Korean Job Discussion Forums

[Mitten]

Hi! I was wondering what anyone could tell me about teaching at Chungdahm Learning. I have been looking into going to South Korea to teach for a while now, and still can't decide if I'm making the best decision. Any thoughts/comments about this place would be great, and very helpful!

[Olivencia]

They bite.
Go with Appletree. There are others as well that are much better. Just can't remember their names right now.

[dunc180]

Mitten,

I had two and a half years at Chungdahm and enjoyed it. Most people at our branch had/have a good experience there. But I know of other Chungdahm teachers from other branches that didn't like it. I'm sure a few Dave's posters could share their stories.

I guess the big positive is the pay. Even if you don't have a lot of experience, Chungdahm, I think, pays more than most other academies. For me the hours were good too. I started teaching at 4:30 so could get a lot of stuff done before work. I thought the kids' English level at Chungdahm was pretty good too.

I guess a big negative would be the vacation. If you end up working 5 days a week, only 7 days vacation in a year without sick days can be pretty tough. If you're coming to Korea to do lots of traveling Chungdahm's probably not the best place.

Overall, if I went back to Korea I'd definitely consider working for them again.

[youtuber]

negatives

-not much vacation time
-rigid curriculum
-no health insurance if you sign up for hourly rate. I don't even think they provide you with an apartment for the hourly rate.


benefits

-money. But that is only for the hourly rate. No accomodation or health insurance.



So the plus side is money. But with the money, come a whole lot of negatives. Why would you travel all the way to Asia just to work your asss off? The point of travelling and working here is to experience something new and different and to enjoy your life. The point is not to work your asss off to make Mr. Kim rich while you pocket a few more won per month.

The people that are in Korea only for the money are miserable. Do you want to be one of those people?

[highdials5]

The worrying thing about CDI is that apparently you don't sign a real contract until after the one week training period in Korea.

I recently read somebody's story online, saying that he was left stranded in Korea after failing the training!

Is this correct?

[dunc180]

[hoopslam]

I actually just recently quit working at CDI after I got sick of not having any time off. I was on hourly and despite what people say about money being the big positive here, let me tell you that for the amount of effort and work I put into working there, I could well be a millionaire if I stayed in the States and worked that hard. Don't think you can just come to Korea and think life will be easy. It is seriously stressful and a lot of hard work. Of course a lot of that is dependent on the branch managers and head instructors but for the most part, you'll have to at least follow all of CDI's rigid structure and program guide(which takes a lot of effort to get used to if you have an anal head instructor).

Training week's no joke either, there was actually a trainee in my recruiting clas ns that just physically and mentally broke down and cried. They put you up in a decent hotel but expect to start busting your ass the moment you get off the plane. If you do decide to come for CDI, arrive at least a week earlier and rest your body for the tough first few weeks that ensue. In regards to the statement about being shipped off if you fail training week, that's half true. I kept in contact with people that failed in my training class and they all made it eventually. Apparently, you get two chances to pass. If you don't pass your first week, they let you retake it another week. It's not the grammar that kills these recruits, it's their lack of energy(which is kinda understandable from that long flight) and their poor public speaking.

Overall, I'd say stay clear of CDI. While I was there, I really felt like a cheap business commodity. They have such a large operation with so many new recruits all the time, they really don't value their teachers much. Of all the hagwons, I'd say this one's one of the most corporate in feel. Take the goods and and bads of it but like others have stated, why come to Korea to be a corporate pawn when there are so many other great places to work in Korea?

[thomas pars]

how long before dave's ad department makes him take down this post?

[djz]

i arrive next week.

what is it about training that makes it so difficult? memorizing lessons and doing the mock teaching?

[youtuber]

Ask them why they hire so many gyopos.