Whilst I agree that it is possible to find a job - though not necessarily a good one - in Korea without any experience, I would disagree that Korea 'is the bottom of the barrel in the TEFL world'. That particular accolade should be reserved for Thailand, in my opinion.Originally Posted by Gipkik
^ Hey it's pretty bad in Whitley as well mate
Riddle me this brother can you handle it
Your style to my style you can't hold a candle to it
Equinox symmetry and the balance is right
Smokin' and drinkin' on a Tuesday night
It's not how you play the game it's how you win it
I cheat and steal and sin and I'm a cynic
^ I'm not at all sure that I have either the skills or the patience to teach English to Geordies, though I grant you that kapow moo is infinitely more appealing than pease pudding.
what i meant was... oh ken!! why do you always have to win?!!
it's like this. rome wasn't built in a day. neither was slough.
maybe by doing this one year contract, with a bit of elbow grease and a bit of the old billy (bs not whizz), our man here could get a job at a very decent gaff.. maybe at a sh.ite university or summink. then move to japland and hopefully wangle a better job than if he turned up, cap in hand saying 'i have got a degree in marketing but i want to be an esl teacher, giz a job'. maybe he could go work for the affiliate in the land of japness??
EP buddy, pal o' mine.. where did you get your degree from? if it was harvard you should have no trouble.
actually there is a guy who has just started at our gaff who has a BA from the sorbonne, two MA from uni of london (LSE and UCL), is a member of the institute of linguists in svengland and has a PhD from university of tokyo. bit over qualified if you ask me. either that or he is full of
as for you ken, you can just carry on picking your bum...
Ken darling, if you started giving primary sources rather than hearsay--hear what I say?, I'd be more than glad to give you that honour. Hey, AF said he knew about the school the OP went to and he had worked there. He contributed something concrete and, I hope, it can be easily confirmed. What you are on about, as I've said before, just floats away. It's like watching a Hollywood movie. After the movie's over, you can't remember what the heck you just watched. And don't read too much into that analogy. I can already see you stroking yourself gleefully!
As to Thailand being bottom of the barrel? It depends on what's important to you: servitude and money or dreamtime and a good lifestyle. If you haven't got the latter in Thailand, then Rumpole, I do pity you.
:sad:
I'm with Ken on this and think he's made a fair bit of sense.
And I would dispute that Korea is the bottom of the barrel. It is towards the top of the barrel, actually; up there with the Middle East.
And considering there are a few different ways of doing Korea it can be quite good. I mean good hours, good pay, etc. This time around I'm actually enjoying myself.
And, IMHO, one of the most important things to doing well in Korea is luck, time in and connections; and the connections often come as you've put some time in.
But, back on topic, I don't think even a University job in Thailand would count for much in...Korea.
Most Koreans likely just think of beaches, golf courses and whores when they think of Thailand. [Their educational system wouldn't even rate in your average Koreans mind; rightly so...
A Uni job in Korea definitley opens doors to future Uni jobs in Korea. But...if you can get a Korean Uni job with a BA and Uni experience in Thailand...you probably could have got it with the BA alone.
I'm still baffled that anyone thinks anyone needs Thailand as a stepping stone. Or that experience there counts for much of anything...outside of Thailand.
IA
PS. If you want the experience of working in Thailand than I think no other country...will do.
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I agree Alex.
And really, any overseas experience is going to mean fuck all back in the western markets.
The other major drawback of overseas teaching, if you're just starting out and planning to make a career of it, is that not only will the experience count for nought, but the references will also mean nothing and perhaps most importantly, you will find yourself "out of the loop" in terms of "connections".
People have to consider this if they are thinking of using Asia for a "footing"', thinking they will get back into it on their return home.
This route has its perils. :smile:
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Save your pity. I neither need nor want it. Dreamtime? A good lifestyle? Not for me, or many others I know. Lots of servitude, though you are correct that the Thais have yet to catch on to the notion of remunerating you for it.
i've got to say i think that is cobblers. most peeps teaching esl at unis back home have done many a year at unis in backwaters across the globe, it's almost a right of passage.And really, any overseas experience is going to mean fruit all back in the western markets.
The other major drawback of overseas teaching, if you're just starting out and planning to make a career of it, is that not only will the experience count for nought, but the references will also mean nothing and perhaps most importantly, you will find yourself "out of the loop" in terms of "connections".
take said gimp from chula nonth. 2 day prep training thing i mentioned way back.. tom something or other. he worked in the peace core in isaan for a few years and then did one year as lecturer at chula and now is lead researcher on second language acquisition in usa. at least that's what i think he said.
if it's a toss up between a crap job in korea or a good job on low pay in flangeland then i know which one i would go for. what are the OP's realistic chances of landing a 'good' job in korea with no CERT or experience?? What is he likely to get?? Can you offer a realistic assessment of his chances?? :chug:
second rule is: be nice to mommy
a narrow point...china, is the underside of the efl barrell!
third rule is: don't talk to commies
He can get a package worth about $2800 USD a month for 100-130 hours a month (5-6 hours a day). The actual pay would be about $2100 USD a month (or 2.1 million won approx.)...and the rest is bennies (provided housing/airfares/pension/severance/insurance).if it's a toss up between a crap job in korea or a good job on low pay in flangeland then i know which one i would go for. what are the OP's realistic chances of landing a 'good' job in korea with no CERT or experience?? [b]What is he likely to get?? Can you offer a realistic assessment of his chances?? [b]
And if he got a job with either an early or a late shift he could fill his free time with a second job and make anothe $1500-2000 USD approx. [Long hours but the money's there].
I was casual friends was a guy who had a 'respectable' (enough) job working for the city; I think he was teaching Korean teachers.
He made much, much less than I did overall (more than half). And even his basic job was $1,800 USD a month (1.8 million won)...while mine was $2,100 USD (2.1 million won)...
IA
PS. The problem the OP would have here is he's very green. But if he is naturally on-the-ball and...could toughen up quick he'd be fine in Korea...
PSPS. It's pretty standard for people who don't piss their money away here to be able to save half their regular wage. Or roughly $1,000 USD a month. Some who work illegally and many hours can save $3,000 USD (like a friend of mine did (more like $4,000 USD as he had a good month..and I came close to doing)...
i say do one year in flangeland it can't hurt. while you are doing this meticulously plan your move to korea or japland. do a good job and will have a decent enough reference IMHO and you will have some form of prof. training behind you. unless of course the training course is a scam. that's a new innovation (i suggested it when i left so maybe down to me that one.. i'm full of good ideas.. full of something).
Posted after 22 seconds:
fourth rule is: eat kosher salamis
I really think most people don't understand this 'teaching' thing. Especially teaching in Korea.
Are you white? Can you speak English? Do you have a degree (or can come up with shifty documents)...or are willing to work illegally? Can you take some knocks and avoid obvious scams? Can you learn from subtle scams that get played on you?
There's no 'rock' that anyone needs to sit on to plan or 'contemplate' a move to Korea. You just have to do it to...truly 'experience' it...
Oh yes it can. It can seriously hurt your pocketbook (and deny you savings).i say do one year in flangeland it can't hurt
To go from Thailand to another country (like Korea, or I'm thinking especially Japan) can be brutal.
I've done Korea twice.
This time was hard. The first time was brutal...
IA
PS. Do a conversion from Thai baht to Korean won to see what I'm talking about. One shouldn't come to Korea with less than about $ 1500 USD even if they had their airfare paid and accomadation provided upon arrival. And $1500 USD or 1.5 million Korean won is approxmately 60,000 baht. And to save that over a year in Thailand is cutting into an already low wage... :sad:
maybe korea is sufficient for his needs. cash seems to be a priority for him. he says he doesn't want to teach esl forever and might want to become a regular teacher (unless i'm mistaken) and so he would need postgrad quals.The problem the OP would have here is he's very green. But if he is naturally on-the-ball and...could toughen up quick he'd be fine in Korea...
but i still say a year in flangeland is a year well spent.
Posted after 3 minutes 33 seconds:
no i'm talking about preparation as opposed to leaving everything to chance. i prepared for the move to thailand for 5 months and new the lie of the land before i even landed. it paid dividends.There's no 'rock' that anyone needs to sit on to plan or 'contemplate' a move to Korea.
'success in all things relies on prior preparation' (my mum)
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