Korean Job Discussion Forums

[ManintheMiddle]

Time was that highly experienced FT's left Japan and Taiwan in droves and flocked to South Korea to secure excellent and even lucrative salary packages teaching in colleges and universities (and I don't mean uni hagwons here).

Have to wonder why they would now (yes, I could be talking about you) given the paltry sums, extended duties, and tanking KRW currency, not to mention far better positions in Singapore and Hong Kong.

Consider this:

A typical ad nowadays invites lecturers (MA holders with TEFL certificates) to teach 12 to 20 classroom contact hours per week, meaning of course the latter amount. (Keep in mind that this is at a nationally ranked university, often for training of in-service teachers too).

Compensation is roughly 2.6 million KRW per month, including a 250,000 KRW living allowance.

Now factoring in time-on-the-job, lesson prep, and a current KRW exchange rate of about 1,400 to 1 USD, you can expect to earn a whopping $1,857 per month, or a little over $22,000.

Doesn't get a reaction out of you?

Then consider this:

The average starting salary in the U.S. for an ESL teacher at the secondary level with no experience is $36,000. Add to that a stipend of between $2,000 and $3,000 for teaching a special needs subject and consider that whatever apartment you rent will be at least twice the size of the ones they show you in Korea, and...

well, I think you get the picture.

Is this highway robbery or what?

[Scotticus]

Sounds like somebody didn't get that job he was hoping for...

[pkang0202]

[toonchoon]

all I know is that 40K - on a salary, doesn't go a long way in the USA when you have to pay rent, internet/tv, water, electricity, cell phone, car payment, car insurance, gas for car, health insurance, gym membership, and all the little bills and expenses that continually add up such as shrink costs (to help you get your bearings straight, due to living a boring life where your friends are all getting married, or already married, and never want to go out, and the prospect of finding a L-T woman is slowly diminishing after the age of 25 as they get fatter, their chip on their shoulder keeps growing, yet they somehow get more demanding, etc).

been there done that.

some people just choose to live a better life than this.

[michaelambling]

[ManintheMiddle]

scotticus speculated:

[Scotticus]

[Intrepid]

The decline is staggering, despite there still being a few good jobs out there--most of which are only "announced" through connections.
I've stopped looking at the Gyeonggi area small uni postings--much worse than the OP quoted, we're talking 20 hours, winter and summer camps, dormitory housing, even 9-5 mandatory working hours, for 1.9-2.1.

That said, if you have a car you can teach three days a week at Cheonan campuses of Hongdae or Korea, for something like 40 million per year.

Some of the foreign language high schools are the last, best refuge of the good job in Korea.

[loose_ends]

[ManintheMiddle]

Intrepid noted:

[Scotticus]

[red_devil]

[ManintheMiddle]

Scotticus:

Cheer up. By contrast your hagwon job must seem downright respectable.

red devil:

The ad was found right here on Dave's. Whether you choose to believe what I have said about my employment circumstances is really your problem. Maybe you could get one of the moderators to confirm my location in Hong Kong--Kowloon Tong to be precise. At least the hunt would give Scottie and you something to do besides engaging in verbal flatulence.

[toonchoon]

"thanks for playing"

op cracks me up. glad you're doing well in HK, but you failed to mention you were comparing YOUR HK job to a Korean job. You compared the Korean job to a job in the USA and that's what the discussion is about. Then you bring YOUR HK job into the picture as a comparison basis? thanks for playing; your game is crooked. you're not worth playing with.

[Ya-ta Boy]