Korean Job Discussion Forums

[wonkavite62]

I've taught in universities in China, and I've taught in private language schools. But what is it like to teach in a public school in Jeollanamdo? I am almost at the point of e-mailing ALL my paperwork to the agency that found me the job, and the job seems to be in the bag, as it were.
What's it like to teach in a small city or town in Jeollanamdo? What can you do in your spare time? I know I would finda really rural location difficult. I really come alive in a more urban setting. But in any case, I would try and make the best of it and have a good time, because there's always a way of finding positive experiences.

There is one small hitch. I just discovered that instead of the self-completed medical form I now have to go and see a doctor in my country before going to Korea. Has anyone else had to do this? Is it essential? The recruiter wants me to FEDX the material tomorrow. But in order to see a doctor, I need an appointment, which will be too late. What should I do? The recruiter is based in the west, aand seems thoughtful and professional.

[YTMND]

[Squire]

Gwangju is a good sized city (population about 1 million I believe), then in order of size there are Suncheon, Yeosu, Mokpo and Gwangyang. I'd call Suncheon a small city, Gwangyang a large town and Yeosu and Mokpo either small cities or large towns, depending on what you're used to. All of these places have good bus/train access to the bigger cities like Seoul, Busan and Gwangju. If you've seen a map then you'll notice Suncheon, Yeosu and Gwangyang are clustered together, with Mokpo being pretty isolated but still about an equal distance to Gwangju and Seoul.

Anything smaller and it's definitely rural. Jeonam is a nice province with some great scenery and is pretty good if you like outdoorsy stuff. If you're living in a smaller place than the places I mentioned then I expect some form of transport is pretty important (car, bike or scooter). The upside to a rural place would be the likelihood of small schools to work at. It's pretty nice teaching classes smaller than 10 students

[wonkavite62]

As a matter of fact I am going to call the recruiter discuss the commonsense aspects of seeing a doctor here. I quiet talk might help. In the past, teachers did NOT have to see a doctor before coming to Korea.
But the real issue here is time. I would have to make an appointment. It might be next week or later. And the job starts in late April and I have to be there a week before.
There may be some wiggle room.

[Weigookin74]

Recruiter 's full of shit. You don't get the medical check there. You do it here in Korea. Don't do it there. You're wasting cash.