Korean Job Discussion Forums

[TBirdMG]

OK, so I'm ready to pull the trigger on a PS contract. The contract states a start and finish date of September 1, but I am having some logistic and housing issues that make it much, much easier for me to leave the US a week earlier, and return to the US a week earlier.

Primary reasons:

1) Apt. lease is up in middle of month, landlord already has a new tenant who wants to move in BEFORE end of August.
2) After teaching for 1-2 years, I will return to the US for graduate school, and need to get set up for a late August fall semester.

Are PS contract dates flexible, or do they tend to be set in stone? I am talking about a program similar to EPIK/GEPIK, but don't want to disclose the name until I start work.

Thanks in advance,
TB

[ttompatz]

Do you have your confirmation of visa issuance number or letter of invitation yet?

If yes, then it may be possible (school restarts around Aug25).

If no, then your request may be moot since the immigration processing isn't done or possibly isn't even started yet and you still need to get your consular interview and visa placed into your passport still. This probably means mid - end of August at the earliest for your arrival in Korea.

You can also arrive a few days/weeks early, do some tourist stuff and wait for your job to start. It just means that you will need to spend 30k won next summer for a short extension to complete your contract.

.

[fromtheuk]

Is it possible to apply for a new visa while you still have one with ages before it will expire? I'm getting ideas

[TBirdMG]

Thanks to TTompatz for the comments.

I have all my documentation in hand, and am waiting for a reply on the contract change of dates request, but I am not optimistic. I have yet to submit any documents for the visa issuance number, but given that I have previously held an E-2, that should all be rather smooth. If I start now, everything will be ready in 4 weeks.

Ultimately, this BoE seems to be quite rigid in how it discloses information on even the smallest of minutiae, and I feel like I'm dealing with a 'need to know basis' hierarchy of military authority.

All in all, I continue to doubt the likelihood of my second tour of 'teaching duty' in Korea. While I understand the employer's perspective, rarely do I find that my efforts to coordinate the resignation of my job, end of my housing lease, packing up all my possessions, AND reserving a flight, is appreciated. Anybody who has ever experienced corporate relocation assistance knows the value of it, and the reasons why employees become loyal to their employers.

All I hear is, "You have to be in Seoul on this date for training. You will receive more information about your apartment and school after you arrive."

My leap of faith now amounts to a series of carefully designed and strategically minded baby steps. And I don't mind turning around and going back to the womb.

[ttompatz]

Have you considered working outside of Seoul?

The middle school down the road from us is looking for an experienced teacher. It is about 60 minutes from Itaewaon by bus unless the traffic is backed up on the expressway (we are in Gyeonggi - Gwangju).