Major Life Change!

Hi aoifesmom and welcome to the forum!

Ypur thread has been moved to South Korea forum for better visibility.

Do not hesitate to browse through the forum, it may help.

Harmonie.

Hi
What kind of job are you thinking of getting, most people come over to teach English which is what I'm doing but I know that there are others here that are doing other jobs.

I know that there are some international schools around, not sure any details but I'm sure you can find that on the internet. I don't really know much about the children side of things not having any but there are a few 'western' people over here with children, I see them on the buses sometimes.

Have a look at this website - heaps of info about moving, visas, jobs, schools and anything else you can think of. I'm sure you will find some useful info here.

http://www.korea4expats.com/

Let me know if you have any specific Korea questions and I'm happy to help.

Good luck
kiwigirl

Thank you for the info!  I was leaning toward teaching English as well.  I've gone back to school to finally finish up my degree in communications.  Do you need to already have a background in education to teach English?  I know that one should be TESOL certified, but there must be more to it than that!

It seems like there should be but really there is not, as long as you are a native English speaker (having done your high school and college in an English speaking country) then you are eligible.  You don't even have to have a Tesol Cert for some jobs, most of the ones in South Korea will want you to have a degree. I did a Tesol course because I had a lot of time between when I decided to come over and when I was actually going.  I'm glad I did it even though it was quite expensive, as I had no teaching experiance what so ever it really gave me at least an idea of what to expect.

Your degree can be from any field, there a people with science degrees, arts degrees and many more over here teaching.  The main reason they want it is so they know that you have done higher education in English therefore your English must be good. You can get better jobs if you have an education background and some other countries might prefer it but in South Korea the main thing is that you have a degree.

Thank you again for the info!  Taking a TESOL course prior to going over is a great idea.  How did it take you?  My goal is to be out of the US w/in in the next year and a half.  Did you have issues with your paperwork (i.e. visa, medical certs, etc.)?  Did you use an agency? Is this your 1st year there?  Public or private?  Did you have any issues with finding a place to live?  I hear that the deposits are extremely high, just how much are we talking?!  Oh, I am so sorry to bombard you with all these questions!  I'm the type of person who has to know what to expect and get things done right the 1st time around, plus I have my daughter to include in this adventure.  She is VERY excited about our intended move.  We both are in the process of learning Korean, she is ahead of me, but I think that is only because she has been watching a lot of Kpop bands on Utube!  SHINee is the flavor of the week.... 
Oh, do they have Skype???

Not a problem, happy to help.  I'm the same, I did so much research before I came.

Your TESOL course will depend on who you do it through, there are lots of companies that offer them.  You will need to do a search and find one that is best for you.  I went to some information sessions about the courses and then chose the one that I liked better.  I'm sure there are a lot more options in America.  I was pretty limited in New Zealand and I ended up doing one through an Australian company that had just extended their course into my area.  You will want one that is over 100 hours long as most jobs that require TESOL will want that.  The one I did was 1 week practical in class, then had the rest of it as online which you can do at your own pace.  I took longer as I was working but one of the girls I did the course with did hers in a couple of weeks. My course also had a practical bit where you had to do 10 hours of teaching in a real class, that was 4 hours face to face and six hours prep time (lesson planing and reflection when done). Some course are all online but I prefered to have some face to face time with the teacher.  I was really happy with the course but I did a lot of research before I picked it.

My paper work was fine, I had no issues. Being from NZ its a bit easier. I know that for Americans the criminal record (FBI) check is now a harder, it can take a while so make sure you allow time to get that done.

I'm in my second year now, I re-signed at the same school in March.  I found the Job on Dave's ESL Cafe (Job Website) it lists hundreds of Jobs, even if you are not ready yet you should start looking so you have an idea of what you want when you get around to it.  I took my time and found one that sounded good, I turned down the first few as I was not sure about them and I am now glad I did as I got in with a really good school. I did register with some agencys but the job I ended up getting was one I applied for directly through the school.  Some times the agencies push you to take a job when you really don't want to, I felt bad saying no all the time but I was not prepared to say yes if I was not sure.

My school provides accomodation, most contracts will and if you don't take it up they will give you an allowance towards your place instead.  South Korea you should get air fares, accomodation and a bonus at the end of your contract otherwise keep looking. If you need a bigger place i.e if you have children or you are a couple then you might so you can opt for the allowance instead which will go towards your rent. I'm not really sure about deposits but I too have heard that they can be high. You should be able to find out one one of the other websites.

Usually its easier for kids to learn a new language, sucks for us grown ups but at least you will have her to translate for you Also its great that you are doing it together, means you always have someone to practice with. 

My students are all K-pop mad so she will fit in well with the kids here if she knows all of them, Big Bang is extra big at the moment due to their new album. Another good thing to help you with language are the Korean Dramas - they are what they call their TV shows and they are kind of like long mini-series.  They don't really have seasons like we do.  The have one series that tells the story and then that is finished.  They are pretty family friendly - some popular ones are Secret Garden, Dream High and The Moon that Embraces the Sun.

Regards
Kiwigirl

oh and yes you can use skype, I talk to my family all the time on it

Hi there

It's nice to read your post. that's a Kind of a great adventure living in a foreign country and learning an extremely hard language. Have you moved to S. Korea  yet? How are you holding up?
indeed a major life change!

Hi Hericles!
No, we have not moved yet, I'm still attending school here in the U.S., trying to finish up my B.S. degree in Communications, while working fulltime, well, I was, BUT my group was placed on furlough for 30 days (I work for a Defense Contractor), stressed at the prospect of being unemployeed, but I'm sure things will turn around soon!  Our game plan is to be out of here w/in a year and a half.  I've been looking at schools for my daughter to attend and I was shocked by the cost!  It is triple what I pay now!  I will find a way to make things work, I always do!
Do you teach in S. Korea?

Hello there aoifesmom !
Nice to read from you. No i am not in S.Korea. i am in Africa, Namibia in which the cost of living is very low. Could you tell me why did you decided to move to S. Korea?
anyways i hope you can find a school to your daughter pretty soon and that you settle down quickly in S.Korea.
Cheers
Hericles

Good Morning Hericles!
I apologize for not answering back quickly, it was Mother's Day here yesterday and my daughter had my entire day planned out for me!
You asked about why I chose S. Korea for our move, well, for various reasons, the job oportunity is a big reason, but also because I have always been interested in its culture, the people, and I need a change.  Moving to Europe or somewhere else within the U.S. just does not appeal to me.  I want a complete change from the norm, I want a challenge and this is it!  I'm very lucky to have a child that is more than willing to partake in this quest.
So why did you choose Namibia?  I would like to hear more about it as I'm not up to date with Africa or most of its countries, except for what you hear on the news, which is very depressing.  How long have you been there?
Enjoy your day!

Hi aoifesmom,
Good for you for wanting to bring your daughter on your adventure to Korea! I admire your courage. Like you I dreamed up this adventure with my sons. It can work out for you if you set things up right. But it's also a fact that there are very few single parent teachers teaching here who've brought their kids along for the adventure.
Where to start?
You'll need to have a degree to teach English here. Any major will do. I would highly recommend that you do a TESL or TEFL program, teach some Korean students. Paid or volunteer positions will do.

Where to Live? There are lots of options here. Obviously a big city like Seoul is going to be more expensive than a smaller city. I lived in a city of 300,000 people when I first brought my sons here and the cost of living was affordable. There are international schools in many cities. In the city where I lived I enrolled them in the christian international school there.

There are several factors to consider in terms of teaching position you're looking for. What age group do you want to teach? Public or private school? Other foreign teachers in the school or it doesn't matter? Director with experience employing foreigners or doesn't matter? Do a google search of teaching jobs in Korea to see what appeals to you.

Instead of applying to jobs that are posted I suggest you put together an ad indicating that you're the mom of a 10 year old. State what kind of a school you want to work in, indicate what you're looking for using criteria above. (Do a short video introducing yourself as well).

You will likely receive lots of responses to your ad and you can then choose the best for you and your daughter.

If you need more guidance on the process I'm happy to help. PM me and I'll walk you through each step. Good luck finding the right position for you and your child!

Congrats on making the decision to make a change! I've been living and working in Korea for about nine months, and recently I compiled some information on applying for ESL teaching jobs, moving to Korea and more on my blog, if you're interested, you might find some of it helpful: world-walk-about.com/teach-esl-in-korea/

If you have any questions about teaching or life in Korea I would be happy to answer them!