Korean Job Discussion Forums

[The Den]

Hello, I am posting this in order to request a bit of information. I was in Korea from 96-98. A total of 26 months. Although I ran into a lot of the same frustrations many of you have described in these posts I am ready to go again. While in Korea in the late 90's I was fortunate enough to meet my wife, whom I married in Pusan in '98. We came to Canada with the intention of one day returning possibly when we have a child. Our daughter will be two in February and we have decided that now would be an excellent time to return. There are a number of reasons for making this decision such as, relatives in Korea, my wife being homesick, needing a break from my present job, etc. Anyhow, the reasons for going this time are different from the first time around. We would live with her parents and I would likely seek employment from the hagwon I worked at last time, as I was well treated, and enjoyed working there. The questions I would like to pose to the people who are currently there and especially to those who were there during the IMF crisis are these:

Is American cable tv available?
What is the going rate for private lessons?
Do you still have to be paranoid about immigration officials stopping you in the subway etc?
Do university jobs still require MAs?
Has the economy more or less recovered? (My wife assures me it has but I am not sure)
What is the mood like regarding the N. Korean situation?

To anyone living in Pusan

Is the Westwood in Somyon still open? What about Mua on Kwang li beach?

Did they ever get that dreadful stretch of subway built in Nam chon dong?

Anyway that is about all I can think of for now. I have been reading these posts for a couple of months now and from what I have read things don't seem all that different. Anyway I am looking forward to finding out.

[Ya-ta Boy]

Is American cable tv available?
>>No, not yet. Some cable companies provide AFN, the Discovery Channel, National Geographics Channel, CNN, BBC. BUT this is not common. You will have to shop around. Consider a satellite dish.


What is the going rate for private lessons?
>>Probably W30,000, but it is still illegal.

Do you still have to be paranoid about immigration officials stopping you in the subway etc?
>>Probably no more than before.

Do university jobs still require MAs?
>>Yes, they still prefer MAs.

Has the economy more or less recovered? (My wife assures me it has but I am not sure)
>>Yes, it has recovered, but the value of the won has not recovered. It is still stuck around W1200 to the US dollar because the government/chaebols prefer it that low.

What is the mood like regarding the N. Korean situation?
>>Our Northern brothers will not attack us. Blood is thicker than water. Things would be fine if the US would stop blocking our reunification.

[IconsFanatic]

[everydavid]

bump

[VirginIslander]

You are married to a Korean! Start a study room in your house (and work). Have 3 classes in the morning with four students in each class. Change 200,000 per month. Those three hours should bring you in an extra 2.4 a month.

Dont be paraniod. Just do the correct paperwork at immigration.

PS Living with her parents. She must be worth it.

[xtchr]