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Kids College (Apgujeong)

 
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robyn1882



Joined: 19 May 2006

PostPosted: Sun May 21, 2006 1:35 pm    Post subject: Kids College (Apgujeong) Reply with quote

Does anyone have any info.(good or bad) regarding Apgujeong Kids College?
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ttompatz



Joined: 05 Sep 2005
Location: Kwangju, South Korea

PostPosted: Sun May 21, 2006 4:30 pm    Post subject: Re: Kids College (Apgujeong) Reply with quote

robyn1882 wrote:
Does anyone have any info.(good or bad) regarding Apgujeong Kids College?


KIDS COLLEGE chain in general:
They do not have a good reputation.

Get e-mail addresses of more than one current teacher. Talk / e-mail them when the boss is NOT there and they are free to be honest with you.

-Ask specific questions about shifts, start times, finish times, breaks, and pay issues. (a schedule of class, no class, class, no class, class just plain sucks). Lots of dead time that you can't do anything with. How do they calculate your "teaching hours"?
-OVERTIME, pension, and medical insurance are often issues of contension. I have never known a KIDS College to pay any of these - from talking first hand to staff at several KCs.
- Ask about the housing - including quality of the apartment, management fees and utility costs. Your "free" apartment may cost you more than 150k won per month.
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some waygug-in



Joined: 25 Jan 2003

PostPosted: Sun May 21, 2006 4:31 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Check here: www.englishschoolwatch.org

Then here: http://seamonkey.ed.asu.edu/~jonb/blacklisted.html

Then do what the above poster has suggested.



cheers
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robyn1882



Joined: 19 May 2006

PostPosted: Mon May 22, 2006 3:51 pm    Post subject: All of them?? Reply with quote

Do you think that all Kids Colleges are bad or that maybe they are just all being painted with the same brush. I have looked at blacklists and forums and can not find anything bad regarding the one in Apgujeong at all. Most negative comments seem to be about one Kids College School in particular, and not all of them.Does anyone have any info. on AKC in particular? Thanks!! Very Happy
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ttompatz



Joined: 05 Sep 2005
Location: Kwangju, South Korea

PostPosted: Mon May 22, 2006 11:08 pm    Post subject: Re: All of them?? Reply with quote

robyn1882 wrote:
Do you think that all Kids Colleges are bad or that maybe they are just all being painted with the same brush. I have looked at blacklists and forums and can not find anything bad regarding the one in Apgujeong at all. Most negative comments seem to be about one Kids College School in particular, and not all of them.Does anyone have any info. on AKC in particular? Thanks!! Very Happy


They are a typical franchise hakwon.

Let me make this perfectly clear here for you.

Do your homework (person to person) with more than one member of the CURRENT staff or risk the consequences.

A large percentage of new teachers who run into trouble do exactly what you are doing now. Post a few notes on the internet and hope it will all work out in the end.


If you are lucky, it will.

From personal experience, I would guesstimate that you have about a 70/30 chance in favor of getting a POOR to BAD hakwon doing this.

You can improve that number to about 85/15 in favor of a GOOD hakwan by doing your proper research.

It's your year and it only takes 5 minutes to ask for e-mails of current staff and about the same time as it takes to read this forum to get GOOD and ACCURATE answers to your questions.

If they give you excuses about not being willing or able to give you references... then give it a pass without further thought.


When a hakwan chain has a bad reputation generally, it is often well deserved.

PS, when you talk to the current staff, ASK if they have government medical (with the booklet), pension AND severance (like you should get) and do they pay overtime. Kids clubs schools usually DO NOT and it is your loss.

2nd note here.... for people IN Korea to talk publicly disparingly about any PARTICULAR business and IF that business suffers a loss as a direct result then the person who did he talking (WRITING) may be liable for the losses in a Korean court. Truth is NOT a defense against slander or libel in Korea.

DO YOUR RESEARCH.
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honeygalore



Joined: 20 Jun 2006

PostPosted: Wed Jun 21, 2006 11:09 pm    Post subject: Kid's College Apgujeong Reply with quote

For future reference for anyone who wants to work at this school,
one of their employees has been recently fired two months before the end of her contract so the school could avoid paying severance.

The owner's daughter is running the place and can make vast decisions within a short amount of time. She expects the teachers to accomodate her within an even shorter amount of time. Two employees have been fired and one did a midnight run within the last 3 months.

You will get your monthly pay but do not be certain to get a return flight, medical insurance, housing deposit, or full amount of severance.

Be very cautious. Your best bet would be to kiss the owner's ass as well as her kids.

Sincerely,
a Former Employee
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