Korean Job Discussion Forums

[deboyden]

I've been set on teaching and living in S. Korea with my non-working spouse and two young daughters, but sometimes late at night when the wind is still and the mind wanders, I wonder if it wouldn't be better to take my family to one of the following nations: CHINA, TAIWAN, Saudi Arabia, UAE, OMAN, Brunei, Colombia or Chile? Anyone out there ever taught in both Korea and one of these other countries? I'd love to hear your opinions regarding 1) whether we could save $300 - 500 US $ every month after meeting basic expenses, and 2) how my wife (age 37, a mother of 2, adventuresome, but deals with a mild learning disability) would fare in the culture. I'm thinking mainly of the Middle Eastern countries, which seem a wiser choice financially for a family, but maybe more difficult for my wife to enjoy?
My credentials again: BA w/ high GPA from a Bible college plus a 100 hour TESOL certificate, 4 years ESL classroom experience and 1 year doing general subjects in a private junior high school; I do NOT have a Master's. Been to Burkina Faso, Africa and Brazil on short teaching trips.

Basically, I'm wondering "what would YOU do if you were me..."

And if you think of a nation I hadn't thought of, by all means....SHARE
Thanks in advance...

--a family man who's trying to live on the edge as responsibly as possible...

[Olivencia]

Could your wife teach in China? Does she have a degree?

[azzwell]

no offense but a 100 hour cert is not going to get you in very far, if at all, in the middle east. If your degree is in ed it will give you a much better chance.
As far as going to a bible college, that will not help you at all in Brunei or some places in the middle east.
In the first place Brunei no longer takes American degree holders, I know because I have tried to apply recently, and many ME countries will not take people who obviously graduated from a christian school.
Finally, if you do not have a masters, a degree in ed, or a CELTA or similar you are not qualified to teach in the Middle East, or any of the other high pay/high vacation areas like Hong Kong.
With a family of four you could live in Korea on one income but you would not be saving very much at all.
If you want to work in the public school system in the Republic of China or Japan you also need at least a BA in ed.
Sorry for being so negative, but that is just the way it goes, I have been in this game a long time.
Oh, and South America is fun and wonderful and all that but the money is not good at all, enough to live on that is about it.
You are kind of hurt by the global recession as well as there are many people with Masters in Ed and the like also competing for the same positions you are looking at.

[youtuber]

None of those countries are good for a family. The pay will be hugely insufficient, and the culture in the middle east will be brutal. Especially for your wife.

Like we told you before, unless you are teaching at an international school, trying to teach ESL with your family in tow is a terrible idea.

Get your teaching certification and a few years of experience in the US, then move on to the international schools. Try to specialize in a subject other than ESL, since anyone can teach that. That is honestly the best route for you to take.

Any other route will probably end in heartache.