Korean Job Discussion Forums

[aja21]

I have only been in S Korea for 3 months and already I am having second thoughts. I know there are people who either give notice or just do a "midnight flight".
Here are the reasons I am unhappy- ok they may seem meaningless or trivial to some readers, but these little things are adding up:

1. I have a BEd and 2 years teaching experience. My boss is giving me 100 Won more a month than the other teachers which I now know is a crap wage to start with and a crap salary for an experienced teacher. I can get more money and less hours elsewhere- I know some people who are happy in their jobs elsewhere.
2. The city I am in is way to small. I used to live in London which I absolutely loved. It is a 40-50,000 Won cab ride at night and there are no night buses so it makes going out to Seoul on the weekends a major pain. I am used to being able to go anywhere whenever I want.
3. My first impression of my boss is that she does care about the kids and the teaching, but now I am abe to see she does not. When the kids are in the wrong level she refuses to move them to "save face" from admitting to parents she put them in the wrong level and she does not treat the staff fairly. We have had 4 Korean teachers quit as they have had enough. Unfortunately as foreigners, home is far away and we signed a contract.
4. The schools in this area are cliques- they don't like other school teachers which makes me feel like I am in sodding high school!!! There used to be a "watering hole" for people to get togther but the bar has since closed. And anyway, my friends said people did not intermingle.
5. I have my heart set on going to Oz and I want to go now...have been putting it off for 2 years now since I went to Uk first.
6. I am not really sure why I even came to Asia to teach. It was kind of a last minute thing. I wanted to pay off more of my loan before going down under and I thought Korea would be a good experience for me. In a way I guess i am just trying to make money and kill some time. And I promised myself I would never live my life that way.
So now what? Unfortunatley I feel like I cannot change much of the above, beyond trying to meet more people which seems daunting. London was too easy- new people someing and going all the time.
And the hardest part is that my parents and friends at home are telling me to come home. In the UK when I went through tough times they really encouraged me to stick it out and I am glad I did. I guess I feel like i would have no regrets if I left Korea in the next few months.
Some of the other teachers hate the city and the school but they say it is easier than going home and having to find work and a flat, etc.

Are there other people out there in the same boat? Did you eventually leave? Or if you stayed, what made you change your mind?
Cheers,

[laogaiguk]

[eamo]

Don't stay if you don't like it. Give in your resignation. Work out your notice. Try greener pastures.

There's nothing wrong with that you know.

[captain kirk]

For some reasons your OP totally disgusts me. It's work to live here. It's work to make it interesting. Your haggie situation sounds totally normal. It's you who has to make it work.

And I'd suggest you stop comparing Korea to London. And stop thinking about being somewhere else (like Australia). That is if you want to stay. You say you promised yourself you wouldn't live life killing time. You feel you're 'killing time' here.

If you promised yourself you wouldn't life life 'killing time' (aimlessly) why didn't you look into what this place is before you arrived instead of arriving and then complaining that it is merely half way between London and Australia?

On the other hand you sound like you're plugged into something 'better', so much so that it sounds like you think you're slumming it here. Your impression of Korea is very bad. I don't think you're giving it a chance. Korea has its own charms, qualities, and identity which you can't apparently see.

[Homer]

[aja21]

gee sorry for being "LAME" according to some of your repsonses. I feel bad enough and I don;t need people pointing out I made a mistake. When I hear of people having problems I try to listen and ask them some insightful questions, not throw it in their faces. BUt I guess not everyone is like that. And for the record, I did state that some of my reasons seem trivial to some people but they are the issues I am dealing with right now.


I thought I could get some support since I don;t know many people, but now I think I have posted my last post.
Ps..thanks to Eamo and Homer..at least you were trying to give me some advice I was looking for.
pps. I am immigrating to Oz not going on some vacation.

[Captain Corea]

So, honestly, what exactly were you looking for in this post?

Support or advice?

[teachingld2004]

You have only been here 3 months. Things may seem bad, but...
Are you getting teated badly? This is normal stuff. Kids are 95% of the time placed in wrong levels.

Even if you are not making good money, you can save lots of money here.

Try and make some friends, that will help.

Find some things to do. Do you have a digital camera? Take funny shots, Take pretty shots. Make your apaerment a "home". This can be done for very little money.

Get a cheap computer and email your friends, or download some shows from home.

You have only been here 3 months, give it a chance.

[seoulsista]

[laogaiguk]

[tzechuk]

laogaiguk, I don't think he/she actually knew about the salary situation before he/she came here.

Also may be his/her recruiter misled him/her and said that the city was close to Seoul, or even in the vicinity of Seoul. Not everyone does their homework before they came here - that's why they are called newbie and sometimes dumb.

There are all kinds of people with all kinds of reasons for being here - if repaying his loan is one of his motivators, why accuse him of.. I don't know.. being a bad person? I am sure a lot of people who are here use that as one of their reasons for being here.

My suggestion is same as others - give in your notice, work your time out and then move down under.

[ChopChaeJoe]

It doesn't sound like there's anything seriously wrong with your job. You just aren't having any fun yet. It's only for a year. Things can still change. But if you can't stand it, then abide by your contract, give your 30-day notice, and pay back the airfare if you're leaving before six months.

Don't bring dishonor to yourself and all of us. If your employer is living up to her side of the contract, then live up to yours. You are not a slave, but you did sign a contract.

[jinju]

[jinju]

[laogaiguk]