Korean Job Discussion Forums

[pwhopper]

Howdy all:

Looking to transition out of my current career field to head out to the ROK. Any thoughts on my prospects?

<Background Info>
Korean-American (no issues with hojuk, etc.)
Planning to get an F-4 Visa
10 years in the US military
Extensive experience in aviation industry
Stationed in Korea for 3+ years
Additional time spent stationed in Japan
MA in Education
BA in Sociology
About 75% fluent in Korean
35 years old
Prior social science teacher in the US public schools (jr high)
Currently working on TEFL cert (online... I know, I know)

From what I gather, I am not a typical candidate. And for what it's worth, I am looking for a change of pace when it comes to life. Ideally, I'd like to teach English in a corporate or adult setting. If need be, I'm very comfortable with high-level staff, executives, etc. I love working with kids too so I'm not too restrictive. BL: I enjoy teaching.

In the meanwhile, I'd brush up on my Korean to hopefully reach 90% fluency. Perhaps I'd make a career of it or segue into other industries.

You've got a very active community here so I've appreciated reading your thoughts. I'm open to inputs/slings/arrows. Thanks so much!

[Charlie Bourque]

You're a very good candidate for international schools.

[ttompatz]

Try looking on places like naver.com instead of EFL boards.

With an F4, bilingual fluency and your qualifications you should be able to do much better than entry level EFL.

.

[pwhopper]

Appreciate the replies...

Would definitely be open to finding other industries but in some ways, it sounds like entry-level EFL jobs can be quite lucrative when one considers the "free" housing. A higher paying job in another field might see some gains eaten up by rent, no?

What are your thoughts? Then again, I gather (from the discussions I've read) that there's a bit of a career ceiling when it comes to teaching in Korea.

Again, really appreciate your time. I'll take a look at Naver for sure...

[jonpurdy]

International schools also provide housing or a stipend. Plus their pay is higher in the first place. Of course, you'd have a much higher workload than teaching EFL but nothing you wouldn't have seen teaching in the States.

[mayorhaggar]

If you want to do a year with EPIK just to get your feet wet and get over here so you can build up contacts for bigger name jobs, there are many EPIK teachers who are in their 40's and 50's, if age is what you're concerned about. Lots of certified teachers as well. Yeah most EPIK people are in their 20's (I'm early 30's, as are several EPIK teachers in my town) but if you just want to be in Korea and don't want to deal with the process of applying for a bigger job, just go for it.

[Canadian Club]

Apply to the international schools- you'll enjoy it much more. That being said, most are done their hiring, but learn a bit about each, apply to them all and hope that someone has had a change in situation. Some of the new schools are expanding next year.

[Weigookin74]

[pwhopper]

Interesting thoughts from all...

What countries pay more than Korea though? Looked at Thailand, China and some other popular options... but overall, Korea seems to offer a higher quality of life.

That being said, I've read that the English teaching market is a bit saturated now... with the economy being what it is...

Wondering if I could find a stable career teaching professional adults. But those jobs seem harder to find (and less consistent from what I read).

[ttompatz]

[mayorhaggar]

If you can really save 10k USD a year in several different countries I think it's still worth it to think about what kind of country you'd be most comfortable living in--as you say, "quality of life" stuff. In general Korea is definitely pretty comfortable and modern, but it does rub a lot of people the wrong way especially if they get a job assignment they don't like. Definitely think about what is more important to you (clean air? cuisine preferences? weather?) and ask people what it's like to live and work in places like Taiwan and China and Thailand and so on.

[Skippy]

Why not try applying to teach on some of the US military bases in Korea?

Your resume is pretty nice. You can do better then hagwon or that.

[watergirl]

with your F4 visa, you are able to work more jobs legally, and teach English in companies which can give you extra added income.
True though, pt work requires travelling to the jobs. If you choose to come here and are mostly interested in saving money, try to get into an area like gangnam or bundang where so many of the pt jobs are.

by the way, I thought Thailand paid a lot less than Korea. Definitely would be nice to teach there!