Important ESL Job Facts

Using Multiple Recruiters - When applicants start using many recruiters (5+) to secure a job it has a negative affect on the overall success of their placement. Recruiters and schools quickly hear about such applicants and they often label them as difficult to work with. Recruiters feel that it's not worth their effort to source a school only to have these applicants say that they have gone with another recruiter, and schools feel that these people are very unstable to have as an employee. Doing your research and then deciding on 2 or even 3 recruiters that you trust is the best approach to getting a job you want. We are not exagerating!

Reviewing your documents - The only 3 things a school can take into consideration when reviewing your application are your resume, photo and the recruiters input. Therefore sending a good resume, nice photo and conducting yourself with sincerity on the phone WILL increase your chances of getting the job you want.

Age - Although Gone2Korea and other recruiting agencies don't care about the age of an applicant, Korean directors sometimes do. Generally speaking applicants over the age of 40 are harder to find jobs for. There are a lot of good schools who do hire teachers over 40 but these jobs are not as abundant. If you are 60+ schools will not consider you as 60 is considered retiree age in Korea.

Race - Gone2Korea and other recruiting agencies don't discriminate against race, whereas Korean directors sometimes do. Typically non-Caucassions are harder to place due to this fact. The main reason for this is because Korea is a homogenius culture and they aren't as multiculturally aware as most western countries. As a result, a lot of school directors automatically relate the English language with Caucassions. There are a lot of good schools who have managing directors who do not care about race, although these schools are not as numerous and therefore can take longer to locate. NOTE: Koreans are not racist towards people of different ethnicities rather they just associate an English speaker with a Caucassion individual.

Weight - Some schools are reluctant to hire larger over weight teachers. Why? Children at the schools tend to be very judgmental and do not refrain from speaking their mind. Often they can be very critical and verbal about their references to larger people which makes it difficult for teachers to teach effectively. NOTE: Overweight and/or obese people in Korea is rare so when a child sees a larger person they identify them as fat and this can be quite upsetting for larger teachers.

Visa Processing in Japan - Having your visa issued in Japan is soon to be a thing of the past. It's vary rare these days for a school to send a new teacher to Japan to process their visa. For the most part all new teachers heading to Korea to teach will be required to process their visa in their home country before heading to Korea.

Negative Aspects Of Teaching In Asia - The majority of horror stories that one would hear about or read on various ESL websites are brought to light by a small percentage of people who have had a bad experience. These bad experiences are generally caused by poor communication when deciding on what school to work for or simply they are over exagerating the truth to be milacious. For every bad story you hear about, there are many great stories, unfortunately people don't typically spend their time writing 'feel good' stories on related websites.

Adult Classes - If you want to teach adults then you will have to work a split shift 85% of the time. Adult schools have operting hours which cater to the schedules of working adults. Therefore you may have to teach early in the morning and then again later in the day.

School Hours - Schools have the right to change their operating hours. Even though it may say in your contract that you will work from 1:00pm to 9:00pm, it also states that they have the right to change these hours as seen fit to accomodate the students attending. After all, schools are not going to loose money, loose business and loose students because a western teacher is upset about an altered schedule. Schedules change to fit the age groups of the student body of the school.

Working Hours - Schools do not have the right to make their teachers work more than their contracted hours.

Weekend Work - Schools do not have the right to make their teachers work on weekends if it was not stipulated in the signed contract.

Additional Work - Schools do have the right to make teachers, who did not work a full contracted number of hours in a work week, do additional teacher related duties. Phone teaching, curriculum development and grading are all considered a part of an ESL teachers duties if requested by their director.

Seoul and Busan Teacher to Job Ratios - Downtown Seoul and Busan are the only 2 locations in Korea where there are more teachers available then there are jobs. Therefore teachers must make an effort to accommodate the hiring schools requests during interviews and so forth if they want the job. There are too many qualified people for the schools to select from to worry about people who aren't willing to make themselves available at the schools requests. When a recruiter is pushing you for an answer, it doesn't necessarily mean they are pushing you into a position, it's often because they know how things work and they are trying to help you obtain your desired location.......The good recruiters anyway.

Seoul and Busan Contracts - The good jobs in Seoul and Busan are typically not available for more than a few days. There are too many teachers competing for these positions and the schools usually make their decision rather quick. Therefore if you haven't heard from your recruiter in 5 days and then all of a sudden he/she calls and encourages you to take an interview in the next 10 minutes it's usually in your best interest to do so. These jobs come and go......FAST.

Experience - If you have no previous ESL teaching experience then you will most likely have to teach kindergarten if you are looking to teach in one of the bigger cities. This is almost 100% the case if you are looking to teach in Seoul and Busan.

Rural Areas - Rural areas in Korea are traditionally poorer areas and are not very desirable working locations. Any city with a population less than 100 000 should be approached with caution.

Interviews With Schools - It's not considered polite, in Korean culture, for the applicant to ask a lot of questions about salary, apartments, airfare and school conditions during their first interview with the director. Obviously these things need to be addressed, however it's best to question your recruiter and one of the other ESL teachers currently working at the school.

Talking To an ESL Teacher Currently Working - If your recruiter does not offer to put you in contact with a native English ESL teacher currently working at the school, a red flag should go up! Gone2Korea encourages all teachers to correspond with one of the teachers at the school you are considering before you agree to the job and sign your contract.

Teaching Privately / Private Tutoring - Teaching private classes not affiliated with your hiring school is illegal. Your E2 visa allows you to work legally for your hiring director only. Please visit our Visa's page for details on the working Visa's available. Many ESL teachers do decide to teach privately on the side and risk getting caught. If you are caught teaching privately the consequences can be severe. You could be fined, your contract cancelled, deported and blacklisted making it almost impossible to teach in Korea again.

ASAP Positions - When you see jobs posted on job boards that say ASAP starting dates, or your recruiter provides you with an offer that starts ASAP, it doesn't necessarily mean it's a bad school. Teachers pull the shoot on going to Korea all the time. Teachers sign contracts with schools, send their documents over and then realize they're not ready to go yet, or get nervous, or find a good job in their own country etc etc. This scenario is very, very common and this places the hiring school who thought they had a committed teacher in an awkward situation. Schools need teachers! When a teacher backs out 2 or 3 weeks before their departure date, schools are left with no option other than to advertise this position as an ASAP job.

Accented English - Most schools in Korea prefer Canadian or American teachers because of their accent. Although they prefer applicants from these 2 countries, most directors are willing to hire people from any of the 7 native English speaking countries. Visit requirements to teach in Korea to see which countries are considered.

Recruiters And Your Working Visa - Your recruiter and hiring school have nothing to do with the issuing of your working visa. Your E2 working visa is granted from the Korean Department of Immigration and they require your official documents in order to issue you one. Your recruiter's role is to guide you through the process and instruct you what is needed and where to send your documents. So why use a recruiter, such as Gone2Korea, to secure a teaching position in Korea?.

Bad Recruiters - There are a lot of bad recruiters and placement agencies out there, so do your research and make sure you have a good feeling about them before getting involved with their services.

Good Recruiters - Amongst the bad there are many good recruiters in the business who have your best interest in mind. It's unfortunate that the bad ones have ruined the reputation for all.

Changing Jobs - It is illegal to leave your place of employment and locate another job without properly being released from your current employer.. Your E2 visa is directly related to your contracted employer only. Just like western countries, when a foreigner enters the country to work they are granted the working visa based on the fact that there is an employer willing to hire (sponsor) their stay. Therefore if you leave the job without authorization from your employer he/she will call the Department of Immigration and have your visa cancelled. As a result, a new employer cannot legally employ you and you will be working illegally if you decide to work elsewhere. Although there is little chance of getting caught, when you eventually leave the country you will be stopped at the airport and you will be required to pay a fine which accumulates for every day you spent in the country illegally. You will be detained until the fine is paid in full and this fine can be substantial. AVOID THIS FROM HAPPENING TO YOU!

Getting The Job - Recruiters do not have the final say in your acceptance at a school. Recruiters provide you with different schools to choose from and often offer their impressions of you, however it is the school director who makes the decision whether or not you will be offered the job.

Drinking Water - The tap water in Korea is NOT safe to drink, so buy bottled water. Boiling water for tea or coffee is at your own risk.

Personal Opinions And Preferences - Some teachers really enjoy their school, director and apartment, whereas others in the same position are dissatisfied. Obviously this is an individual preference and every person has their own idea of what is acceptable. Good recruiters do their best to satisfy the needs and requests of each applicant.