Korean Job Discussion Forums

[Adam J]

[Toby]

You've got the BA. Therefore you've got all you need to teach in MacDonalds, sorry, hokwans, in Korea.

I have a CELTA. Bachelor of Education and 3 years in Korea. Doesn't make any odds to an employer in a hakwon really.

Degree? Could be in car welding for all they care.

Experience? Usually the only one that does count.

MA? We'll pay you the same as everyone else.

*edited by Lemon 1:13pm*

[Toby]

[Toby]

[JennyJJ]

Adam,

I am assuming that you are a certified teacher where you are teaching now. So, regarding getting an MA - it would be very useful to go ahead and do that as well - or at least get it started. Some programs will let you complete it during your summer vacations. In most states you will eventually need to get an MA/M.Ed. anyway to maintain your certification. Starting and finishing one would be a nice plus for the day you return to where you are now. Sadly enough, many of the people on this board giving you "advice" on these issues are not real teachers and many don't really wish to be. I am sure you can tell.

Once overseas - unless tied in with a true international school - it is difficult to get the ongoing additional education to maintain your certification - another reason to go with the real international schools. I have had trouble getting what I need and my certification just expired last November - now I have to go through the whole process again _ AND meet any new requirements that were additional since my initial certification. A real pain in the *ss.

Stay with it - and good luck. This can be a wonderfully rewarding career - personally as well as financially.

[Adam J]

JennyJJ -

Thank you for the sincere response. Your thoughts are very much in-line with my own, and you've given me some new things to consider. It's nice to get some validation, too.

I am a fully certified secondary school teacher (Professional Clear Credential - I'm lucky because the year after I earned my teaching credential many California colleges stopped giving Professional Clear credentials to first-year teachers - it now takes two years of teaching and two years of extra classes to get this).

I missed the deadline to begin graduate school next fall, but I can start taking classes the next semester (January 2005). I'll do this as long as I can keep my current job (I'm hoping to maybe scale back to an 80% position). If I get accepted to grad school and go to job fairs next winter I'll have all my bases covered. If the International job doesn't pan out, no big deal, I'll complete the M.A. and do another round of job fairs two years from now. I'm 28 right now, so I'll still be relatively young when interviewing. I have to admit a candidate with 5 years teaching experience, B.A., credential, and M.A. sounds more impressive than my current qualifications.

You make a good point about the hassles of renewing a teaching credential while overseas. We have to renew every 5 years here in California. I'm pretty flexible, though. I'm planning on leaving the U.S. for at least 4 years, possibly much longer, so long as I can make it back to visit family once a year.

Regarding the M.A. - my university offers several emphasis options in English: Literature, Creative Writing, Pedagogy, TESOL. TESOL is out unless I quit my job and become a full-time day school student. The other three programs can be completed at night (but not during the summer). I am leaning toward the Creative Writing emphasis for personal interest reasons, but am somewhat concerned because there is a prevailing attitude in the U.S. that this is not a "real" M.A. It is a M.A., not a M.F.A. I'm going to start a new thread about this but I'd appreciate your opinion if you have one.

Thanks again!

Adam

[The Man known as The Man]

[JennyJJ]

My suspicion is that you will not have a problem landing an international school position. But, because of your relative inexperience, you may not have a wide choice of where you would like to go. Stay flexible, I think that once you are in that system and have a successfully completed contract or two under your belt � you won�t have much problem going wherever you want. Five years experience and an MA though might make all the difference, though I suspect that schools will still be a little chary � the first time � of someone who has not yet lived overseas for a significant period of time. Understandable, as a certain percentage bail when it is not as they had imagined.

I can�t really comment on what master�s level major might work best� but you might take a look at the job fairs and see what might be more marketable. Otherwise, follow what you enjoy.

Don�t be surprised if you never want to move back home � there is a surprising number of us out here � that have been out and about for years � and are hooked on it.

[Adam J]

I got hired by an international school in Seoul this week. After re-reading everyone's posts, I have a couple of observations:

1)Everything JennyJJ said was spot-on correct
2)I talk too much

There is very little information about international schools available here, or elsewhere on the net, so I feel obliged to post some details that would have been helpful to me last year when I was digging:

Minimum requirements - if you don't meet these, you are wasting your time:

BA
Teaching credential
2-3 years full-time teaching experience (not as a sub or student teacher)

*Some schools hire interns with less experience, but the pay is not as good

There are two major recruiters, International School Services (ISS) and Search Associates. I found ISS to be more professional, while Search Associates has a bit of a mom and pop personal touch feel. Both have very useful online databases of jobs you can search once registered. It costs about $150 to register with either, but they post a biography about you for possible employers. Basically the same information is available as on www.tieonline ($24 per year), but ISS and Search put together several recruitment fairs (at major cities scattered across the globe). It costs another $150 to register for a recruiting fair, plus they are at expensive hotels ($160 a night for 3-5 nights), plus you may need airfare to get there - it's not cheap! But I think well worth it.

I am a cheapskate. I registered with ISS, Search, and Tieonlie.com, but my goal was to get a job before going to the recruiting fairs. I have the minimum qualifications, but I did get hired without going to any recruitment fairs.

I picked one job that I seemed the most qualified for (teaching writing and journalism - I worked as a reporter before becoming a teacher). It took about six weeks, during which I talked to the principal of the school once on the phone for about five minutes, and we e-mailed back and forth six or seven times. I e-maled my resume, a cover letter, and a couple pictures of myself. I also filled out the school's paper application, and mailed that with three letters of recommendation and copies of published newspaper articles, my college transcripts, and my teaching credential. I spent at least 15 hours writing my resume and reformating it into a two page document (instead of one). My resume and cover letter were printed on paper that matched. I made labels for everything.
I put it all together in a slick-looking see-through plastic pouch and mailed it to the principal after he called me. I don't know if any of these little details mattered, but I think they did.

I also e-mailed a few of the teachers currently working at the school, including the head of my department. They gave me some good information, and it may have helped make the impression that I was very serious about taking the job. At all times I made it clear this school was my top choice (which it really was), and that I would accept a job without hesitation.

[guangho]

Does an M.A. and a CELTA make up for no teaching credentials? I assume T.C. means some state certification.

[Derrek]

[rapier]