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nhl49
Joined: 01 May 2011
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 Posted: Fri Jul 01, 2011 5:20 pm Post subject: Does Teaching in Korea Look Good on the Resume |
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I'm a recent college graduate working for a nonprofit. The pay is very low, and until I get three years of experience, the pay will remain that low and the work, unstable.
I'm thinking about teaching abroad for a year, and seeing how it goes. A friend of mine is teaching in Korea and is enjoying his time over there.
My interest is currently in non-profit education, however, the idea of teaching English and traveling the World is of great interest too.
1) Lets say, I do teach abroad for a year, and find it's not exactly what I want to do. Will it hurt me on my resume, if I am to come back to the United States and look for work again, in non-profit education?
2) Lets say, I enjoy teaching abroad. If I were to get a M.A. in English, are their many opportunities abroad to go beyond the teaching of kids in Korea?
Thank you,
NHL49 |
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koreatimes
Joined: 07 Jun 2011
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| Posted: Fri Jul 01, 2011 6:52 pm Post subject: |
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| In short, it won't matter in your resume. I do think it would help you personally and when applying for programs (not necessarily college programs). |
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litebear
Joined: 12 Sep 2009
Location: Holland
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| Posted: Fri Jul 01, 2011 11:55 pm Post subject: |
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| If you want to continue working in the Education sector (without actually being a certified teacher) it certainly won't hurt, IMO. I landed a job in Amsterdam actually for a (for-profit) education company and my ESL experience was a big help. |
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ttompatz
Joined: 05 Sep 2005
Location: Kwangju, South Korea
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| Posted: Sat Jul 02, 2011 5:24 am Post subject: Re: Does Teaching in Korea Look Good on the Resume |
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| nhl49 wrote: |
I'm a recent college graduate working for a nonprofit. The pay is very low, and until I get three years of experience, the pay will remain that low and the work, unstable.
I'm thinking about teaching abroad for a year, and seeing how it goes. A friend of mine is teaching in Korea and is enjoying his time over there.
My interest is currently in non-profit education, however, the idea of teaching English and traveling the World is of great interest too.
1) Lets say, I do teach abroad for a year, and find it's not exactly what I want to do. Will it hurt me on my resume, if I am to come back to the United States and look for work again, in non-profit education?
2) Lets say, I enjoy teaching abroad. If I were to get a M.A. in English, are their many opportunities abroad to go beyond the teaching of kids in Korea?
Thank you,
NHL49 |
1) no, it wouldn't hurt but it may not help much if any.
2) there is LOTS of work for qualified and experienced individuals in ESL (globally) and your biggest difficulty would be your American passport (can't work in western Europe or some places in SE Asia/Oceania).
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CALVINW33
Joined: 18 Jan 2011
Location: Namwon
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| Posted: Sat Jul 02, 2011 5:26 am Post subject: |
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| If you are American, then join the peace corps. You can be teaching at non-profit, plus it will look fantastic on the resume (especially if you plan to apply for gov't jobs in the future). The downside is that the pay is really just a living allowance. |
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bioberd
Joined: 15 Jun 2011
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| Posted: Mon Jul 04, 2011 7:15 am Post subject: |
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| I would not suggest becoming a Peace Corps volunteer because it is not what it is cracked up to be. You also might not get to work with a non-profit if you become one and get stuck with something you don't want to do or like. I would suggest teaching/living as an expat and teaching. If you like it, you like it and if you dont, you don't. Either way you can adjust accordingly. |
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ontheway
Joined: 24 Aug 2005
Location: Somewhere under the rainbow...
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| Posted: Mon Jul 04, 2011 7:23 am Post subject: |
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For the majority of individuals coming to Korea as E2 teachers, teaching in Korea will be the best work experience on their resumes to date, especially if they can put in a few years with the same employer.
For many E2 teachers, given what they've come from and what they go back to in North America, teaching in Korea will still be the best part of their resume 10 years hence. |
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English Matt
Joined: 12 Oct 2008
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| Posted: Tue Jul 05, 2011 2:24 am Post subject: |
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| ontheway wrote: |
For the majority of individuals coming to Korea as E2 teachers, teaching in Korea will be the best work experience on their resumes to date, especially if they can put in a few years with the same employer.
For many E2 teachers, given what they've come from and what they go back to in North America, teaching in Korea will still be the best part of their resume 10 years hence. |
Rubbish. I think you're projecting. For many new or recent graduates, yes this may be the best thing they can put on their resume to date. For most others it is not. I know many people who got out of Korea, and within a couple of years all are doing better now than they were then.
OP, in my case my time spent working in Korea is a curiousity for employers. It is certainly not something that gets me the job, but I definitely think it is something that helps me to get interviews.....it can be something that makes your resume a little different and makes potential employers pay a little more attention to your application. It won't hurt your resume, as Ttompatz said, however if you are lacking some crucial skill, qualification or experience, it will not in and of itself help you to achieve your future goals.
If you choose to make EFL your life....well, I think looking at the blogs of some people who have done just this will give you a more rounded perpective on whether it is for you or not. There definitely is lots of work out there, but (unless you commit to 1 country, make contacts, network, learn the language) you will be condemned to chasing coin and moving wherever the work is........rural China, Saudi, etc. Additionally, if your interest is in non-profit education, I really don't think you will find working for a for profit McSchool will suit you.
To sum up therefore, what do you want to get out of your time in Korea? Money? Time to learn a new skill (e.g. a foreign language - doesn't have to be Korean)? Or just the chance to travel and experience something different for a year? Additionally, do you think it will be difficult to get back into the sort of work you are doing at the moment.....will this one or two year sojourn damage your future plans?
You are best placed to make this cost-benefit (to your own life) assessment. |
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ontheway
Joined: 24 Aug 2005
Location: Somewhere under the rainbow...
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| Posted: Tue Jul 05, 2011 7:53 am Post subject: |
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| English Matt wrote: |
| ontheway wrote: |
For the majority of individuals coming to Korea as E2 teachers, teaching in Korea will be the best work experience on their resumes to date, especially if they can put in a few years with the same employer.
For many E2 teachers, given what they've come from and what they go back to in North America, teaching in Korea will still be the best part of their resume 10 years hence. |
... For many new or recent graduates, yes this may be the best thing they can put on their resume to date. For most others it is not. I know many people who got out of Korea, and within a couple of years all are doing better now than they were then...
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Absolutely, most of the E2s who come here are young with little to no experience - young 20s, fairly recent grads and newbies. So, obviously this will be the first real job for many. However, I've seen the resumes of lots of older folks, especially in these desperate days, in their 30s to 60s, and the majority do not have professional job experience to match ESL in Korea. At present there is a flood of teachers coming who were the bottom of the barrel at home, got flushed out first in the downturn, and they are washing up on the shores in Korea hoping to survive.
And since you are referencing people you know who've gone back, I too know many who've left Korea. Some have gone on to ESL jobs in other countries with pay and status equal to or lower than that in Korea. Many have gone back to hourly work in restaurants, nursing homes, construction, factory work and other manual labor jobs in Canada and the US.
There are also those who are moving up in the world - sharp young grads who are able to present their Korean teaching experience in a positive way that relates to their future career goals. These teachers are able to use this experience as a steping stone on the road upward. Of course, these are the winners who most likely would be moving up the career ladder from some other step had they not chosen to come to Korea. |
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robinsoncrusoe
Joined: 22 Jan 2010
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| Posted: Tue Jul 05, 2011 7:57 am Post subject: |
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Like all things in life, it depends what you do with the experience and how well you can explain how it fit into your overall larger goal.
case in point: my best friend from high school spent a year snorkeling in australia while using his degree in oceanography to study marine life, and knocked his wall street interview out of the park. he now works on wall street with a 90K salary, but his bonus ranges from 40-120K.
if someone can explain how looking at coral reefs helps you understand market patterns, then having english teaching on your resume should be a walk in the park |
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