Korean Job Discussion Forums

[shinkansen]

So this is my first time applying to Korea and I got an offer in Hadan, Busan.

Busan is great, Hadan not so much, apparently. I've heard numerous negative things about it (ugly, few foreigners, far away from everything) and about the best thing I've heard is that it's not as bad as people say it is. I did some zooming around in Google street view and, gotta say, it does look a little grim.

The contract itself seems okay. It doesn't have any of the usual red flags that a lot of Hagwon contracts I've seen have. The working hours average out to be around 37.5 per week and the pay is standard.

So I'm thinking of turning it down and I guess my question is am I being too picky? I think if it were 30-32 hours per week I would just suck up the less than desirable location or if it were in Haeundae or something I would roll with the almost 40 hours. Am I being greedy turning it down? It seems to be a reputable school (knock on wood) and within 80 minutes of downtown Busan.

Any advice?

Thanks so much

[ttompatz]

- Green as grass.
- Nothing to offer other than the bare minimum.
- Out of the country.
- No experience.

Bog standard hagwon offer:
- Normal work week (37 hours in the hagwon (30 classes and 7 hours prep per week)).
- standard benefits.

OP asks.... Am I being too picky ??

Rhetorical question here..., "What do you think?"

.

[Malislamusrex]

The fact that you can get to Yangsan in 80 minutes suggests that you should probably do a little more research.

[ewlandon]

[busanliving]

There is a lot more to Busan that just haeundae. You can be in downtown in around 30 minutes, gwangali beach and KSU area in around 40 min. Hadanuniconv area has a tight knit group of foreigners, check out the Saha group on Facebook. You are very unlikely to get anything in haeundae, getting something in Busan full stop is pretty hard these days.

[Dalton]

37.5 hours sounds bad. Prep time? Brutal.

Quite possibly the worst job offer with respect to hours that I have ever heard of in 10+ years. Especially for standard pay whatever that is. I suspect you mean $2000 give or take a couple hundred?

I wouldn't even respond to an offer like this. Wait till they re-mail you about it and tell them you thought their account had been hacked. That job is a joke.

[andrewchon]

Yes, you are being a prince. Lose the attitude.

[Beeyee]

If that's 37.5 teaching hours then that is absolutely brutal. If it's just time you need to be at work then it's probably about standard for a newbie.

[shinkansen]

for the cutting responses, lol i wasn't trying to be snooty or overly-negative, sorry if it came off that way. i know i'm a noob, and i don't think anything is owed to me. moving to korea's a big thing and i'm just hesitant about jumping on the first serious offer i get, you guys understand yeah?

also, i was very confused about hadan--if you look it up on google maps the first thing they show you is what appears to actually be eulsukdo? which is 77 minutes away from downtown without a car and hardly has any buildings and looks like it's some sort of nature preserve.

anyway, thank you guys very much for your time and inputs. They really are appreciated.

edit: the job was 37.5 inc. prep time. sorry for the confusion. i know that's about average

[Malislamusrex]

It's 25 mins to downtown. Haeundae is also 25 mins from downtown.

[Dalton]

I may have caused the confusion. I go to the hogwon when I have a class to teach. I arrive at least 10 minutes early.

I go home or whatever when I don't have classes to teach.

I have been known to hang around and even help Korean teachers mark or prepare tests. Sometimes I buy something at the bakery and bring it back to share with co-workers.

But I never hang around for hours on end just because the school doesn't have a class scheduled or the owner is a control freak who wants to account for 24 hours of my day. Or the recruiter who wrote, helped write the contract thought it would give them an edge with the school.

[shinkansen]

[Dalton]

[shinkansen]

jeez lol lots of hostility. i wasn't saying i was gonna like give you continuous updates or anything, just saying that your advice sounds good and that i would use it

[Dalton]