Korean Job Discussion Forums

[vexed]

Hey everyone, I hope you�re all well.

I�ve been lurking on these boards for a few weeks and have decided I need start a thread asking for your advice.

The Situation:
I�ve done the I-to-I online course and plan to do a placement with them in South Korea starting in January 2007 (I�ve already paid the placement fee). From my search of these boards on I-to-I, I have realised that:

�The qualification is perhaps not really worth that much
�The placement is perhaps not the best idea since I�m paying them a few hundred pounds for them to get me a potentially lower paid job than if I were to go it alone.

Therefore, I�m at a crossroads. I could:

1.Stick with the I-to-I placement and potentially end up with a low paid job (plus I�m not sure how much bartering I�ll be able to do on getting a decent contract)

2.Say �thanks, but no thanks� to I-to-I; lose my few hundred pounds and go it alone � attempting to find a job via the Internet.


Option 1 sounds safer, because I get the leg work done for me by an agent and they help me through the whole process. However, obviously I could be working in a low paid job with little control over my working conditions, holiday days etc.

Option 2 is more risky, but will potentially put me in a better position. However, by going it alone (and with no experience) I could end up getting screwed over.


I want to throw this open to the board and get your views on the matter.

Thanks,
Kirk

[chronicpride]

I know that you didn't know this until now, but you just paid a placement fee to a recruiter in an industry of 60 other recruiters who don't charge teachers a cent.

Tip: email your resume and great headshot to every single email address that you can find on the job board and keeping emailing every 2-3 days. Make sure your email subject line speaks to their interests and not just something like 'regarding your job'. Try 'handsome, fun-loving 27yr old available ASAP' or something to that effect.

Keep that up and you'll get the results that you need.

[poet13]

"Tip: email your resume and great headshot to every single email address that you can find on the job board and keeping emailing every 2-3 days. Make sure your email subject line speaks to their interests and not just something like 'regarding your job'. Try 'handsome, fun-loving 27yr old available ASAP' or something to that effect."


Damn! That should be a locked sticky all by itself.

[Mary-Jane]

If you've already paid the placement fee, can't you wait and see what i-to-i have to offer you? I too have heard general bad rep about i-to-i, yet... as this messageboard often makes it clear... few declarations about jobs in Korea can be said with certainty.

By all means, turn down any shoddy placements and point out any glaring gaps in their offers to you, but you never know, you might get an okay deal. If you don't, then just walk away and find your own job.

Good luck anyway!

[huffdaddy]

[vexed]

Thanks for the advice

Yeah, I'll research into jobs and start seeing what I can get, then I'll see what I-to-I offer me. If they offer me a decent deal then sure I'll go for it - but if not, then I have the job research to fall back on.

I guess I went with I-to-I initially because I thought it would be a safe bet, but for a bit more effort and risk, I can get a better deal.

Cheers everyone

[lastat06513]

Or what about Option 3- Go to Korea

It is difficult to find a find a good job while being outside the country- there is no way to reasonably verify the school's reputabilty.

But if you can't come to Korea, the best thing to do is to just find any job- even a low-paying one so you can be in the country.


Keep in mind, that alot of schools do pay for the air ticket to and from the country of origin. But the drawback to that is that you will have to pay it back if you break the contract before the 6 month mark.
Thats how I got to Korea the first time, I stayed and tolerated the school (now closed) for 10 months, virtually paying off the ticket and the recruiting fees, and I found a better job after.

Sometimes you have to work your way up the ladder, because if you start at the top, it could be a hard fall if something goes awry.