Korean Job Discussion Forums

[obti]

I'm due to finish uni this may and would love to get a job for September 2013 (or a few weeks earlier if possible). As I'm unqualified and looking to live in Seoul I know I'm probably going to be working at a private school. Could someone please tell me when I should start seeing a substantial avertised?

Also I'm not planning to do the CELTA until I've worked a year in Korea, due to financial concerns. I know that many TEFL jobs in Korea require no qualifications (in fact it seems as though they just want a native speaker); is it worth doing a short online course just to grasp the basics? Will the school help me out initially or will I literally be thrown straight into a class room?

[thebektionary]

You should get an online TEFL. My friend got one for 75 bucks (USD) on groupon. Just search around. I know this one is like $200: www.language1st.com.

I've only taken an in-house TEFL, not an online TEFL, so I don't know how much they help you with teaching, but I know that it will make you more competitive and also you can't work in a public school unless you have one. A lot of public schools just got cut and the contract just got somewhat worse for the ones that didn't get cut, but I think working at a public school is still a whole lot better than a hagwon (private academy) so you should try to shoot for that even if it's a little bit outside of Seoul.

Plus, even hagwons in Seoul are very competitive now and difficult for someone who has no experience to get. I'm not saying it's impossible because I just got one for a friend who had no experience, but still, she is on the outskirts of Seoul and not in central Seoul. You might just have to accept that you're not going to be in the center of Seoul unless you want to work 9-10 hours at a kindie hagwon and what's the point of that if you can never enjoy the city? It's better just to get a job in the outlying areas and still be close but not have to do slave labor.

For the most part, yes, you will just be thrown in the classroom. Maybe in a hagwon you will get to observe a few classes but that isn't much help. There isn't really any training. I had training for one job but that was only because the hagwon was brand new and they were just training everyone on the particular hagwon's system.

To answer your initial question, you should send in your fingerprints for a FBI criminal background check (assuming that you are American) in April or May and then start looking for a job around late June/July/August. No one will consider you for a job unless you have your FBI check in hand. If you are not American, you can get your CBC a lot easier and you don't have to worry about it so much.

[modernseoul]

[obti]

Thanks for all the advise guys.

My heart's really set on seoul, even if it is on the outskirts; so I'm going to try for this at least. Will schools not accept me conditionally on the basis that I get my degree?

X

[Charlie Bourque]

If you're graduating in the Spring, that means you will most likely have you degree in-hand by the first week of June, which is approximately when you should start applying for jobs.

The problem is that most FBI/CBC checks are only valid for 6 months, and with most EPIK/SMOE jobs starting on the last week of August, you'll need yours no sooner than early March. That being said, you won't be able to apply for any jobs until you have ALL 3 ITEMS in hand -- CBC, sealed transcripts, original diploma -- all of which must be apostled (sp?).

My advice is to familiarize yourself with the process of applying, get an Online TESOL certificate of 100 hrs, and DO NOT SMOKE WEED. You'll have to pass a drug test, and I've known people to fail it, even though they stopped smoking months ago.

Also, get some quality head-shots taken of you, to attach to your resume. Attach a portrait of yourself, and a semi-candid shot of you teaching. They want to see how good you look in the classroom.

[northway]

You're looking at Seoul as if it's a Western city. It's not. You can be in a satellite city and have the parts of Seoul you'll be interested in visiting closer than if you lived in certain parts of Seoul proper. I can understand the desire to be in Seoul proper if you've never been there, but the difference in your activities and quality of life will be marginal, at worst. You really shouldn't make being in Seoul a deal-breaker over an extra ten minutes on the subway. I'm not suggesting that you be open to living in Mokpo if you want Seoul, but you don't necessarily have to miss out on a whole lot of Seoul if you live in a satellite city.

It's also worth noting that the satellite cities are actually cities, not suburbs in the Western sense. There isn't really a discernible difference between your average neighborhood in Seoul and your average neighborhood in Anyang, Suwon, or Bucheon, and the only way you'd be able to tell the difference in Bundang or Ilsan is that they're much newer, nicer, cleaner, and more logically organized than anywhere in Seoul.

As a rookie, it also tends to be a bit easier to meet people in the satellite cities versus Seoul. Folks in Seoul are typically more experienced and already have groups of friends. In the satellite cities there are always foreigner bars which are used to absorbing and integrating new teachers. You're a lot less likely to find that in Itaewon or Hongdae.

I'm pretty sure Koreans think we, as newbies, are totally absurd to demand living in Nowon-gu over Gwacheon simply because of the mailing address.

As for accepting you conditionally without yet having your degree: barring the possibility that you're a certified teacher or you have something else special that sets you apart, any boss who does that is incompetent or there is something seriously wrong with the school.

[obti]

Yeh I've started to realise that living in these satelite cities are so close to seoul that I'll be able to do everything I want to in the capital. Are there any in particular that you'd recommend or avoid?

Think I'll probably go for an online qualification of 120hrs, the cost of a 4 week Celta is just too much for me immediately after graduating.

[YTMND]

[pebecher]

Definitely get the TEFL/TESOL certificate. I was trying to get a job in Seoul for the longest time and people only started getting interested once I indicated that I was in the process of completing the certificate. I'm just about finished with the 120 HR online course through ITTT and it was just under $300, so not too pricey.

[Troglodyte]