Korean Job Discussion Forums

[eoneinna]

I'm in Korea and I was just offered a contract with a school in Yongin's Giheung area (rural?), at a private Kindergarten school. The director is supposed to call me tomorrow to speak with me.

Any suggestions on important questions I should ask?

So far I know:

Salary - 2.4 (I'm a fresh out of college with teaching credential, no teaching experience besides student teaching/being a teacher's assistant)

Single Housing - Is close to the school and the school bus will pick me up everyday

Hours: 9:30 am - 6:30 pm

Vacation : 10 days

# of Foreign Teacher: 9


This is my first time teaching in Korea, so I don't want to be screwed over b/c of a crappy contract. Any advice or insight would be appreciated.

[Harpeau]

[wnguyen]

I live in Giheung/Singal and was wondering what was the name of the school you applied for? Ask about whether your vacation will be covered or do you have to find a replacement. Ask about the level of the kids you'll be teaching. Whether they have books ready? sick leave etc..

Giheung is nice enough. There is a park and supermarket in the area. There are good restaurants and it only takes 30-45 mins on the bus to get to seoul. There are a lot of foreigners now who hang out on friday nights, so you won't get lonely. Hope this helps.[/code]

[Fishead soup]

Take it Rural locations are the best. More laid back and relaxed. Anywhere in Gyeouggi province is a subway ride to Seoul.

[Baron]

Im in Han-Bora, very near Singal beside the Korean folk village. I don't know any foreigners around my area so I've been heading to Seoul every weekend. It's only 45 minutes on the bus to Gangnam.

I am here only a few weeks though so Im sure that will change.

[toonchoon]

don't do it. let some other dummy take the job. take the pay cut to work in seoul. you'll spend the 200-300 a month trekking up to seoul anyways on the weekends. i'm serious.

[Illysook]

toonchoon is right about the money that you will spend trekking to Seoul on weekends if your school truly is in the middle of nowhere, but Yongin is a large administrative district, so find out where you will be in Yongin. If you are near the subway line, it's not so bad.

[English Matt]

Giheung is not near a subway station, and the bus from there to Seoul will take an age. The communication links are poor out that way unless you have access to your own transportation.....which you will most likely not. Yongin is even more boring than Suwon (except for the area near Jukjeon station in Suji, which I quite like), and is further away from Seoul.

Jobs that pay this much for someone with no experience usually pay that much for a reason. If they have to offer 400,000 won more per month than a PS in order to entice overseas hires then it suggests they'll have you on a crazy busy schedule, will only allow you to use your holiday in one or two day blocks, your apartment will blow, etc.

However, thing is nobody on here will really be able to tell you one way or the other. The next poster might completely contradict me.....who do you believe, you don't know either of us. You said that the school has 9 other foreign teachers? Ask the recruiter / school to provide you with their contact details.......and try and talk to them through Facebook if you can (I never trust anonymous email addresses). Remember, they may have their own agendas and may not tell you everything.....they don't know what you might say to the recruiter or school after speaking to them, and they don't want to land themselves in doo-doo with their employer (but you might get someone who doesn't give a damn and then you will get the real scoop).