schools misrepresent themselves in the recruitment and contract negotiation phases. Anyone have a good experience or actually know of a good place that is hiring now? Any info appreciated. |
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Real Reality
Joined: 10 Jan 2003 Location: Seoul
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Posted: Tue May 24, 2005 3:35 pm Post subject: Re: the job search |
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awbradley wrote: |
It seems it's hard to know what you're really getting into in Korea and Asia in general since so many schools misrepresent themselves in the recruitment and contract negotiation phases. |
Foreigners Experience Difficulties in Living in Korea
Overall living conditions, including education, housing, medical care, transportation, immigration, and access to the Internet are pointed to as inconveniences. Not only inconveniences caused by different systems and customs in Korea, but also special discriminating practices... are ubiquitous. "Even though Korea has achieved some degree of globalization in going abroad, it has still a long way to go for globalization in embracing foreigners inward," said foreigners residing in Korea.
An official in the International Cooperation Division of Seoul City admitted, "The same complaints regarding visas, transportation, education, and environment are raised every year without being solved, due to the lack of cooperation from government agencies involved and their passive attitudes."
by Jae-Dong Yu and Soo-Jung Shin, Donga.com (July 4, 2004)
http://english.donga.com/srv/service.php3?biid=2004070522448
Haven't been paid in 2 months.
http://www.eslcafe.com/forums/korea/viewtopic.php?t=27718
EFL LAW
http://efl-law.com/faq.html
My employer has not paid me on the due date. What can I do?
Your employer has not paid you on the specified contractual date. The employer has breached a substantial condition of your contract. You have asked for payment but received none nor received any information that satisfies you as to when and why the payment is not forthcoming. At this stage you may wish to consider tendering the required days notice of contract termination, unless you are satisfied as to why the payment has been delayed. (If you are on E1 or E2 visa, do not resign.)
See http://efl-law.com/faqans_lab-off.html
Have you ever been paid late in Korea?
http://www.eslcafe.com/forums/korea/viewtopic.php?t=18732 |
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Smee

Joined: 24 Dec 2004 Location: Jeollanam-do
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Posted: Tue May 24, 2005 3:49 pm Post subject: |
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Getting dicked around seems like par for the course. Others might have details about specific jobs---word of mouth?---or specific recruiters, but it's my opinion that you can only put so much stock in other people's words.
Sorry to answer your post with another link, but jajadude posted a list of questions that must be asked by applicants over the phone (or through email.) The post is
http://www.eslcafe.com/forums/korea/viewtopic.php?t=38794
Whether you'll get a fair deal when things get serious or when the application process starts is anybody's guess. But you'll intuitively be able to weed out most of the bad offers. |
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Yu_Bum_suk

Joined: 25 Dec 2004
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Posted: Tue May 24, 2005 4:00 pm Post subject: |
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Want to spend 45 minutes every morning chasing kindergarten kids around and cleaning up after them? Want to get locked into a classroom of teenage girls who write vulgar graffiti everywhere, walk across the desks, swear at you, throw things at you, do nothing but play with their phones, and will lacerate your hands with their fingernails if you try to take their toys away? Want to teach elementary classes where you do nothing but tell hyper-active boys to sit down? Want to work for a boss who thinks that it's fine for stupid foreigners to get treated like shit so long as he can keep defrauding parents of their money? Want to sit next to a KT who can't speak English, is clumsy as hell, eats with her mouth open, borrows your stuff without asking, and always loses and mixes up stuff for the classes you co-teach? If so, send me a pm, and I'm sure I can get you a job in no time. |
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awbradley
Joined: 20 May 2005
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Posted: Tue May 24, 2005 5:15 pm Post subject: |
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So why are all you crazy folks over there? |
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peppermint

Joined: 13 May 2003 Location: traversing the minefields of caddishness.
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Posted: Tue May 24, 2005 5:34 pm Post subject: |
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awbradley wrote: |
So why are all you crazy folks over there? |
Not all of us have bad jobs, is why. Organization wise, my school could be better, but my students are mostly well behaved, and make me laugh harder than most adults I meet. I save at least half of what I earn every month, have a great apartment, and the weather's a lot better here than it is at home.  |
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awbradley
Joined: 20 May 2005
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Posted: Tue May 24, 2005 5:42 pm Post subject: |
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Where do you work? The school and the region. Is it the only place you've been? Are they doing any hiring? |
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peppermint

Joined: 13 May 2003 Location: traversing the minefields of caddishness.
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Posted: Tue May 24, 2005 5:52 pm Post subject: |
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I've taught at 4 different schools in Korea, and the current one is a public school. No, they arent' hiring, but my position is hardly that rare. Most of the teachers I know have situations that are much better than mine even. |
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chronicpride

Joined: 16 Jan 2003
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Posted: Tue May 24, 2005 6:45 pm Post subject: |
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awbradley wrote: |
So why are all you crazy folks over there? |
I'll regurgitate something that I just said on another thread that applies to the impression that you may be getting. More often than not, people don't usually get motivated to come online here to talk at length of their job experiences, unless they are pissed. And people with kickass jobs and work environments are usually less inclined to tell Joe Anonymous on the internet about it, to avoid the risk of bringing a bad element into the mix. They'd rather tell their friends back home or around Korea. This is a contributive factor as to why you may not get very much good feedback on schools here. No news can sometimes prove to be good news, in this regard, but nevertheless, this site is only marginally represented by the teachers in Korea, so we all need to be careful not to wax the whole place into one assumptive lump, just because the silent majority of us aren't saying anything. |
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Aidge
Joined: 15 Jul 2004 Location: CA
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Posted: Tue May 31, 2005 1:16 am Post subject: Don't give up |
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I would guesstimate that 85% of hagwons are shady and/or not considerate of their teachers. Yet, if you find one that has good word of mouth or through a reliable recruiter, you can be relatively relaxed. I have been blessed to be in a comfortable situation with a small, friendly staff. So don't give up! Just do your research and this could be your kind of gig.  |
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Homer Guest
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Posted: Tue May 31, 2005 2:11 am Post subject: |
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Quote: |
Not all of us have bad jobs, is why. |
Indeed.
In fact, most of us and most westerners in Korea have decent or good jobs.
Like every job out there, you need to do your homework before signing on and in order to find a good job. |
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