Korean Job Discussion Forums

[Epik_Teacher]

Just wondering if anyone has seen stats on how long EPIK teachers last? I was talking to another teacher and it seems the average teacher lasts 1-2 years. When I first got here in this little city, there were only a handful of teachers. Seen a lot of teachers come and go in the last 3 1/2 years. There are lots of new teachers here, but they don't seem to last long either. After 2 years, there was only one guy whose been here longer than me. I don't really expect EPIK and it's sister programs to last too much longer, anyway.

Any educated guesses on how long the average noob lasts?

[ontheway]

[oldfatfarang]

Things have changed a bit in the last year. Younger GETs seem to be staying longer (extending) - due to financial need and/or lack of jobs at home.
However, it will be interesting to see if the new 'hardened' attitude towards GET's (minimal holidays - unpaid camps, la, la, la) send the newbies home earlier.

My feeling is that many older/senior teachers will not be re-signed - or that they are leaving anyway.

I'm off at contract end. I don't think EPIK offers good jobs anymore.

[Epik_Teacher]

As I've said in other posts, EPIK goes thru "bureaucratic reincarnations" every few years. We are in the 3rd or 4th incarnation of it. As each incarnation slides to it's end, contracts become more legalistic and chicken $hit. They become pickier and picker about small points, contracts get worse every year, etc... We're seeing the end of another incarnation of EPIK, my uneducated guess, ending FEB 2012.

[PatrickGHBusan]

Keep in mind that EPIK is interested in assistant teachers and that as such it has little interest in long term teachers.

It makes little sense for their program to employ long-term foreign teachers and in the current market, as opposed to before, they do not have to.

[TheUrbanMyth]