Korean Job Discussion Forums

[Juicetin]

Hi guys!

I'm in the process of coming up with a (admittedly loose) plan to teach in Korea, and would like you guys to gloss over it to see if it's realistic.

About me: I'm 26, male and from Australia. I have a computer science degree and zero teaching experience.

I've decided I want to go there as soon as possible (maybe the end of January next year) and I'm not sure if I will have the time to take any useful teaching classes. I do consider myself very motivated and absolutely willing to learn while I'm teaching, however. Do you think the lack of experience in this area would make it difficult to find a good job nowadays? Perhaps more importantly, will it decrease my value in a school by a large amount? It's very important for me to feel like I'm actually achieving something while teaching, I'm not just looking for a holiday.

I'm interested in teaching in a hagwon despite the horror stories I read about (in fact a little drama might be kind of interesting, right?). I was thinking I would travel to Korea without a working visa and be diligent about finding a good one, and then get a working visa through the hagwon when I find one. That way I can actually inspect the hagwon before committing. However, so that I'm not going in there completely blind it would be good to make some connections before leaving. Do you think contacting an agent would be worthwhile? Of course, if there's anyone out there that has connections I'd be super grateful if you could help me out!

For what I just described I'm be hoping to find a place within maybe a month and a half, or at very least within the 90 days I'm allowed to stay in the country without a working visa.

What do you guys think? Is this a realistic goal?

Cheers!

[ghostrider]

People with zero experience still get hired here regularly. You could come here with all your documents and stay in a hostel for a month or so. You might want to post your resume and e-mail to see how much interest you generate-
http://www.eslcafe.com/jobs/wanted/#PostMessage

Every hagwon is different. People tend to only post online about the truly bad ones. A little drama can be interesting but not if you don't get paid. Without an agent it can be hard to get into contact with hagwons that need teachers.

[young_clinton]

It will take you at least 2 months to come up with the documents that you need. So you better start working on them now. You will need:\


FBI Criminal Background Check notarized and apostilled (You have to specify that you want it notarized when sending the application).

Degree Copy notarized and apostilled.

2 Reference hard copies from former teaching jobs or professors and educators signed and sealed in envelopes. You should have multiple copies of the references. You might have to send some copies by email before sending the hard copies.

[ttompatz]

young_clinton: You should consider the fact that not everyone is American.

The OP is from Australia and might be better served by getting his NPC from the AFP rather than a CBC from the FBI.

The the process takes 5-15 working days rather than the "months" that it takes to get done in the USA.

OP:
It is possible to do it your way BUT:

a) the costs are YOURS to bear. The employer won't pay for your airfare into Korea or your living costs while you job search. IF you are lucky they may pay for your visa run expenses (beyond airfare). You'd better plan on losing a couple thousand AUD for your trouble with no more assurance of finding any job much less a decent one.

b) It is not necessary to fly in first. Most of what you will glean from a hagwon at the interview is NOTHING that will help you determine which is good and which is bad.

c) most hagwon owners speak terrible English (often none at all) so you will still need to use a recruiter to find a job. You might just as well do it from the comfort of your own home.

.

[Juicetin]

Thanks everyone, the advice you've given me has been helpful in getting my head straight with figuring this thing out. Anyway, turns out I won't be going until end of February/early March now, so I will try and secure a position before then. I'm sure I'll be pestering you guys again about that soon!

Thanks!

[tarrasque]

Sorry to bump the thread, but being a fellow Aussie (like the OP), I wanted to ask regarding the AFP check: do you need the check on it's own? or with fingerprint check as well?