Thread: 6 months in Korea

Most of the jobs seem to only advertise for 1 year contracts.
This is the only one I have seen for 6 months but the salary is a lot lower.
Is it worth it for a person who can only commit to 6 months?
Or where are all the shorter term contracts?



"

Available vacancy:

English Teacher - Teach English and Learn in South Korea
TribePost Ltd

are working on behalf of

The Korean Education Centre

to fill this vacancy.
This position is based in:

South Korea, Asia

.

Let’s TaLK: Teach and Learn in Korea on Korean Government Scholarships

Introduction of TaLK Program

:
S. Korean Government sponsored - The 'TaLK (Teach & Learn in Korea)' program is inviting adventurous global leaders to teach English to students and to experience and learn about Korean culture. Participants will receive Korean government scholarships and teach English in after-school classes of Korean elementary schools while enjoying cultural programs during their free time. Recipients will be placed at schools in rural areas in need of greater exposure to English and teach the language by forming one-on-one working relationships with Korean university student volunteers. Candidates should have a desire to work with children, have a service-centered mind, a willingness to work in rural areas, and have consideration for others with a positive attitude.

Benefits

:
1. Monthly Stipend: 1.5 million KRW (approximately 850 GBP)
2. Housing or Fixed Monthly Rent (400,000 KRW)
3. Entrance Allowance / Exit Allowance (1,300,000 KRW each)
4. One-off settlement allowance (300,000 KRW)
5. Health insurance cover
6. Paid Vacation Leave, Sick Leave
7. Other benefits
i. TaLK Orientation, Buddy System (Korean University co-scholar)
ii. Government Scholar Certificate, Cultural Experience Programs etc.

Eligibility(Applicants must):

- Be a citizen of one of the following countries where the national language is English: Australia, Canada, Ireland, New Zealand, South Africa, the United Kingdom or the United States of America.

*

Overseas Korean Nationals with permanent residency in the above countries are also eligible.

*

Korean Nationals with temporary residency (with the intention of obtaining permanent residency) who have lived in one of the above countries for at least 8 years and have completed primary and secondary education in the country are also eligible.
- Bachelor's degree candidates who have completed at least two 2 years of undergraduate education, or Associate's degree holders who completed their education at an accredited post-secondary institution in one of the above countries.

Duty

:
- Working for the designated elementary schools in rural areas in Korea

*

Teaching English in after-school classes: 15 hours per week

Contract Term

:
- Either 6 months or one year, starting August 2012

*

6-month scholarship: August 4, 2012 - January 31, 2013

*

1-year scholarship: August 4, 2012 - July 31, 2013 "

I'm gonna refer you to this guy. He's from the same state I am and he has been in Korea for a while with that program.

---Update---

His Youtube profile name is: Eixel84

Originally Posted by cosa

Or where are all the shorter term contracts?

There are really not many shorter term contracts as you have discovered.

There are often camps in the summer that offer 1-2 month contracts which may be of interest to you. After all the visa requirements are met, you also have to go through a lot of red tape with getting your documents apostillized plus get a criminal background check (with fingerprints) for US citizens. All of this takes time and money. Plus, many 1 year contracts will reimburse you for your airfare, but they won't do that for six months contracts because it is not worth it for them.

All public school jobs are for 1 year renewable. You may get lucky finding a six month contract with a private academy, but I don't think it would be worth the time and effort, for both parties.

Six-month contracts are quite hard to find--and almost never advertised--especially with the stricter visa policies that have been in place the last few years. With that said, you can try to ask the private academies if they would be willing to hire you for six months or also go through a recruiter and tell him/her about your plans.

Of course, you also have the option of signing up for a one-year contract and then leaving after six months (with a private academy; it's much more difficult to do this with a public school or university). The contracts usually require that you stay that long in order to keep your airfare, etc., but, after that time period has elapsed, allow you to leave penalty-free as long as you provide notice. That, however, is not to say that the owner of the academy won't get angry and try to withhold pay; it just won't be legal for him/her to do so, in most cases.

---Update---

In regard to the TaLK program, it's a program that was established a few years ago to get more native English speakers into rural regions and has been scoffed at by some. It's ostensibly for students in the middle of their undergraduate studies and, as such, is approached by the government differently than other teaching programs (hence the talk of scholarships, etc.). Overall, it might not be bad, especially as you'll only be teaching after-school classes, but you're going to be in very rural Korea and not making much money compared to other teachers in the market.