Korean Job Discussion Forums

[dimitri25]

Hello everyone. i hope everyone had a happy thanksgiving (that is if you celebrate this day). I will be arriving in korea on the evening of december 1 and i just wanted to know what to expect. This will be my first job teaching english and my first time in Asia. I am excited! I think i have to ride a bus from seoul to daejon city. What's going to happen???

[itaewonguy]

you will get to your school and you will slowly find out that everything the boss promised you was all lies starting with the house!
then you get to work and the 30hours he promised ends up being TEACHING HOURS! that doesnt include the other 10 or 15 you must be in the school doing nothing!! your pay will be late! and every complaint from the kids mothers will be your fault! because you are the foreigner!
the korean teachers will act like your friend in front of your face but behind your back you will slowly hear them talking about you!
after 6 weeks of this and meeting other foreigners and hearing how bad you have it! you hear something one night in a bar called
THE MIDNIGHT RUN!
you think seriously about this.. and when pay day comes you pack up your stuff and catch the midnight train to seoul! and book yourself into a motel and start looking for a new job, but you need that damn release letter, so you think the hell with it.. and do part time work !
keep doing this until you get sick of koreans and this place and catch a flight to thailand where you chill on Samui and ALL this happend in 3 months!!

OK OK OK!!! I JOKING!!!!
you will have the best time man!!!
you are coming to asia for your first time! thats an experience you cant put a price on! good, bad and the ugly either way its gonna be cool!

ive been here 8 years and Ive met many foreigners who have all had different stories.. yours will be unique but also common !
keep us posted..

[Homer]

Geez I-guy...give the newbie a chance...


Not everyone gets cheated when they arrive here. Heck, I didn't. My boss followed the contract.

There are horror stories but there are good ones too. I have been here about the same lenght of time as you and if you are honest you have to say that there are many teachers who come here and have positive experiences too.

No need to paint the whole deal black and predict doom. Thats how half the problems start. After 8 years you should know better or be a little more mature about it...that is unless you were trying to be funny...in which case..splat!

[dimitri25]

i can't wait!!!!!!!!! ok, so maybe i am experiencing the euphoria before the crash that comes after the excitement wears off and i start having to adjust.........and then start hating the country until that time when i start appreciating it....see, i think i am preparing well for this.

[anjucat]

You'll have a great time, by the sounds of it. Good attitude. Daejeon's a good town with good people (foreigners and locals alike). 'Bin here 4 years meself. Hope your school is good -- that can make or break many a new person's experience.

Anyways, it's not so hard to adjust to life here. Heck, any place where you can sit at the temple in the morning and drink beer at the 7-11 in the afternoon can't be all bad, can it?

[Harpeau]

They'll pick you up at the airport and load the campervan and head south with you in the back. The director will turn around and with a sly grin announce that you are not going to Daejeon, but rather they purchased your contract and you are heading up to a remote village in the mountain called Nonsan to work. You will live in a crappy Yogwan and get some kind of lung disease that'll lie you flat on your back wondering why you aren't in Daejeon.
aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!
Oopse, sorry. Just reliving a flashback of my own life 8 years ago.

Here's hoping you arrive in Daejeon as planned.

Cheers!

[joe_doufu]

Save yourself now! Go to Taiwan instead!

[Qinella]

Once you get off the plane and meet up with whoever meets you at the airport, you'll have to take a 3-hour bus ride to Daejeon. Let me tell you, that trip sucks ass after a long flight. But, you have no choice.

So, I suggest making the most of your post-flight, pre-bus time by standing, stretching, drinking coffee, perhaps eating, and smoking if you need to. All before you meet your contacts, because they will be in a hurry after having been waiting for a long time.

On the ride to your new home, you'll have an awkward conversation with a Korean who you may or may not be able to understand.

Also, there will be a pit stop on the bus ride, so you can stand for a few minutes. They always say it's a 5-minute break, but it ends up being like 15.

So, I hope that answers your OP question as to "what's going to happen".

What part of Daejeon will you be living in? You're probably unfamiliar with the area names they gave you, but is there something with a "gu" or "dong" at the end?

Q.

[johndoe]

Yes, if by chance you are heading to Yang-G ELS; I pity the fool.

[dimitri25]

yeah, that does provide some kind of idea of "what's going to happen." just wondering b/c i do arrive in seoul at night and then have to take a bus to daejon. i guess i'll be shown my place in the middle of the night....

btw, anyone know how i can reduce the size of my avatar pic? it's quite large <------- i luv the way the eyes roll!

[Tiger Beer]

Your Brazilian avatar is too big!

By the way, were you teaching in Brazil before?

[dimitri25]

hey, i'm from "Texas, so Bigger is Better." j/k
No sirrrr, didn't teach English in Brazil....lived/studied there (a couple months in rio and a year in belo horizonte)...loved it!

[mole]

[Tiger Beer]

[dimitri25]

Wow, i just started posting messages on this website today, as i am at work but have alot of free time on my hands. I am so surprised with the number of responses in just a few hours. Well, thanks to everyone for the warm and positive responses. I am sure this Korea gig is going to be a positive and fun experience!


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Life is what you make of it.

Holla'!!!!!!!