Korean Job Discussion Forums

[rusty1983]

Just had an offer for a decent job in a hagwon. Had a glimmering reference from a teacher there and went through who I believe to be a reputable recruiter.
One thing, they are only offering re-imbursement of airfare, unusual for a Hagwon no? The reference has offered to chat with me on the phone etc etc
I dunno if Im just paranoid from all the horror stories or if I should be genuinely on my guard here.

[Sody]

You are safe to be on your guard! As for the repayment of the airfare that is not an issue for most schools. You will get your money back before the first pay check if it is a good school. I know a few teachers in Korea who were skeptical that the school didn't buy the airfare for them and send them tickets but in reality many schools require you to pay for the ticket upfront. BoL!

Sody

[butlerian]

Yeah, reimbursement is fairly standard procedure.

[polonius]

A possible reason why they are asking you to pay for the ticket up front is because it is about $300 more if they purchase the ticket here and send it to you. They cannot use a Korean credit card overseas unless the card is there. My school used to do this, but many teachers couldn't afford/wouldn't take the risk. So I offered to use my CDN credit card and always got re-imbursed. I have since found a travel agency that has offices here in Korea and in Canada and the US. So we can pay for the cheaper fare here in Korea now. The web site is www.eslteam.com Plus they even seem to be cheaper than other agencies I have worked with back in North America. Perhaps suggest to your school about this website if that is their reasoning.

[willneverteachagain]