I am going to Seoul late this summer and am trying to get a TESL job. There are tons of private schools, and recuirters to go through. I am bombarded with information and not sure how to filter out the "bad school" "bad deals" ect. I am hoping to teach adults, and i hear that YBM is a good private institution to go though. I have already talked to recruiters from footprints and ESLpia. Any one know of any specific schools in Seoul that are reputable?
Korea - 3 Answers
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1 :
In these uncertain economic times, private schools can close up with little warning. Your safest bet is to take a public school job. Public schools don't close when the economy is at a low ebb.
2 :
You might just want to go for an ESL Academy School (after-school academies offering extra English studies). http://www.kumon.co.kr/ <-- Kumon is a very reputable ESL School. It has, in fact, reached from Korea to the US. There are at least one or two Kumons each town. Check out your local newspaper, or try this site: http://www.pusanweb.com/ Hope I answered your question *^^* Cheers!
3 :
You should go on dave's esl cafe and look under the korean jobs forum. There is a thread about contracts that you should take a look at before signing anything. Keep in mind that YBM is a franchise and is only as good as it's owner/management. Personally, I didn't like the contract they offered me. I went with SMOE instead. Not to say that SMOE is perfect. Many schools have the "when in Rome do as the Romans (i.e. Koreans) do" yet forget that we do not know the cultural rules that every Korean grows up knowing. I have a good situation. Some of my friends also have good situations. Far too many are having problems. Some are making due till their contracts are up and others are quitting. Keep in mind that SMOE, EPIK, and GEPIK have basic contracts for everyone who signs, but the schools have their own ideas and ways of doing things. There doesn't seem to be any set rules the schools have to follow when they get a teacher through these government offices. I'm afraid working in Korea as an ESL teacher is hit or miss. You'll either love it or hate it. I worked in China for five years and I loved it. Right now, I wonder why I left. The money is better, but the stress is so much higher than in China and the free time is so much less. I'm going to stay one more year to see if things will change. If they don't I'm going somewhere else. As for recruiters, most of my friends went through Footprints and were quite happy with them. I went through ASKNow and barely had my questions answered. When they were answered it certainly wasn't in a timely manner. Once I signed my contract with SMOE I got no additional info from them. I found out everything I needed to know for my departure from facebook where a group of SMOEers were exchanging info.
