Korean Job Discussion Forums

[mattyd]

Hi,

I am currently doing my TEFL course in the UK and was planning to come over to South Korea in February to teach for a year. I have just left uni and it would be my first time teaching, I am mainly doing it because I am not ready to get a job back home and want to experience another culture. I have been reading some of the posts on this website and have been slightly put off about South Korea, many of you don't seem to rate it highly. I also have the opportunity to teach in Thailand for the year instead and am now wondering whether I would be better going there.

I realise that every foreign country is difficult, different and a challenge to live in, but many people really sound as though they aren't having a good time. Obviously the money is better in South Korea, but that isn't my main concern - I am more interested in the experience. So where should I go, South Korea or Thailand???

Your advice would be really helpful. Thanks.

[Khyron]

[Grotto]

Thailand would have all the ESL teachers if they paid as well as Korea....its a better quality of life

[own_king]

I have taught both in Korea and Thailand. You will enjoy your life more in Thailand. The weather is great (especially the winter), there is more to do/see in your freetime, better nightlife, and you will most likely get more holidays than in Korea. Thai people in general don't like foreigners, which you'll come to find quick. Being a tourist there and staying in tourist areas that cater to foreigners is much different than living and working there. Still a better life than Korea though.

But the trade off is work or the pay there is terrible. You can work 30 hours a week and make about $700 a month, which is what the average ESL teacher gets there. You would never go to Thailand to save money. I got into an international school for about $1600 a month, but had to work my butt off for a full year, from 8:00 AM to 4:30 PM everyday. They were always changing stuff at the last minute, I had prepare and develop an entire year's curriculum and resources. They expected weekly lesson plans and even two yearly plans (one at beginning and one at the end), which was absurd. They would sometimes schedule weekend events that I was obliged to attend. The worst thing is Thai kids are really lazy and just expect to play all the time. And no I wasn't teaching a younger age group there. I'm comparing grade 5/6 students in Korea to those of the same age in Thailand. The kids in the international school saw teachers at about the same level as servants in their homes and how dare I expect them to work. Even if you called home, you rarely got any support because the parents were the same. This is really where a lot of foreigners have to deal quickly with the misconception that Thai people like foreigners. Dealing with Thai teachers at a school will reinforce this fact. It wasn't just me either, everyone at the school came to the same conclusion. To be fair, the international kids (Chinese, American, Australian) were great and a few Thai girls who were going to be moving overseas with their parents were also good.

Conversely, life in Korea is a bit boring. There is no nightlife and nothing to see of any interest to anybody who is not Korean. You also get few holidays at most places. And as much as Thais don't like and distrusct foreigners, Koreans REALLY dislike and distruct foreigners. They even make documentaries about how terrible foreigners behave in Korea.

But I still love working in Korea. Korean kids are really nice and hard working (for the most part). In Korea, everything is usually fairly well organized. Most reputable places in Korea have a solid curriculum and set of resources, that you and the students both have, which makes teaching a breeze. Also, in Korea, I've never been or even felt obliged to attend a weekend event. Sometimes, I would go out with my school for dinner after school, if I didn't have any other plans - that was it. Work here is on average 30 hours a week, sometime you gotta tag on some prep time, but I like to prep, to a point. I hate feeling unorganized and like an idiot when I walk into a classroom. The pay is good about $2000/month and up (usually up). Airfare and accomodations are also paid which would never happen in Thailand.

In general, life in Thailand was great, but worked sucked. In Korea, the exact opposite is true. Going to work in Thailand often felt like the worst part of the day, but in Korea it's often the most enjoyable part of the day, execpt on Fridays when I'd go out with friends and gear up for the weekend. Anyway, as a quick comparison, I hope this helps.

[PRagic]

Teach for a year in Korea, save like crazy, then just enjoy Thailand for 6 months to a year. You'll go back home with no money, but, then again, you'll get double the experience, and 'money isn't important to you.'

I love that, by the way. Don't know HOW many people I've met over here over the years that have said that. Funny how those were also the same people bitching because they were 25 and couldn't afford anything when they went back to their home countries...like a car, an apartment, furniture...nights out.

If you have the luxury of sponging off of your parents after your trip, or perhaps you have a trust fund, fine. Otherwise, I'd suggest worrying about money a bit during your travels. It's important, and if you are graduating from university and haven't learned that yet, I feel for you.

Enjoy your experience whatever you do. Good luck.

[poet13]

I haven't taught in Thailand, though I spent about a year there with my first wife. I have taught in Korea for about 1.5 years.
For the experience, go to Thailand. Thats not to say the Korea isn't also a great experience. It has been for me.
I think also that working in Thailand affords you more opportunity to experience the other cultures in the region. Overland to Laos, Cambodia, and Myanmar, and India is only an airplane hop away. From Korea, the only way out is a ferry to Japan, or by air to anywhere.
Crime. Korea is generally very safe. I have had some pretty awful experiences in Thailand.
Food. Thailand, Thailand, Thailand........
Girls. Thailand, but be careful. Yes, you can meet lots of nice girls in Korea, but I think the general cultural attitude towards a foreigner and a Korean is negative. I was assaulted in Seoul by two men several years ago simply for being with a Korean woman. They heaped abuse on her as well for "dirtying" herself.
As a new teacher, I would recommend Korea first. The students are generally hard working and respectful. I live in an agricultural city of maybe 120,000 people, and I have NOT found that Koreans don't like foreigners. Maybe the big cities are different, btu I dont know.

I will suggest only that wherever you choose to be, take it seriously and be a professional. you will get out of it what you put into it.
Well, good luck with wherever you choose.

[maniitok]

Go whereever you can get a University job. A private institute in Thailand or Korea sucks. Don't rule out China JUST to get a bit of Uni experience under your belt.

[Zark]

Thailand for quality of life.

Korea for money - and generally better work conditions - and students (and schools) with some interest in learning.

I've worked in both environments. Prefer to live in Thailand - but the working environment (at the language and public school level) is probably better in Korea.

Wages? In Korea you can save more than you can even earn in Thailand.

[kingplaya4]

Do others agree that Korean students are respectful? They're manageable if you have don't have a temper and don't get frustrated easily, but at least in my hagwon, students are not afraid to ignore the teacher, hit their classmates, and talk in Korean while the lesson is going on. I often either have to wrestle with a student or get the manager if I tell an unruly student to leave the classroom, because they usually won't on their own.

I'm probably making it sound more like hell than it actually is, but my first comment to my mother back home when I called was that if anything the students were more unruly than Americans, and I've worked in the inner-city. (Of course they're not as scary as some of the thugs in American public schools either).

I don't know about Thailand or how public school in Korea is, but if you're going to a hagwon, don't go if you're going to blow a fuse when kids show blatent disrespect to you.

[maniitok]

Hi,

This is an adventure. Try to see it as such. Come to Korea or Thailand. Work for 3 months. If it sucks than fly to the other one.

I'm hearing "cold feet." If I do my math right you want to come to Korea simply because they will fly you here for free. Then, if if sucks you can quit and try Thailand.

Just do everything in your power to avoid private institutes. They are work "traps". You are terribly underpaid and overworked. You can make better money at some union job back home. Come to korea for the free airfare. Quit after 3 months and go to China or Thailand for a Uni job.

good luck

[Peter Jackson]

Have you considered Vietnam? Better money than Thailand and almost as nice.

I, too, did a stint in Thailand. As someone else wrote, I also was at an international school. By the sounds of it, we worked at EXACTLY the same school!

I agree about Thai attitudes toward foreigners. The "land of smiles" slogan only applies when they are TAKING your money. When they are paying you they really hate it. Also, I had the experience of working with Thai co-teachers at a private Thai school. They were making about 6000 baht a month to my whopping 40 000. They were NOT happy about that and made it known on a daily basis.

The lifestyle is better, though. And almost all teachers at least look the part. There is a strict dress code there. Ties always for the men.

I'd say if you have no intention of saving money (and you have enough cash to get you started) then go for Thailand.

A word of caution: a lot of Thai people will assume that you are either a wealthy tourist or working in a foreign company. A lot of things (especially foreign products) are priced for the upper crust. On a teachers' salary, it is really hard to enjoy the kind of life you would on a vacation there.

Good luck,

[mattyd]

Thanks for all your advice - it has been really helpful.

[own_king]

Yeah double pricing has always been a problem in Thailand, but I'm pretty good at getting prices down to (almost) Thai prices or I walk away. A good rule of thumb is 1/2 minus 10%. For example if they ask for 1000Baht (or $25), never offer more than 400Baht and maybe go up to 450Baht. Usually when you do the first jump, they realize you're not a stupid farang and will come down by 1/2 right away.

[laconic2]

[Tiger Beer]