Korean Job Discussion Forums

[E_athlete]

I'm curious as to how you would look for jobs because they dont seem to have recruiters and such. I'm interested in working in a Japanese hagwon/juku.

[oskinny1]

I did it. Just search the ESL sites for jobs in Japan, there were a bunch when I looked (2008).

[allan of asia]

I am actually in the process of doing the reverse after 3 yrs in Japan. More often than not, schools will recruit directly- youre right in saying recruiters arent generally used.

The big chains even come and interview you in major cities such as NY, London, LA etc. But in all honesty, being in Korea would mean that you could offer to go and interview in person if you could line a few up all in a couple of days - just go over there.

As for getting a visa, none of this notarised stuff either - I supplied a copy of my degree and that was it - also the one thing that is worrying me about moving to Korea is that in Japan my visa is MINE - if you want to quit and go elsewhere for a new job you can. I think for that reason as well - there seems to be far less reports of employers screwing over instructors with pay and demands as they know people can just leave if they push them too far. One difference you will see here also is that many many many japanese equivalent of hagwons will not employ you in the national health scheme - claiming you are part-time is a loophole they sue to not enrol you - but its same as Korea if you then change and have to join it with a new job - retrospective payment is needed - and the premiums are HIGH!

PM me if you want anymore information.
Just 2 weeks today till i arrive in Seoul!!

[lifeinkorea]

One thing they like to do in Japan is pit teachers against themselves. Usually you have to give these free trial lessons in order to get students. Sometimes, schools will give you a commission if you sign the student up.

So, since many teachers don't like this if they don't get paid, the schools will organize a "party". They say it's not a free trial, but what they are doing is finding out which teachers potential students will like. So, you end up competing at these parties to win over students, like at a beauty contest.

Another thing they like to do is promise one schedule and then change it a month later. In Korea, I have had my schedule changed, but not nearly as much as I did in Japan. Students would sign up for lessons and not always come. So, then they would complain they didn't get their lessons for the month. You would then have to squeeze them in at the end of the month.

In Korea, they don't seem to do that as much. They either show up or don't take the lessons. The Japanese like to get all the lessons they paid for. Often times, the hagwon owner (eikaiwa) wouldn't pay for these make-ups as they assumed you were required to teach them regardless.

[E_athlete]

I appreciate all the advice. I'm not leaving because of culture shock or because I hate Korea etc. I'm still in my contract but my employer is being a *beep*. He won't let me work another job legally. First, he lied to me that it's 'impossible' to work another job legally. I called immigration and provided him evidence it is legal for me to work at another public night school. After I destroyed his argument he then switched up his argument to "well, I don't want you to be tired when you go to your current job". In the end it's up to him consenting whether I get permission to work another job legally.

At this point I'm seriously considering the move to Japan in the middle of my contract. I have a Japanese passport so all these discriminatory limitations of the number of jobs I have will not be there for me. I only have 2000 dollars in my pocket so I'm thinking maybe now is not the time to make that move. I'm not sure what I should do. I'm even considering telling my employer i will quit my job if he does not give me permission.

Perhaps I am getting way ahead of myself. I need to secure a job in Japan before I fly there. It's just that doing that seems ridiculously hard. My intention is to work at several jukus and make my time worth it. I'm worried that if i fly there I wont be able to find a job.

[oskinny1]

You may find that your eikaiwa won't let you work another job either. At least they will put it in the contract that you will only work at their school.

As for what lifeinkorea said, none of those things ever happened to me except the changing schedule. You get new students, other students leave. Schedules need to change to fit them in. It is a business to make students happy, not make the teacher happy.

[andrewchon]

One last post before returning to Peter Pan's island.
E_athlete:
One solution is marriage of convenience. Get yourself an F-2, then you'll be able to do what you want.

Sorry if that sounds daft but I need something to calm my nerves. Oh the images of horror, HORROR.

[lifeinkorea]

[E_athlete]

[E_athlete]

[lifeinkorea]

[bassexpander]

[E_athlete]

[allan of asia]

Hey Athlete!


I am 2 posts short of being able to PM, so i have posted this here - but please if you want to PM me back for a bit of privacy i dont mind, or leave me your email there and ill send to that!

Can you just confirm to me then that you are of japanese desent (as you said you had a japanese passport?)

The reason they make you give it up i think is that they want a "foreigner" and japanese idea of a foreigner is actually probably narrower than koreans - they never had the adoptions going overseas - as they werent dirt poor like korea was - so dont have gyopos eqiuvalent on any big scale. Also the visa called an "specialist in humanities and international services" or something could not be put in a japanese passport. One way round it could be to use your other one (dual national?)

However, it could mean (do you speak Japanese?) if you do speak it fluently that you could get a juku job - unlike korea they tend to not hire foreigners - even at my current eikaiwa i teach no reading or writing - its all done by the jp teachers - this is normal. but you would be like a diamond to them if you speak japanese and could teach the grammar side of things natively!

I dont know much about it but one of my current (japanese) co-workers used to work at a juku before she came to our eikaiwa - i will ask her what kind of stuff they do. Plus the hours arent as crazy as koran hagwons - i dont know of any juku open past 10.

Hope this has been of soem use to you anyway. its difficult to tell you much until i know a bit more about passports, lang skill etc!
Also which part of japan are you interested in as right now Tokyo and Kanto i hear are saturated. One of my mates CANNOT get another job despite 3 years of experience in japan and glowing references...

[E_athlete]