Korean Job Discussion Forums

[it's full of stars]

Can someone recommend a good course/university?

I've made a firm decision to start by this September at the latest.

[bassexpander]

Not exactly online, but you can do the University of Birmingham program, which is handled out of Kyungwon University in Seongnam (on the SE edge of Seoul).

[TECO]

quicky master's degrees, like USQ in Australia, are becoming seen as sub-standard.

careful with those programs.

[it's full of stars]

Decided not to go with an Aussie programme because I'd end up paying international student prices. Why not go where I've been paying taxes?

Also, lots of the Brit courses are longer than the short one year courses. Up to 2 1/2 years long or 5 years part-time.

[HapKi]

The University of Birmingham MA program has 2 start dates a year- in April and October. For the April start, you should ideally have your paperwork in by the end of December (people are finding out they got accepted now). They may make exceptions for those who register late. It couldn't hurt to try.

http://www.cels.bham.ac.uk/programmes/distance/odladdresses.shtml

[Hotpants]

If you are wanting distance, and are a UK national, I'd vouch for the Open University. Their prices are MUCH lower (c. 6 mill Won total) than the Birmingham one (last time I checked 19 mill Won), and the reading materials are EXCELLENT, and produced by top name figures, although you need to have some evidence that you are 'resident' in the UK to avoid paying overseas student fees. The overseas student fees are something like double, although that's still cheaper than the Birmingham MA. (Actually a lot of UK unis now offer an MA by distance - Birmingham just happens to have physically established a center on Korean soil - from what I've heard, though, you still end up doing most of it by distance learning mode, so no real advantage).

You need to take 3 modules to gain the MA - you can opt for a general MA in Education, or you can take a module combination to get a specialist badge such as Applied Linguistics. Each module starts in beg. October and lasts for 11 months. You can take between 2-6 years to complete it. The workload is reasonable, and you can get plenty of support through online tutorials and for some modules, face-to-face meetings.

I'm aiming to complete my Open Uni MA by August, although I'm conscious that some Korean employers might not recognize a distance MA. Regardless, I have gained a lot of new knowledge from the MA, and it's been really interesting so far.

Open University definitely gets my vote for the MA.

[passingtime]

Hotpants, how does that work with materials being sent and taking exams, I assume if you register as a UK student they would expect this to all be done in the UK?

[sobriquet]

stirling university had a decent selection of distance programs

[maingman]

http://www.education.leeds.ac.uk/

http://www.education.leeds.ac.uk/prospective/programme.php?programme=13

[Hotpants]

You need to register with a UK address - eg, you can use your parent's or a good friend's address - then they send out all the materials in a lump at the beginning of a module - usually a small box consisting of a file, a study guide and between 1-5 books plus a DVD, CD and notes about completing assignments. Then your family/friends can send them on to you if you give them the money to do so.

You don't sit any exams for the MA in Linguistics. You complete 4 essays per module to be submitted via internet. Then, you have to post your final extended assignments for each module - for this you need to again post to your family/friend and get them to submit an SAE with your assignment to the OU. There are a lot of UK nationals working overseas who get round the international fees this way. It's a bit of a hassle, but if you have cooperative family members in the UK, then you can do it.

[maingman]

TECO et al

could try Sheffield Hallam, Reading, and the Institute of Education (London)

[it's full of stars]

Nice posts from people, very informative and helpful. I thought I would post some of the MAs I found.

http://prospectus.shu.ac.uk/op_pglookup1.cfm?id_num=244

http://www.le.ac.uk/se/maprogrammes/matesol.html

http://www.buckingham.ac.uk/english/teaching/matesol/

http://www.dur.ac.uk/language.centre/matesol/

http://www.aston.ac.uk/prospective-students/pg/pros/lss/03matesol.jsp

http://www.teachenglish.co.uk/ma.htm

http://www.northumbria.ac.uk/?view=CourseDetail&code=DTFTES6

http://www.bath.ac.uk/education/postgraduate/ma/tesol/

http://ioewebserver.ioe.ac.uk/ioe/cms/get.asp?cid=882&882_1=830&var2=MATESOLDL

http://www.europa-pages.com/uk/tefl-distance-learning.html

http://www.liv.ac.uk/english/ma_courses/post_ma_tesol.htm

I know it's not neat.

[BS.Dos.]

I'm currently about half way through my MSc that I'm taking with the OU. As has been mentioned, you need to have a forwarding address in the UK to qualify for UK fees. You'll also need someone back home to forward the materials out to you as well.

The materials are first rate. Very well put together and very comprehensive and most come with the OU trademark DVDs etc, which I think are produced in conjunction with the BBC. The structure of the courses is also very good. On my course, I have to take two core 6-month modules and can then choose an additional two modules from a list of options. You can study the modules in any order you like. The block I'm on at the moment doesn't have an examination, but my previous two did, but you can arrange to sit the exam up in Seoul as I did at the British Council offices. It does cost an extra 200 quid or so however. For the disseration, you can take up to 13-months to produce it, but can submit it any time before that once you've finished it. I'll be starting mine next January.

All in all, I'm very pleased with it. You need to spend about 15-hours per week studying and you get 3 assignments per 6-month block, which can be very demanding on your time if you let your reading etc slip. There's a website forum where you can chat with other students on your course and there are also tutors who will answer any questions that you may have. Additionally, you're also assigned a personal tutor who you can email or phone if you need help.

Most 6-month study blocks cost about 1200 pound although one or two of the older courses are cheaper, but there are a few that are more expensive. I pay my fees monthly which works out at about 200 (400,000 won) per month. Eats into your cash a little, but as the course and materials are very well put together, it is value for money. I think the OU has one of the highest student satisfaction polls of all the UK universities. Unfortunately though, I don't think they offer any TESOL type courses, but if you're interests lay elsewhere, then it may be worth having a browse on their website to see what they offer.

Feel free to PM should you want any more info.