Korean Job Discussion Forums

[rnrpaulsen]

Hi all.

So, we've got a contract here for a school in Cheongju. We've sent over most of our documents and were supposed to ship out the contract via courier today.

We had been dealing directly with a teacher at the school, who was responsible for finding his own replacement, and he'd been teaching there for two years.

Last night I got a call from Peter Chang (sp?) from SnB Korea asking if we were still going to take a position through them in Mokpo. I told him that we had found something else, and we appreciated all their help, but this other opportunity seemed more right for us at the time. He asked what the school in Cheongju was called, and I told him that according to the first page of our contract, it's Jongro M School in Cheongju.

Upon hearing this, he laughed heartily, and proceeded to inform me that he was "yung-gu so jang Dae-chung campus Junro M school" (something to do with being head of research or curriculum development or something) and that the school I was being hired by doesn't have a language program at all, and that all they are is a prep school for Koreans wanting to get into better universities in Korea.

I realize that there's a chance that he's just saying this to try to get us to go through SnB instead of dealing directly with the school, but we're now a little confused (I think understandably) and having trouble understanding what the hell is going on here.

Does anyone know anything about Jongro M schools? Does any of this sound familiar? Have any of you come across this type of situation before? What do you think the chances are of this being a legitimate warning as opposed to an attempt at scaring us away from any other schools that might hire us? Help, please!

[sheba]

I cant be sure or course, but it sounds like the recruiter is taking you for a ride...

Firstly you have been talking directly with the previous foreign teacher right? Im am pretty sure a foreign teacher would not willingly trick another into a job that does not exist... (or am I being too trusting?).

If the previous teacher stayed for 2 years then it is a pretty good sign. They didnt break their contract and they chose to renew after a year. Sounds like it could be a good school.

Also, even if it is a prep school for uni, why does that mean there wouldnt be a English department?

So, I think the recruiter is just sour that you didnt end up taking a job through him and is hoping you will change your mind and go back to him to get a job. Of course I could be completely wrong about everything.

If you do decide not to take this job however, I suggest finding a different recruiter. This guy just seems to have confused you.... Good luck with your decision!

[inkoreaforgood]

Yeah, the recruiter is just BSing you. Jong No M schools are all over the place here, and have English programs. Good luck with it all.

[Ya-ta Boy]

I would take the job on the strength of the idea that those students would be highly motivated.

[rnrpaulsen]

Thanks for the insight everyone. I think we've decided to go with the Jongro M School after all. Our final decision was along the lines of "who sounds the least like a slimy used car salesman?" and the answer was the other foreign teacher that we spoke with.

I also couldn't figure out why a leaving teacher would go through the trouble of lying about so much just to get us to take a position in a school that he was leaving. He's doing the school a favour by finding them a replacement, and I don't think he'd bother if the school sucked.

thanks again though. This board has been a godsend.

[Roch]

Yep, your call was on the money. I had too many problems with Peter Jang of SnB. Forget him and his company (A.K.A., M&M Recruiting).

[cndgirl]

I just accepted a position in Busan through SnB Korea....haven't dealt with this Peter Jang character but now I am a tad bit worried considering both your experiences....

I'm now crossing my fingers that I didn't make the wrong decision and everything works out. The guy I dealt with seemed pretty straightforward, but then again, I guess you never really do know until you get there. Wish me luck...

[sheba]

Actually I just remembered that I was goin to use them to find a job... I applied to them and they were all keen. I turned down the first offer they sent (as in I said I didnt want to apply to the school) and they basically ignored me after that. They didnt return any of my (many) emails, or send me any offers.

Then about 2 months later they asked if I was still interested in a job. I quite happily told them what I thought of their service, and that Id found a job through another agency. I was quite happy though becasue it was a little time after that, that I started hearing a lot of bad things about their agency.

[just because]

Jongno m School does have an english department....but he is right where he says it is a prep school for university and high school...

It is an ibshi hagwon that teaches all subjects but I know of foreingers being employed at jongno in the english area...

[rnrpaulsen]

So I had another talk with SnB, this time with Matthew Kim, and everythin is sorted out.

Apparently, when Peter told me that there was no language program at Jongro M School, he meant that there was on set language curriculum at the school, which is incredibly different, and still something that runs contrary to what we've been told by the teacher we've been in contact with. It was nice, however, to get that clarification. I really do get the sense that Matthew Kim absolutely has our best interests at heart. When I told him that our decision was final, he said that he respects that, and offered to courier our documents directly to the Jongro M School instead of sending them back to us. He has also said that he'll be sending along some information about Cheongju when he gets a chance. I don't know if he will, and it's certainly not expected, since we're no longer clients of his, but it's nice that he offered anyway.