Korean Job Discussion Forums

[antoniothegreat]

I really don't know how long I will be here, but I want to explore the option. Does anyone have any experience of getting a graduate/master's degree in Korea? obviously i have a BA, and I am thinknig of getting something better.
I am not sure if I can since I don't speak Korean.
also, what about costs?
what are admission requirements like?
How would it be recognized in the West? valid or just crap?
Could I only get a teaching/English degree? I would prefer something in the field of political science or history.
lastly, how about scheduling. I teach in a middle school an hour from Chyangnyeongni. I could get there by 6:00.
I know this is kind of off the wall, but it seems like the most specific answers you get from Koreans are "well, it depends."
thanks

[ejmlab]

Several years ago, before the proliferation of reputable online MA programs I enrolled in an MA program (Literature) at a National University in Korea. I studied for 1 year before dropping out: Reason... the quality of instruction and the research requirements were very low. However, having done graduate work at a Korean University seems to endear me to my coworkers. Usually there will be one or more coworker that has studied at the same University had the same Profs. etc. It makes them feel comfortable that you have a common background with them. Just my 20 won.

Cheers

PS: In answer to some of your specific questions: The requirements are not too difficult but you may be required to study Korean (depends on your thesis advisor), If you go to a National University it is very inexpensive (just over W1 million per semester in 2000), All of my classes were held on Friday and the University I worked for allowed me to take fridays off to attend, hope this helps.

[Yaya]

A good Aussie buddy of mine got his master's in international politics from Seoul National University in 2001. He said he learned more the language than the major, but did not regret it, and later finished a Ph.D program in Australia.

That said, you might want to explore the international grad schools here at Ewha Woman's, SNU, Yonsei, Korea, Sogang, Chungang and Kyunghee universities and the Korea Development Institute. One girl told me the KDI school wasn't bad compared to another grad school she had attended.

My friend finished a master's at Korea University's international grad school but wasn't too impressed by it. He finished his coursework in a year and had only his thesis left.

[philthy]

I have just recently wondered myself of getting a Master's while I'm here, but online. Are they reputable?
I'm Canadian and do not know if Canada accepts degrees from online Universities.
I just started looking today, and see that Athabasca and the University of Phoenix offer degrees.
One problem may be that I took Psychology for my undergrad, and so getting an M.Ed may be difficult without pre-requisites in a "teachable" subject.
If anyone has any information, please pass it along.

Thanks

[Kimchieluver]

An online M.Ed is a different story altogether when it comes to Canada. Different provinces and even states won't recognize the degree as valid. I looked into it and the online Phoenix program is expensive and you can only teach in a certain number of states. No one in Canada will accept it. Furthermore, I looked into an online Education degree from a University in Canada and it was only recognized in New Brunswick. However, with an online TESOL or TEFL Masters you should be able to teach adults in Canada or anywhere in the world for that matter.

[tomr76]

While doing my Bachelor of Education one of my professors was finishing up his masters degree online. However there was some face to face time required. I believe it was 1 week per year. I know that some online degrees will be more widely recognized than others. However I couldn't say which are more widely recognized. Good luck with this. If you find out more information about this, please give us updates. I am sure many people are curious about this.