Korean Job Discussion Forums

[mojogrrl]

hey there! I'm in the process of interviewing for ESL jobs in Korea, and I am particularly interested in the following recruitment agencies, as well as a position with the public school system:


- Think Outside Recruiting
- Korea Connections
- WorknPlay Consulting
- Reach to Teach
- Korea Poly School
- Hot Job Korea

Also, any advice on working in public schools (SMOE) vs. private?



Thanks for any advice you have to share!

[ttompatz]

[pkang0202]

I think there is a rumor that you will be rejected from SMOE if you apply through more than 1 recruiting agency.

I don't know if its true, but to be on the safe side, just apply through 1 recruiter.

[mojogrrl]

thanks for your responses - i'll keep this info in mind

[sigmundsmith]

[ardis]

[Bibbitybop]

It looks like Ben Glickman was right, SMOE probably did say that teachers could only apply through one recruiter or else they would be disqualified. I also don't doubt that dduebel was told it didn't matter.

SMOE needs to put their official rule on their website to avoid confusion like this.

[Aussiekimchi]

Go figure! A recruiter knowing something about the recruiting rules!
Who woulda thunk it!
Not that I am sticking up for you Ben. I am still more handsomer and gooder at English!

[Bibbitybop]

[TheUrbanMyth]

They can't get enough teachers as it is...and they're going to reject someone with all the qualifications and necessary paperwork simply for applying through more than one recruiter?


I rather doubt it.

[Ben Glickman]

From our experience working with the S.M.O.E. - they have never fallen short of recruiting the numbers of teachers they set out to recruit. These positions have been competitive - in general the S.M.O.E. only considers applications from teachers that have a B.Ed, one year of teaching experience or TESL/TEFL certification. In February they accepted relatively few teachers that did not have one of these qualifications. The numbers for August aren't fixed yet but they will be recruiting 200-400 teachers, so there will be plenty of jobs available.

[Figure8]

How do the new numbers of teachers hired in SMOE for 2008 compare to previous years? I heard somewhere that they are attempting to double the number, or at least put one FT in every school.

[Ben Glickman]

The early word is the S.M.O.E. will be hiring between 200 and 400 teachers total - exact numbers have not been released yet. This would represent a significant increase over last year's numbers.

[SirFink]

I was chastised a bit for applying for public school jobs through several recruiters. It's hard to know exactly what you're applying for though. Look at the job board: "Public School Jobs!!! All over Korea! Opportunity of a Lifetime!!!" How is anyone -- least of all a newbie -- supposed to know exactly which public school program they're applying through (EPIK? GEPIK? SMOE?). Some seemed to be directly dealing with individual schools, cutting out EPIK entirely. But how was I to know? If anything, blame the recruiters for all the vague, hyperbolic want ads here on Dave's.

[Figure8]

I know, it can sometimes be confusing for me too. Sorry if I am repeating something you already know, SirFink. I know that at least with S.M.O.E., the specific recruiters it is allowing to give away its jobs this year are listed on their website: http://etis.sen.go.kr/content/3-wheretosend.html

Apparently you can only go through one, or risk having your resume rejected on the basis of using competing agencies. One of them posted on this thread, actually, the guy from Footprints. I think EPIK and GEPIK is more up in the air, though. You can apply directly through them, or go through many of the other recruiters. But maybe someone more qualified could speak to that. I'm sure it is in other threads on on the FAQ pages.