Korean Job Discussion Forums

[EvanD85]

I have a degree in English and Secondary Education and spent some time during my last year of college visiting with the Korean students at my university. I gave one of them English lessons and helped her get through her grammar work and she suggested I come to Korea to teach English.

Since all the (few) jobs around this area have 100+ applicants, most of which have the exact same resum� as I do and are competing with laid off English teachers with a ton of experience, I figure teaching in Korea would be a pretty good gig.

I'd like to go to Seoul due to the nine Koreans I knew through college are there and would be willing to help me out a lot, but had a few questions I was hoping someone could answer for me...


-How easy is it to save money with the exchange rate?

I don't spend much and am confident I could save a good deal of money, but I have no idea how the exchange rate is working with the dollar and the won. While money isn't my primary concern, I don't want to spend a year in a foreign country working only to come back with $20 in the bank.

-When exactly do you go to Korea? I know teachers in the US are generally hired before August, is it the same there?

-What exactly do you teach? I've talked to a few Korean friends and a ESL teacher there already, and they've just told me that I'd be a "conversation partner" over there and generally play games like hangman, bingo, or hand out wordsearches, while Korean teachers focus more on grammar. I find this a bit odd, and wanted to know what I'd be teaching in advance.


Thank you in advance for all your help.

[Otherside]

I'll start with the third question "What exactly do you teach"
This depends on where you work. What one teaches in a public elementary school will obviously be different to what one teaches at a University or in an adult hagwon (hagwon = private Engish academy). Search through this forum for the different pros and cons on each position.

Secondly, for public schools/Universities the main intakes are in March and September, hiring for the September period is well under way, and from what I've heard, a lot of the best positions have already gone..so I'd get on it right away. Hagwons hire all year round and generally leave things last minute. It's generally a pretty quick process (i.e. from reading the job ad to arriving in Korea could be under a month).

Finally...Money. Salaries vary from about 2million won to 2.4million won. The current exchange rate is about 1250W per $, so that is between $1600 and $1900 a month.

The exchange has been pretty bad since the financial crisis broke. Prior to that, it was sitting in a stable range of about 900-1000W/$, it then crashed to about 1500/1 and now seems to have stabalised in the 1240-1300 range.

Generally salaries have remained stagnant and thanks to the poor exchange rate and general natural causes (not going into an economic disertation here) inflation has reared it's ugly head. This time last year, I would have said, you'll have NO problem living on 1mill a month while enjoying yourself and doing pretty much what you want (within reason of course - and mileage may vary, some guys spend more...some are misers who live to save and get by on much less). That would have left you 1.0-1.4mill won which means you can save $1000-$1400 a month. (depending on your salary). Now, to live the same lifestyle it would cost you about 1.2mill a month, leaving you 0.8-1.2mill which means you can save between $650-$950 a month. It's a big drop from last year, but savings are still there and if it is a priority, you can save quite a bit more.

[EvanD85]

Thanks for the reply!

I'd definitely want to go to a public school; I haven't heard much good about hagwons, and I don't want to take too many chances. Maybe if my Korean friends know of a good one, but other than that I'd like to stick with public.

Would you reccomend I just wait until March to go? I'm really in no hurry; I've got plenty of money saved to live off of here even without getting a temporary job.

[Otherside]

Why wait till March. Get a public school job starting late-August/September.

The jobs in Seoul are very competitive, and may already be full (no harm in applying though). However, you could also apply to GEPIK (gyeonggi province - which surrounds Seoul), they always have positions open, and depending where you are in Gyeonngi, you could be as short as 25mins from central Seoul (realistically...bank on 45mins) whereas some parts of Seoul can be almost on hour away.

I agree, don't go private, there are others on this board who disagree, but you can make your own mind up. As for getting a recommendation from one of your Korean friends, not a good idea. They only see the front of the hagwon, while a BMW might be a great car to drive, it's not necessarily a great company to work for. My girlfriend (Korean) told me her "prestigious" University was hiring and that I should apply for a job there, however, after looking into it, her University has the worst reputation (from a foreign teacher's point of view) of all the well-known Universities in Korea.

[EvanD85]

Part of me feels that I'm just delaying my trip out of fear, but waiting until March would give me more time to get whatever I need. I currently have a Dell XPS630 Desktop, which is freaking huge, and do not own a laptop. I imagine it may be difficult to bring my computer with me in its current state.

More importantly, if I want to get a job back home I'd need those extra months between March-August to apply for jobs back home!

[KoreanAmbition]

You don't need 1,000,000 won to live in Seoul.

I'm sorry, but that's not necessary.

My wife and I live off that, and we live GOOD. Granted, we live in Nakseongdae, which is less expensive than other areas, but still...we live REALLY well in my opinion. We also have more than enough money to go out and have fun. We don't blow tons of money at clubs and on designer clothes...but other than that, we aren't missing much.

[EvanD85]

[Easter Clark]

[KoreanAmbition]

Well my response was based on the assumption that 99% of teachers here are benefiting from free housing.

The OP said how much does someone "need". To go and say that someone might not "want" to be tied to their school's housing is a different discussion in my opinion. Now, I do agree with the idea of being independent from that, but I don't think the OP is thinking of that option.


OP,

I was saying my wife and I live off 1,000,000 combined....not as individuals.

Also, the more you work, the less you have time for spending...


In my opinion, if you're spending 1,000,000 each month then you are living VERY well and most likely a lot better than you would back home.