Korean Job Discussion Forums

[Sapa]

It's time to start applying for jobs back in the real world, but I have to write my CV from scratch. I really hate writing them as I never know what to write to try and make my jobs sound more impressive than they actually were.
What would you write on your CV after teaching English in a hagwon for a year?

[morrisonhotel]

I haven't taught in Korea yet but I think it might be useful to know what kind of jobs you are after.

[yingwenlaoshi]

I was travelling.

[hagwonnewbie]

depends on where home is...

If you're from the US, some people might assume you're some pedo wandering through 3rd world Asia on a year-long bender. The only stories of expats they hear about are people like Christopher Paul Oneil. Sad but true.

Someone asked me if there were many cars in Korea. They thought everybody rode bikes here.

Another person thought it was "creepy" that an unmarried male would teach in Asia.

Moreover, the work and abilities of teacher are so discounted in a country like the US where public education is often considered part of a "socialist agenda to brainwash the masses with neo liberal propaganda".

[oldtactics]

Just write English Conversation Teacher and outline what your job actually was, with a bit of embellishment - language learning, curriculum analysis, tutoring, cultural awareness

[SSA]

Look at your contract (mine was EPIK). I took the 'job responsibilities' from the contract and re-worded them a bit and added/extracted some.

[snurglersons]

[sluggle]

Simply list your school name and the dates you taught. Write a brief, but sweetened summary about devising lesson plans and advancing communication skills in an environment where English was not the first language of your co-workers. Basically turn it into a strength; don't just say you were traveling. You can note that you completed a full year paid contract to emphasize that you made a commitment and stuck to it.

Also, prepare something in your head to expand on some sort of positive growth you experienced as a teacher in Korea- i.e. overcoming culture shock to develop much better communication skills. It is a creative venture that may strike interest in an interviewer/recruiter who is into traveling. Just remember to always stay positive about your experience.

[Morgen]

Good advice already, especially sluggle. Writing a resume gets a lot easier when you do it with a specific job in mind so you can focus your thoughts on how your skills fit the opening. Think of teaching as being like tofu, in that you can cook it to taste any way you want; consider the job you're applying for and what key traits it requires, and figure out how you exemplified those while teaching. I assume you didn't stand behind a podium and lecture staring down at your notes, so figure out whether you need to highlight patience, perseverence, creativity, classroom management, communication skills, analytical skills, flexibilty, adaptability, commitment, proactivity, compassion, grace under pressure...I'm sure you get the idea.

Speaking as someone who used to have to interview people all the time (this is more tedious than you can imagine), you will immediately stand out like a redhead in Pyeongyang if you can give specific examples to back up those soft claims. You'll want to do this briefly on your resume (and diplomatically, if you want to talk about how hard it was to fit in or work with your Korean colleagues or boss) and then expand on them in the interview and possibly have a couple backups.

So basically just pick those traits that show how your resume fills their need and be prepared to support it. It's okay to say, if asked (in the interview, not ever on paper), that your main pursuit in Korea was to pay off your student loans or whatever, as long as you have something in the way of professional development to show for it. As an interviewer I would look at almost all international experience as a positive unless it was clear that you just showed up, read from the textbook and went home.

By the way, consider yourself lucky that you have a really easy answer to "Tell me about yourself," although you'll still want to prepare it beforehand. Just as a general tip, do not say you don't have any weaknesses when asked; if you must, say "Kryptonite" or "dark-haired women" (unless your interviewer is a woman obviously) or something.

[Ukon]

[hagwonnewbie]

Actually I wasn't being sarcastic.

I was making the point that Americans are largely ignorrant of the rest of the world and are more likely to buy into the stereotypes associated with Asia and being a single male teacher here.

But let's face it, education is a hard field to break out of. It usually requires significant retraining. While you'll be able to use a lot of the skills you have developed as a teacher, you'll probably find it harder to convince others that your skill set is applicable to other positions.

The bottom line remains that most parents in the US are not very involved with their children's education and don't know exactly what goes on in the class or what is required of their children's teachers. It's no wonder that the average public school teacher in the U.S. lasts only five years.

[Sapa]

Thanks for the mostly helpful replies, really useful. Not bad going for a daves thread!

[PRagic]

If you do get an interview, and if you do have an ESL position on your resume, you probably won't get that much of a reaction, especially if you were only in Korea for a year or two. You might get, "Oh, you taught English in Korea? I have a [add friend, friend of a friend, or relative] who did that ____ years ago."

It's up to you to work your experience to your favor given the specific job to which you're applying. If I were doing the interviewing, I'd be more interested in your attitude when describing the in-country experience, and, more importantly, your description of your employer and job in Korea. Someone who comes across overly negative and condenscending, especially under the age of 26 or so, will get their resume passed to the circular file.

[Juregen]

[Zulethe]

The resume is one of the most over-rated pieces of .... in the history of documents.

Unless you're going to work for a small company, the chances of your resume even being read is slim. If it is read, the person reading it will spend about 10 seconds on it and if something catches his/her eye, they may look deeper.

You're better off focusing your time on making connections and networking. There are millions of resources for resume writing and they are all extremely boring.

Try being a little bit original, i.e., send out a video recording of yourself. Trust me, this will get the HR attention big time because the last thing they want to do is read another cookie cutter resume.

Then, again, if your an ugly fugly with no personality, I don't recommend the above advice.