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Published: April 14th 2010
Gotta Love the Students
Because if you don't, your year abroad might look very, very long.I've received a good number of e-mails, facebook messages, tweets, etc. over the past few months with people asking a lot of the same questions. SO I figured it might be helpful if I posted some of my replies in this blog for those of you who are considering teaching in Korea. Sorry I can't think of a more organized way to really put this forth, but this ONSLAUGHT of information should probably help you out. Also, check out my first two or three entries here. They chronicle the process of me coming over.
Hope this helps!
Correspondence No. 1 Hey! I'm sorry it's taken a while to get back to you, but it's a combination of work and me being kind of lazy. haha
First, I should thank you! I'm glad I amuse you-- I can't help it really: Korea is such a funny place sometimes, mostly because oftentimes it's so similar to being in America that certain Korean-isms will strike you randomly at leave you dumbstruck. 😊
Anyway, I think it's awesome that you want to know more about Korea. It's a really neat place (it's beautiful and remarkably well-connected) with some of the nicest people and customs you could imagine.
Coming to Korea, for me, was actually a completely random happenstance. Sort of. My best friend/roomate at college has a serious case of wanderlust. There is never a spare moment on the internet that she doesn't have a browser window in the background with some sort of travel adventure in the background; she is constantly scheming up new ways to have new adventures. One day, she came across teaching positions available in Korea (I think she was on the Footprints website, to be honest), and on our walk to the supermarket she told me all about it (as well as one position she saw in Dubai).
It caught my interest, and I pretty much spent a good chunk of time googling "Teaching English in Korea." I'm also on livejournal, so I did a little community creeping over there and asked a few people where they teach, what recruiters they used, etc. I applied to maybe 8 different recruiters and 3 got back to me immediately. One was Aclipse, who I ended up coming over with. Another was English Apple, who I have heard pretty good things about.
There are a few things you might need to know when applying. First, virtually all teaching gigs require a BA from a 4-year University. Doesn't matter where, what you majored in, what your GPA is, etc. AS LONG AS you are from a native English-speaking country. Additionally, if you complete a 100-hour or more TEFL certificate course (online, at a community college, at your university, what-have-you), you are usually able to be paid more money.
As far as knowing Korean? Not necessary, but my friends of Asian-heritage, etc. *do* seem to have a good number of problems involving the fact that Koreans automatically assume that they know Korean. At my particular location in Daegu, the local YMCA has Korean classes-- 130,000W (~$120) for I think it's 13 weeks of 2 hour classes once a week. Many churches and local universities have similar deals. My friend in Seoul goes to a class thats "pay as you go" and it's like $5 a class.
I wouldn't buy Rosetta Stone. If you have a tech-saavy friend, you can download a torrent file of it for free. I have it and set it up on two of my coworkers computers, and I'm not even a computer genius. :P If you do want, though, you might want to get a book or two to help you. I got "Teach Yourself Korean" and coupled with youtube videos about the Korean alphabet, it was a pretty helpful base.
Plus, if you come over here, the kids will *love* teaching you Korean 😉
Correspondence No. 2 1) Daegu - I love it! It's definitely a smaller city, and it's not nearly as vertical as Seoul is, but there are plenty of things to do. It's surrounded by mountains, and there are plenty of parks scattered around and outside of the city, though they are not necessarily "tourist destinations." There are a few parks that run alongside the rivers, which are perfect for running on. There's also a smattering of smaller parks (some of which have skate parks alongside temples and memorials). It's also pretty easy to get out of the city-- Daegu is pretty well-connected by trains and buses.
2) Which recruitment agency did you use? Would you recomend it to me? - I used Aclipse, which is a pretty good agency. I hear it depends on your recruiter, though. My recruiter's name was "Colleen Harley"
3) Which company do you work for? I work for Chungdahm (April). April is the elementary kids, and then they "go upstairs" to Chungdahm as they enter middle school. Again, this is pretty branch specific. I love my gig at April, but the teachers at Chungdahm at this brach (Beomeo) have it pretty rough. They don't get holidays, and barely any time off. That being said, its also on the of the best-paying jobs. I should mention they also work Saturdays.
Correspondence No. 3 I just got your message, and I totally don't mind the random message! I made my blog because I felt like I had a hard time figuring out what things I should pack, what the process was like, etc. I figured if I chronicled my (chaotic) start, it might help people out! 😊 And I'm glad it has!
As far as things you might want to bring, it really depends on you. I can find standard brands for shampoo, deodorant, and tampons/pads here, so I'm not sure what the big fuss is about. You should be able to find these things without any serious problems, especially if you're in Seoul. It's a bit hard to come across cheese here, and Mexican spices. You can bring the spices over without any problems, but most people have resigned themselves to hoping they live near enough to a Costco (yep, we have them here, too) to get *good* cheese (you can get "cheddar" at pretty much any small grocery story, convenience store, etc.). Additionally, if you have a sweet tooth, you might want to bring some M&Ms or something over because chocolate here is not as good as back home. My family sends individually wrapped chocolates with every package... and it's much appreciated.
That being said, the food here is really good. I eat things that I never would have eaten back home, in great abundance, and have lost weight. When I'm feeling a little gross/stuffed up, some spicy ramon ("ramyeon") or some ddeukbokki (spicy rice cakes) totally hits the spot.
Everyone's experience is a little different here. You won't really know what you *need* until you get here; each school provides different things as far as housing and compensation-- even within the same umbrella company. For example, I was super psyched to have packed two "sets" of utensils (2 forks, 2 knives, etc.) because when I arrived, I had no kitchenware whatsoever. I was also glad to have brought my pillow (which I used a space bag to compress) and a little fleece throw since I had no bedding the first night. The other two "new" teachers at my school, on the other hand, had blankets, sheets, kitchenware, etc. It really is the luck of the draw. Don't go overboard with packing, but always be prepared. 😊
Let me know if you have any other specific questions. I actually planned on updating my blog tonight, so maybe you'll see something there that can help you? Who knows! 😊
Correspondence No. 4 I stretched about 1200 USD for about a month and a half and had a good chunk left over... even after settling into my apartment. You can get a good meal from anywhere between 2,000 W for a bowl of ramen or some mandoo (dumplings) up to about 10,000 W if you get a huge dish that you can split between two or three people. On average, I'd say a meal is around 5,000 W (or less than 5 USD).
If you're just getting a meal, most people drink the complimentary filtered water instead of anything else... or, if you're at a street stand, you'll drink the broth they have. At the convenience store, you can get a fairly large thing (~2 qts) of juice for around 3-4,000 W. I go through juice like no one's job. In vending machines, you can get cans of Chilsung Cider (Korean Sprite) for about 6-800 W. I usually grab two cans of coffee in the morning when I'm running late-- each can's about 500 W.
Booze-wise, it depends on what you drink. Anything that's considered an "import" will obviously be more expensive. Usually, I go with the house beer-- which is almost always Cass or Hite. Depending on where you are, Cass is usually about 2-4,000 for a good-sized pint. Liquor might be a bit more expensive, but it's nothing too crazy. My drinks are usually screwdrivers or tequila sunrises. Usually I pay between 6-8,000 per drink depending on the bar, though I'm sure you can pay more (maybe up to 12-14,000) if you're somewhere a little more swank.
If you're super classy, you can stop off at a GS25 or Buy the Way or CSpace to grab a bottle of soju for 1,000 W and a bottle of OJ to chase for about 1,200 W. Some Buy the Ways actually have the mini bottles of alcohol in them... as well as the standard selection of soju, makgeolli, and beer. Last time we went to Seoul, we grabbed some juice and some little bottles and mixed on the subway. It was a good way to meet up with our friends who forgot to tell us they were pregaming. lol
Grocery shopping is a little different, but nothing too hardcore. Like I said before, cheese is a little pricey, but you can get things like cookware, Tupperware, and electronics for a decent price. My coffee machine was on sale for like 19,000 W, less than twenty bucks, and came with a reusable filter. Three cheers for coffee in the morning. I also got a hairdryer for 9,900 W... less than ten bucks. It's mini and works really, really, surprisingly well.
You will spend more money during the beginning of your stay than once you get settled. You may need to buy things like sheets, etc. because the bed sizes are different here-- I brought over a queen-sized sheet and just tuck the extra under the mattress lol. I also got floor cushions (they are everywhere here) for about 5,000 W a piece, and a little table (with the short legs, just perfect for sitting on the floor) for 10,000 W. BRING TOWELS. They are very small here. Almost forgot that. I brought two, and it was totally worth it.
Other misc. money.... Your first electric bill will be under 10,000 W, for sure. Your first gas bill, on the other hand, will be around 100,000-150,000 W.... but on the upside, it gets warm in March, apparently, so it should go down with time. I've yet to pay a water bill, but I'll let you know. You can also not pay a bill for 3 months before they finally turn off your power/gas/water. There is no late fee if you do not pay on time.
I highly recommend watching SimonandMartina on youtube. They have a vlog called "Eat Your Kimchi" and they have a shitton of things you might find helpful. I found out about it after I got here (figures), but they've got all sorts of useful videos. Including two about KPop dance moves and using them in class. I, of course, have several additional ones I use in class... but, uh... there's a good amount of vids on how to do laundry, pay bills, etc. you should check out!
Correspondence No. 5 Everything is going pretty well! This Sunday was 설랄, the Korean Lunar New Year, so I spent most of my time in Seoul. I also got off from work yesterday! Three cheers for long weekends!
Yes, you can definitely use your US ("foreign") bank cards at the ATMs here. Many ATMs actually have an English language option on the menu, too. Many banks do charge a currency conversion charge per withdrawal, so it's easy to just take a chunk of cash out at one time instead of getting charged to death. You can also bring travelers checks or US cash and get it exchanged at most major banks. Some banks may charge a small fee, others will change it for free if you have a bank account with them.
Once you are established at your branch and have your ARC, you can go about getting a phone. Most of us get pay-as-you-go phones-- you can get a phone about a month into your stay here-- that should be when you have your Alien Registration Card. Some people do get contracts. Pay-as-you-go phones are used, so they're usually cheaper, but without access to many of the fancier things that others have... i.e. my phone is capable of getting TV, internet, games, etc... but as I don't have a plan, I can't actually access these features! I have an LG8600-- one of the older "Lollipop" model phones. It's super fancy, even if it's a little scuffed up. I got a case for it, so now it's blinged out and less gross-looking.
Before I got my phone, I brought a calling card with me from home and used a combination of Skype and payphones to "call" home. For the week and a half I was without internet, I used PC Bangs to email home and facebook people. And of course my work computer! 😊
Most likely, you'll first be put up in a hotel that has internet, and PC Bangs (PC 방) are EVERYWHERE. I actually installed Skype on a flashdrive and brought a headset unit to some of the PC Bangs and just skyped home/my friends that way. 😊 It'll be a little chaotic at first, and facebook will probably be your main form of communication with friends, family, and new acquaintances in Korea. 😊
If you ever need help, etc. when you get here, be sure to send me an e-mail. I'm in Seoul pretty often, and even have a 3-day weekend Feb 27-28-March 1; odds are I'll be around.
Correspondence No. 6 Well, I applied to Chungdahm through Aclipse, firstly, which means that my interview, etc. was actually done on the phone with an Aclipse recruiter, and not Chungdahm directly. If you're applying directly to Chungdahm, I believe the process is a bit different.
When I arrived, the swine flu "quarantine" week as still in effect, so I met up with a chunk of people in Seoul. We all trained together. My friends and I are spread all around South Korea at various branches.
The first thing I should clarify is that though you apply to the master Chungdahm company: EVERY BRANCH is very different. Everything from pay schedules to signing/relocation bonuses (if applicable) to living arrangements to even holidays. Everything. Additionally, I work for CDI April, which is technically a subgroup of Chungdahm, which means things are a little bit different on my end.
That being said, none of my friends from training, even though we are all at different branches, have had any problems related to pay or accommodations. At all. I think a lot of the problems with reviews online might stem from the fact that those of us who are content haven't been bothered to go online an bitch about the institute 😉. We have other things occupying our thoughts.
Now, if you are signed as an HOURLY contract, you are responsible for finding your own housing. The school will already have chosen one for you to either take or look at OR they will get you a realtor to help you. I have friends who had apartments waiting for them, some who hung in a hotel while they went with a realtor, my one friend got hers on Craigslist. The school will provide the key money you need and the means to get your living.
As an April employee, I'm on a monthly contract. My officetel is pretty sweet. Bedroom, laundry room, kitchen/living room/entry way, bathroom.
I will, however, acknowledge that it took roughly 3 months to get my physical health insurance certificate. One of my coworkers had to go to a hospital with a flu before our papers were in, but I guess everything is reimbursable. It's just a pain in the ass for him to have to fill out forms and send things in. But I think this might have been in part to our new Branch Manager having to organize what the old one left and get his bearings.
Another thing is holidays/work week. As someone at April, I work Monday-Friday 1-9 at my branch. I get off every major national holiday, have a week off in December-January, and a week off at the end of July. My breaks are mandated, but often enough to break up long months and provide for three day weekends here-and-there.
My friend upstairs at the regular CDI works Monday-Saturday, 3-10 MWR, 7-10 TF, and I think alternates shifts on Saturday. She does not get holidays off (she didn't get Christmas off) and must work 6 months before she's allowed to take her vacation time (2 weeks, I think?).
So it's something to consider.
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Rebecca McNeil
non-member comment
Applying Directly with CDL (ChungDahm)
Hi Katie! This is great info. I love reading your blog. Just an FYI that Aclipse is actually owned by ChungDahm Learning. I get the impression you're not aware of this. So for all your readers, if you apply to the CDL website, www.teachinkorea.com, unless for example, you already live in Korea, your resume should still come to us--the Aclipse team, thus, the recruitment process is the same. Just so people know there's not any difference. If you're already in Korea, you interview directly with CDL. We have a very close relationship with them since we're all part of the same company; I think this also makes us a little different than most agencies b.c. we're not a third party. We do take third party contracts with other schools from time to time and in that circumstance act in a way similar to other agencies. Hope this clarifies the relationship for your readers who may be thinking about applying with us. Thanks for the honest, wit, and humor in your blog!! I enjoy reading it!!