Tefl in South Korea

Count me in for the meetup on May 2nd. We can do a mini pub crawl around the Itaewon area!

Anna Abundant Hairstylist wrote: »

When did this become a competition?! I know Korea is big money.. That's why everyone goes there. I'm just saying Vietnam is good money aswell.
If you read back, I'm only posting here because 99% of people think Korea is the only option in all of Asia when it's not.

And as for your numbers, I met a lad last night who worked 38 hours a week in Seoul for $2k net a month.. So all these numbers been thrown around are very very different. He earned absolutely shlt money.. Why's it so low compared to everyone here?

And I'm living in the centre of Hanoi, the highest paying place in S.E Asia. Believe him or believe me, I don't give a shlt. Check the job sites and see for yourself.

$2000 net isn't all that bad, he would have lost out on $200 from his gross pay in tax and pension, though if he was american, canadian or australian then he could have gotten his pension back, plus his employers contribution, effectively writing off everything he pays in tax / insurance.

Obviously he was doing waaay more hours than normal, but was he actually teaching 38 hours a week or just in school 38 a week? Most public school jobs require you to be there from 8:30-4:30 but you'll usually only teach about 3-4 hours a day, the rest will be spent messing around online / preparing for other classes etc.

I think you'll find that the reason so many people are arguing with you is because you are in the Teaching in south Korea thread, perhaps you should start a Teaching in Vietnam thread and then people could ask you questions and look for help from you. Though I'd advise you to think about the advice you give (obtaining fake degrees, working on a tourist visa when not allowed etc etc).

Korea is good for a lot of people because of one of the reasons you don't like it. 1year contracts. People know when they leave Ireland they are going to a secure job (unless they get shafted by an employer) and they will get free flights and accomodation. first timers leaving all behind to go to vietnam to try and score a job don't have that luxury.


By the way, no one is saying Korea is the best place to make money, the middle east is where you can make proper money. In korea, as a first timer, you earn pretty much what you'd earn working a 40 hour week minimum wage job in Ireland. The difference being that the expenses are low, the job is easier, the hours are shorter, the lifestyle is sweet and you can save most of your wages.

cloneslad wrote: »

You're planning waaay in advance there

gah! June!

Regarding the pension, we can only get a certificate indicating how much we've contributed here and then transfer it to our pension pot at home. It's not the refund that other countries are entitled to, but it's better than the previous position.

conbob wrote: »

Just curious is it legal to teach private in Vietnam? Would be great if it was.

It's not legal to teach in Vietnam...without the correct visa, which quite a few people are doing without it.

You must have a working visa to teach in Vietnam.

Hello fellow boardsies

I hate to split up this "where is better than where" argument up. I've just come here looking for advice. I know there is a mass of information in this thread but I'm a bit confused after reading through a lot of it.

After months of humming and hawing about teaching English in South Korea. I signed up for the 140 hr TEFL course last week and completed the weekend part of the course last weekend in Dublin. I hope to finish the remainder in the coming weeks.

Now here is my pickle, I haven't got a notion what processes I need to go through re:getting a job.

Do I apply now to all the schools I can? Do I highlight myself to a recruiter?

When and where do I go about obtaining a Visa?

How long will the process last? I hope to be in SK by August

Have my heart set on Soeul but what are the selling points to other cities. What is the deal with Soeul?

I'd love for anyone (preferably a been there done that) to point me in the right direction?

Thanks a million

ShagNastii wrote: »

Hello fellow boardsies

I hate to split up this "where is better than where" argument up. I've just come here looking for advice. I know there is a mass of information in this thread but I'm a bit confused after reading through a lot of it.

After months of humming and hawing about teaching English in South Korea. I signed up for the 140 hr TEFL course last week and completed the weekend part of the course last weekend in Dublin. I hope to finish the remainder in the coming weeks.

Now here is my pickle, I haven't got a notion what processes I need to go through re:getting a job.

Do I apply now to all the schools I can? Do I highlight myself to a recruiter?

Do you want to work in a hagwon (private school) or a public school?

If it’s a private school then apply to any ad you see on davesesl, craiglist or where ever you want.

If it’s a public school gig then there are two main block hiring periods, one which starts end of feb/start of march and the other which is end of aug/start of sept. When applying for this bulk recruitment drive, you can only apply once, if you apply more than that then you automatically void your application. This means either applying once on the epic/smoe/gepik website or else getting a recruiter to do it for you. If you get 2 recruiters, you’re done, they won’t accept your application. If you get rejected for the march hiring period, you can apply again for sept, it just means applying once per bulk employment drive.

Though if you apply outside these times for the various public school jobs that haven’t been filled (may, june, oct, nov etc) then you can apply to each one you see.

I think you’ve missed the deadline for this coming aug/sept hiring period anyway (as far as I know, but not 100% sure)

When and where do I go about obtaining a Visa?

This has been covered a million times in this thread, though it does change regularly. Here’s what you need:

* 1 photocopy of your degree scroll, notarised by a commissioner for oaths (cost is anywhere from €10 to whatever number he/she picks out of the sky to charge you...don’t pay more than €20) and apostilled by the dept of foreign affairs. (this costs €20 per stamp)

* 1 garda background check (this is free and should take about 1 week) do not make the mistake of getting the long background check that costs €6 or so and has to be sent to thurles. You basically need a signed letter by the superintendent stating you have no criminal charges. This must then be stamped by the dpt of foreign affairs (again €20)

* 1 health check form, signed by you. This can be found online.

* 2-4 passports photos

*At least 1 full copy of your result transcripts for every year in university. They must be in a sealed envelope with the college stamp on the seal. (these are legally not needed for immigration to approve the visa anymore but most schools still require them). You Should make multiple copies of these transcripts because you may find them getting lost / going missing and you’ll have to pay to get them printed again.

* Once you’ve secured a job, You then have to send all these documents over to Korea (along with a signed contract) using a 24 / 48hr courier service. (costs about €50-70 depending who you use)

* Then you wait two weeks to get your visa number.

* Call the Korean embassy in Dublin, tell them your name and visa number, arrange an interview with them, give them your passport, passport number, fill out a form and give them €40. Wait 3-5 working days and then you have your visa.

How long will the process last? I hope to be in SK by August

How employable are you.

If you have all the documents gathered, then from the time you secure a job until the time you get on a plane could be about 3 weeks.

Have my heart set on Soeul but what are the selling points to other cities. What is the deal with Soeul?

It’s called Seoul I’m not going to sell you on other cities because I don’t know what you like or don’t like. Seoul is not a city like back home, it’s more like 20 small cities combined to make 1 megacity.

Research it, find out what you want, don’t limit yourself to a certain area as you’ll find it harder to get a job.

Other cities to consider are busan and daegu, which are close to each other but 4-5 hours from seoul. Or if you want a satellite city of seoul then suwon, bundang, incheon are all on the train, bus subway line for seoul.

I'd love for anyone (preferably a been there done that) to point me in the right direction?

I have been there, suffered the hassle of getting it sorted.

You can organise it with your bank at home. They'll give you the information and requirements their end. But you need to get an Alien card to open a bank account in S Korea. For that you need to have a medical. You may be made have the medical straight away over there, or you can do it here before you depart for which there are advantages which I can't think off atm!

Once you have your Alien card sorted and you bank account sorted over there, you can sort it to a way you can effortlessly transfer money between your home account and your new South Korean account.

Other than that you can send money by Western Union!!!

kraggy wrote: »

Hey. Yeah I have my Alien Card.

After the first time, do you still have to go in to a branch to do it or can you send it at an ATM?

I can send money to the gas and electricity companies here at an ATM.

@Cloneslad, thanks for the info. What't the BIC? And do I have to ring my branch in Galway for my IBAN or is a variation of your bank account number?

The IBAN, from what I remember, is some amalgimation of your sort code and account number. Not too sure what the BIC number is, but they usually require it. You could just call your local branch and ask them, or perhaps, if the bank allows it, get a family member to get them for you. Calling your online / 365 banking number (found on your atm card) will most likely be the easiest as they will ask you your passwords etc to verify it's you.

I think KEB may let you send money home through the ATM service (after you've set up the remittance inside the branch) They also let you use their online banking to send money home. Nonghyup, however, only let you transfer to other banks in Korea, or at least did up until march.

cloneslad wrote: »

BIC number is

BIC for BOI
Your BIC can normally be found on the banks website.

Regarding transferring money home it might be worth while getting someone who can speak Korean to come with you the first time you transfer money home I found it rather difficult when I was trying to do it and the last time I did it when I was in Korea the either me or the bank clerk made a mistake and the transfer ended up not completing, when we found this out we were in Egypt.

Haeundae is full of motels, just turn up there and walk around and you'll find lots of places. There are loads of really nice motels for less than 50,000-60,000 a night. These places don't take online reservations so don't worry.

Even last new years eve, when the area was wedged with families wanting to watch the sunrise on the beach you could still find a room in about 30% of the motels in that area, even if the prices had doubled for the night.

If it's a public middle school then they're pretty much all the same and you'll be very lucky to find out any information about it online, can you get contact details for the current teacher?

I'd be more interested in finding out as much information as possible about the area you'll be living in.

squeakyduck wrote: »

It doesn't say, I will dig more. I'll have to invest in a diary to write everything down now! so much stuff flying at me!

Seriously not a bad idea. I did the same myself. Or keep a blog I suppose.