Korean Job Discussion Forums

[PeterDragon]

........

[Cerebroden]

NO!

[Cerebroden]

NO!!

[VanIslander]

[seoulsucker]

Came when I was 28 under the same circumstances. I was living in Chicago at the time. I'm here, 3 years later.

It's not for everyone, but I'm rather happy here.

Financially, yes, you can save that much, but on a noob's hagwon salary it will definitely put a damper on your social life. Do it in 2 years instead and have a blast while you're here. It's not the greatest place on Earth, but it would be a waste to live here as a total shut-in for any amount of time. There's tons of fun to be had, especially in Seoul.


Food, smokes, drinks, are all about the same as they are in the states, or cheaper.

If you live in Seoul and have any social skills whatsoever, you'll have no problems making friends. If you're relatively good looking you'll have an easy time getting dates. Getting a girl you'll want to stick with though, is just as tough as it is anywhere else in the world. Crazy beeyotch is a universal reality.

As far as language goes, you'll be able to pick up all you need to survive for a year before you even get here. If you have a knack for language or a true desire to learn, you'll be surprised how quickly ability can snowball once you're completely immersed. I'm nowhere near fluent, but most of my Korean friends tell others they should "be careful" around me.

There is a fairly high level of xenophobia here. Some can deal with it, some can't. It can be easy to get jaded if you don't keep your sense of humor intact.

Authorities here aren't anything to worry about as long as you keep your nose clean. No fights, no drugs, and you'll be fine.

In groups there can be anti-US sentiment, but on an individual level most Koreans seem to be fond of US pop culture, fashion, etc. I've never been accosted or bothered because of my nationality.

If you really want to pinch your pennies, take a job outside of Seoul. If you're looking for a cool experience and a total change from the Midwest doldrums, move to Seoul. You'll experience cool stuff outside of Seoul, but for a social guy like me, there's no such thing as Korea outside of the Seoul city limits in terms of having a life here.

You'd be surprised where a year here can lead you. I've been here 3 years, and I've had to get pages added to my passport already. Korea is less than a 6 hour flight from some of the best travel destinations in Asia.

From one MW boy to another, I say go for it. If you have any more questions about specifics with your contract, feel free to send me a PM, bro.

[crsandus]

so I saw "Minneapolis" and "Appleton, WI" (I don't know much about
Wisconsin geography) and I immediately thought of Apple River. I then
thought, "Why the heck would you go to Korea when you live by Apple
River and you can just float down the river every weekend, get drunk and
look at topless chicks?" Then I googled Appleton and realized it's not near
Apple River...

Cerebroden: The really long Nooo makes things hard to read

PeterDragon: If you've never experienced oriental asian culture and are
interested in it, I say go for it. As long as you don't mind being considered
exotic in a negative and positive way.

[xingyiman]

"Ever apply for jobs you think you're not going to get?"

Yeah, every job I ever applied for Stateside.
I am an honest person and it's tough to get jobs when
you are constantly competing with liars. And even if you join the game,
there's someone who's always got a better story than you. Employers
aren't necessarily looking for the "best" candidate. They look for lots of
things among which might include a new golf buddy, someone who's willing to accept the lowest possible offered salary, etc...

[sweetonsno]

My questions, in no particular order:

Am I right about this?

Depends what you want out of the experience, honestly.

Is Korea really a reasonably nice place to live?

Hmm. It depends on what kind of person you are, and what you need to feel "at home." It's definitely not the kind of place that I'm going to hang around too much longer. It's not because it's BAD, per sey, but it's not a place that I would ever be able to feel "at home" in. I don't require MacDonald's and tabloids to be at home or anything, but the social situation here is really hard for me. (The food is great!)

The culture is really Westernized in a lot of ways. However, there are some things very unique to Korea that take some getting used to. The cultural history of Korea's pretty cool and worth checking out. But you're a lot more likely to run into people in suits than in hanbok.

My prospective employers tell me if I spend frugally, I should be able to make it back home after a year with $15,000.000 to $20,000.00. Are they BSing me, or can this be done?

Definitely can be done. You'll need to send a bunch home, though. It's hard to save the first few months, because you'll probably need to buy a phone, stuff for your apartment, etc. I'd suggest sending most of your paycheck home as soon as you get it, or you'll spend it! If you keep a low profile socially, and don't go out drinking every weekend, it can be done.

Oops. Deleted a line. Yes, the cost of living is comparable to Midwest towns. Remember, they take care of your apartment. You won't have a car and won't need to buy gas. Just don't go out for Western food. It'll kill ya.

What's the dating scene like?

I'm slightly jaded at the moment, so take with a grain of salt. But. It's really easy to meet people here. Most people meet lots of people. So it's not the place to come if you want a serious relationship. If you just want to screw around, though, no problems. You could probably make out with a different girl every week (maybe two or three or four a week if you go to Itaewon or Hongdae) if you wanted to. I don't know much about dating Koreans, though. They're different from American women, that's for sure!

I'm 28. My age does not keep me from getting a date on a Saturday night in Minneapolis, but I'm pretty sure in some parts of the world I'm over the hill.

Imagine being in college at a fraternity party. Would any of the girls care that you were 28? No. People don't care. Guys who are ten years and more older than you hook up with gals younger than me (I'm 24).

Is it easy to make friends, either with the ex-pats or the locals?

You will never have trouble meeting people. I think the lasting relationships are the hard part. Everyone here seems to want to meet as many people as they can. But a lot of them aren't interestsed in developing relationships. Everything, it seems, is done in a "group." That's either good or bad, depending on how you roll.

Are there local venues for learning the language and studying it formally? Is the language itself difficult, compared to toher Eastern languages?

Not a problem finding places to learn Korean. Heck, you could probably walk up to someone on the street and offer to teach them English for them teaching you Korean. No problem learning at all. It's REALLY hard, I find. But I'm pretty lazy lately. There are all kinds of classes. I haven't tried to learn other Eastern languages. But the grammar is different. It's really hard, from my standpoint. It's tough to get my mind around the lack of plurals and the use of articles and things.

What's the crime rate like there, is it safe?

You'll probably more likely run into trouble from other waygooks than Koreans. Just be careful, like you would in any city. But seriously... very safe.

What's the government like?

I'm not the best one to ask. I'm so disillusioned about my own government that I stopped trying to care about other governments, lest I make snap judgments.

Is it really a Western-style democracy like they say, or does it have a touch of that Chinese repression and xenophobia?

Empty your mind of expectations. It makes things easier. Besides, you've already decided to come, I think. Korean culture and society has a lot of Confucian influence. I guess that's the best way to describe it.

Do the authorities treat Westerners as interloping suspects, or are we just tolerated as part of the mix? Is there anti-American sentiment n the culture in general?

This is a weird thing. Plenty of nice Koreans out there. I don't have any problems with the authorities. I think they pretty much ignore us as long as we're not picking fights, being jerks, or breaking the law. However, I think waygooks (not just Americans... white is white here) are kind of seen as non-persons in some work situations. It depends on where you teach, of course. But there is a huge "This is Korea, you should do xyz" attitude. I obviously don't think that Korea should act like America, but students will give the foreign teachers crap that they would never give to Korean teachers. If you have a problem, your boss won't always help you out because keeping us here is such an investment already.

It's kind of a weird double standard. The parents want native speakers, which is why we get paid so relatively well. However, we're a huge investment, so we look greedy when we ask for more.

I like my life here in the Northwoods. But I'm always up for an adventure. I've also taught ESL on my own soil and enjoyed it (you wouldn't think so, but Wisconsin and Mnnesota are hotspots for immigrants, especially from Southeast Asia and Subsaharan Africa).

Hey, I know all about that! I guess you've gotta do what you want to. I think you've already decided to come. Now's a good time, before you have a family and a career that keep you in one place. Go for it.

I just want to ask some actual teachers if this is a a wortwhile endeavor. I get the impression recruiters and schools will say what they think they need to say to get me over there.

Of course they will! But seriously... nobody on here is you. Nobody knows what you need or want. Everyone gets something different out of Korea, or Korea takes something different from them. Who knows? The best way is to come over and find out. If you're nervous, look for a 6-month contract. If you like it, you can extend. If you hate it, you only need to put up with it for a little while.

If you don't mind me asking, what makes you want to teach abroad?

[PeterDragon]

....................

[michi gnome]

there are those on this board who will try to discourage you,

& there is truth in what they say

but my friend, there is only one option available to you

one path you must take

no matter how bad things can get here, no matter that you will see many many dark days

there is nothing & no place, my friend, not on this great green earth

that blows arse as hard as central wisconsin

trust me

i was born there, i know

& this is the only advice you need to hear:

get the hell out while you can, my friend

get the hell out while you can!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[PeterDragon]

......................

[white tiger]

I met a rather large Wisconsin girl who told me to drop my 'accent' because she has been to Toronto, and knows what a 'canadian accent' is, and whatever i was slangin wasnt it. other than that, i hear wisconsin is a nice place to visit. :P
kudos to sweetunso for her lengthy and thoughtful responses to the original poster. well thought out!

[Toast and Kimchee]

I too am trying to decide whether or not to come to Korea. My family thinks I would be wasting my life and that I would just return a year older, but quite honestly I've got nothing going on here in the states and no forseeable prospects.

Although I've got a Masters degree in education I quit my teaching job last June because my school district sucked and my principal was a scheming *****. Unfortunately, now that I can't use her as a reference I am having a horrible time finding a job here.

So, basically I'm 35, recently divorced, recently had to move back in with my parents (can no longer afford my mortgage), and am working only the odd temp jobs I can find here or there (paying approximately what I made about 15 years ago). Oh yeah! That, and I had to declare bankruptcy last year after my divorce.

I have no idea how to crawl out of this pit, and since teaching is all I know (I've been doing it for the past 10 years), I don't know what else to do. I would like to develop a career with some future prospects/advancement, but I guess anything is better than what I've got now.

My real question is, can one develop a long-term career/reputation/life by teaching ESL abroad? I asked this question on another thread, but I'm still not quite sold yet.

[white tiger]

wow, man, seems like you've had it rough recently. im curious; have you travelled much? because for your parents to say a year abroad is a complete waste of time...i and others here, im sure, would completely disagree. There's a lot of life experience from going abroad, and even more from living abroad. It changes your perspective, and perhaps your goals.
Living here vs. living at mom's place for a year?! Do I need to pack your bags for you? :P

[huck]

Bauerke...What kind of job are you looking for? I don't think not being able to put someone down for a reference has ever gotten in the way of finding a job in Korea..

Also, I've come to the conclusion that it's not really wasting my life. I think that too many people have the Western mindset where you're supposed to go to university, get a good job so that you can support your family, raise your family, and then die..And that's the path that life must take.

Life is all about the experiences you have and the people you meet. The only way you waste a life is to not do anything interesting, and just wait and wait and wait and wait for that day in the future when you *might* be able to see the world and you *might* get to leave your hometown for a two week vacation.

(I remember when I was floating down the river on a raft with that escaped slave, Jim....man, did we have some good adventures. They said, "Huck, go to school...You gotta wear shoes..." But that wasn't the life for me.)

There are different ways to live your life. Don't let your family influence you if you're not ecstatically happy with what you're presently doing.

To the OP - I think there are positive answers to all of your questions. Seoul's an interesting place, and if you want to try it, then what do you have to lose?