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Korean Job Discussion Forums
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kiwiboy_nz_99
Joined: 05 Jul 2003
Location: ...Enlightenment...
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 Posted: Wed Nov 26, 2003 12:59 pm Post subject: |
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| Why do foreigners who learn a few Korean sentences and vocabulary words instantly think they're "bilingual"..... |
They don't. |
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mithridates
Joined: 03 Mar 2003
Location: President's office, Korean Space Agency
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| Posted: Thu Nov 27, 2003 5:18 am Post subject: |
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Learning Korean is a bankable skill here, but it has to be matched with an outgoing personality and lots of contacts. It's pretty much the same as a Korean who learns English in Canada for example, but can only get a job at a convenience store. Why? Because studying a language alone in the end makes a person no different from any other native speaker of the language, and must be accompanied by some other skill.
For example, an English teacher turned lawyer that specializes in handling cases from disgruntled teachers. An astronomer that works at an observatory here and translates documents to be sent to institutes in the States.
In my case I make quite a bit from privates who can't speak English well and want a native speaker who can explain to them in their native language. Korean's a very bankable skill, not to mention the fact that it helps one learn Japanese and Chinese later on as well. |
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Yaya
Joined: 25 Feb 2003
Location: Seoul
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| Posted: Thu Nov 27, 2003 4:45 pm Post subject: |
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| mithridates wrote: |
Learning Korean is a bankable skill here, but it has to be matched with an outgoing personality and lots of contacts. It's pretty much the same as a Korean who learns English in Canada for example, but can only get a job at a convenience store. Why? Because studying a language alone in the end makes a person no different from any other native speaker of the language, and must be accompanied by some other skill.
For example, an English teacher turned lawyer that specializes in handling cases from disgruntled teachers. An astronomer that works at an observatory here and translates documents to be sent to institutes in the States.
In my case I make quite a bit from privates who can't speak English well and want a native speaker who can explain to them in their native language. Korean's a very bankable skill, not to mention the fact that it helps one learn Japanese and Chinese later on as well. |
Good point. I know Koreans fluent in English who say they have a hard time in communicating. Communication is not only being able to speak a language, it involves culture and confidence.
Second, the former chairman of the US Chamber of Commerce in Korea, Jeffrey Jones, was hailed as one of the most effective at his post in the chamber's history. He is completely fluent in Korean and has a law degree, and more importantly, he got just about everyone who dealt with him to like him. He knew how to play the game and it got him a LOT of contacts and even more dough. |
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