Korean Job Discussion Forums

poohbear · Joined: 08 Feb 2008 Location: toronto for now

hey all, are recruiters the only means to get public school teaching jobs in S korea (seoul) or is it possible to reach the school directly? Im looking for a public school position and they're telling me public schools pay 1.8-2mil won/month, but im pretty sure they pay more than that? i have 3 years teaching experience in Japan, so i was wondering if people here have gotten positions from public schools directly?

also, is there a good/reputable recruiting agency for public schools if that's the only way to go?

thanks in advance for any feedback. Smile

maingman · Joined: 26 Jan 2008 Location: left Korea

I was given two recuiters as recommendations you can have

message here again or PM me if you like!
Ive unfortunatley used other recruiters before which I simply wouldnt recommend

Cheers

poohbear · Joined: 08 Feb 2008 Location: toronto for now

thanks maingman, if you could post em here that'd be great. i can't pm you cause it says i dont have 25 posts yet. Sad

so, recruiters are the only way to go then?

maingman · Joined: 26 Jan 2008 Location: left Korea

Dome Vans · Guest

Best to use lots of recruiters and take your pick. You don't need to jump at the first one.

I used www.tenetkorea.com. They have PS jobs. I got mine through them. They were helpful without being pushy and they had the job that I have now, and it's really good. If the website isn't being good you can drop them a mail at [email protected] and see what they've got.

But don't limit yourself to one shop around. I'm sure there'll be PS jobs available still. Even with the EPIK orientation at the mo, expect a fair number of quitters in a few weeks. Always openings.

nomad-ish · Posted: Wed Feb 20, 2008 7:38 pm Post subject:

canadian connection, http://www.canconx.com based in toronto is very good. and i know that they've hired americans in the past too.

they'll actually stay in contact with you while you're over here and you can always email them with questions/problems and they'll do their best to help you out. other recruiters seem to just dump you in korea, collect their fee from the school (or try to get it from you!), and disappear

Stormy · Joined: 10 Jan 2008 Location: Here & there

chachee99 · Joined: 20 Oct 2004 Location: Seoul Korea

No, recruiters are not the only way to go to get a public job. You can go drop off your resume in person at any public school. However, using a recruiter will save you a lot of footwork because they have contracts for many public schools, especially EPIK and GEPIK. If you use a recruiter to find a public position I strongly recommend visiting the school in person beforehand. There have been many posts about bad public schools.

I am about to start my first public school gig. So far the staff has been great to me.

nomad-ish · Posted: Wed Feb 20, 2008 7:48 pm Post subject:

^^ yeah, don't worry about it. you get here when you get here-- they'll still need you. although you won't make the orientation (not that it's useful for anything besides making friends), i'm sure they'll have some foreigner events during the year for you

expat2001 · Joined: 28 Jan 2006

Sometimes ,some recruiters will tell you that they and only they have a contract for a specific area.For example ,say you wanted a public school job in JAMSIL. And you stated this on your resume , you may get a recruiter trying to tell you that if you want a job in Jamsil , then you must go thru them.This is Bull Sh@t!
If your smart , you ll avoid recruters at all cost

poohbear · Joined: 08 Feb 2008 Location: toronto for now

wow thanks for all the info folks! i'll try out some of those recruiters. unfortunetly i can't drop off my resume since im in toronto at the moment, if that's the only way to apply directly then im outta luck i guess. i'm assuming its better that way since the recruiters wouldnt be taking the commission yea? Cheers for all the info though.

maingman, can you pm me w/ that info? it says i can't initiate pms but maybe i can recieve em? thanks a bunch in advance.

wylies99 · Joined: 13 May 2006 Location: I'm one cool cat!

Public schools? You can apply directly to the district offices. I know many who have done this.

poohbear · Joined: 08 Feb 2008 Location: toronto for now

btw how do people know if the people recommending recruiter sites are'nt actually recruiters posing as teachers? i mean, i appreciate the advice ofcourse, but does that happen on these forums? not to detract from any of the advice, it just struck me outta the blue.

nomad-ish · Posted: Thu Feb 21, 2008 4:51 pm Post subject:

Aussiekimchi · Joined: 21 Apr 2006 Location: SYDNEY

Sometimes ,some recruiters will tell you that they and only they have a contract for a specific area.For example ,say you wanted a public school job in JAMSIL. And you stated this on your resume , you may get a recruiter trying to tell you that if you want a job in Jamsil , then you must go thru them.This is Bull Sh@t!
If your smart , you ll avoid recruters at all cost

I'm guessing there are a few things you do not know about the system of recruiting with public schools, however, you have stumbled on a bit of truth...which is always interesting when it happens on this site.

So is there any real benefit in using a recruiter....really?

It does depend on which public schools you are going for.
EPIK public schools throw all positions into a "pot" and all recruiters can recruit for these positions. It is first in best dressed.

The only REAL benefits of using a recruiter for EPIK is to guide you through the application and visa process. If you are in Korea now, or have worked in Korea, you may not need this help.
Some like a safety net of someone to lean on once they arrive, but in reality, not that many public school teachers get in contact.
Dunno if this is because they have fewer problems or if they deal with things themselves. It may be that they cannot get through for private school teachers calling about their bosses.

If you apply through EPIK directly, you are probably a better chance of getting your #1 desired location position than using a recruiter.
Of course EPIK would rather pay no recruiting fee!
25 % of positions for EPIK are usually saved for Embassy and direct applications. The rest are filled by REGISTERED recruiters.
There are no location allocations with EPIK. So if a recruiter tells you that you must apply through them for an EPIK location, it is just a hard sell.

As for GEPIK it is a little different and it is here that the above poster stumbled upon some truth.
If you wanted a public school job in Jamsil, one recruiting company may not have been allocated any positions in that location.
Now, in the perfect world, the recruiter would say, "You know, I would like to make a commission out of you, but it does not look like the MOE will give me any positions in that location. You should try another recruiter."
But that just aint gonna happen in most cases.

GEPIK Head Office have their favourite recruiters whom have placed a lot of teachers in the past. These companies get some priority with locations.
All recruiting companies have most of their applicants applying for 5 or 6 locations within GEPIK. It is up to GEPIK Head Office, which recruiter they get in touch with. So eventually if you have all these Bundang applicants and none of them are getting offers, the recruiter will realise they probably do not have the eye of GEPIK Head office.
Feasibly, if an applicant was with one of these "more popular" companies, they may find getting a location they want easier than if they were with others.

Like EPIK, GEPIK's priority though is direct applications, from Embassy applications and Universities where they have recruiting pool deals with.
GEPIK will take a teacher from a recruiter but only as a last measure.
Basically with GEPIK, recruiters send through a list of names and their preferences and qualifications, eventually the visa docs and hope they get picked up by one of the recruiting staff in that Head Office.

GEPIK does not make it all that clear on what locations recruiters have. But after a few days, the recruiter will realise that none of his/her Bundang applicants are getting offered.
Again, the only real benefit of using a recruiter with GEPIK is to help with the application and visa process, but depending on which recruiter you use, you may get preferential treatment for locations. But going directly, through an embassy or university, you will get preferential treatment as far as locations.

As for Seoul Public schools, it seems like a little of both of the above, but we are still waiting for what system they will have in place for 2008.
EPIK and GEPIK have changed their application and recruiting processes this year, I expect SMOE will too.

It would be particularly arrogant of me to claim I knew what it was like to work in your particular school under the system that your employer manages. It is always interesting to read when people think they know what goes on in other working systems, simply because they have scratched the surface of it.

Ok ..flame away.