WORKING CONDITIONS IN SOUTH KOREA
Working conditions vary from school to school. Some
schools have split shifts five days
a week. In this situation you will have to teach
two or three early morning classes and then
teach again in the evening between 3 and 9 o'clock.
Some schools don't have early morning
classes but they offer classes on Saturday.
There are some schools, but not as many, that
only operate Monday to Friday in the late afternoon.
Regardless of the schedule, the schools will provide
a curriculum you can follow as well
as supplemental materials which you can use to spice
up your lessons. It's not necessary to
always follow the curriculum, but you shouldn't
make a habbit of straying. A sense of
direction is good for both the teacher and students.
The most important thing, however, is
that you do your best to present the language in
a way the students feel is interesting.
CONTRACTS
Salary
The salaries vary from school to school but are usually
around 1.7 million Won
(approximately $2300 Canadian or $1500 American
). If you work overtime, your pay will
be higher. Overtime is usually paid at the rate
of 15,000 Won per class. Some schools might
offer a little more, but never more than 20,000
won per class.
Housing
Your employer will provide furnished housing for
you. In most cases that means that you
will share a two or three bedroom apartment with
other foreign teachers from your school.
The quality of housing varies, but it's acceptable.
The biggest problem with housing in Korea
is that it is usually small. The population density
in this country is high so there isn't room for
everyone to have a huge apartment. With respect
to rent, your employer will pay the rent.
However, you are responsible for the monthly utilities
which are cheap. If you have a
roommate, the cost of the utilities should be divided
appropriately. Also, if the apartment
is not within walking distance to your school, it will
only be a short bus or subway ride away.
Transportation
Your employer will usually provide you with an economy
class ticket to Korea from the
international airport which is nearest your
home. After completing your contract, your
employer will, depending on your wish, provide you
with a return ticket from the point of
departure or the cash equivalent. This is particulary
nice if you plan to take a nice vacation
when you finish.
Medical Insurance
Your employer will enroll you in the Korean National
Medical Insurance Union. The cost
of the program is split 50/50 between you and your
employer. The amount you is 1.5% of
your salary. Therefore, if you make 1.5 million
won a month, your monthly deduction for
medical insurance will be less than 30,000 won.
That's
not even $30 US a month.
Completion Bonus
Upon completing your contract, your employer will
give you a bonus equal to one month's
regular salary. If you do not finish your contract,
the bonus will not be offered.
Holidays and Vacations
In Korea, your holiday time corresponds to the nine
or ten national holidays. These days
must be given by your employer. Vacation days correspond
to the days the school voluntarily
gives you. The amount of time given is between 10
or 20 days. How much you get depends
on the school. You should know that 98% of the time
vacation days are not given all at once.
ABOUT KOREA
Korean People
Koreans are known for their kindness and generosity.
It's not uncommon to see Koreans
offering help to foreigners. There's no doubt in
there mind that you'll find Koreans to be
as kind and good natured as I have.
Health Care
The quality of health care in Korea is not up to
par with Canada or America, but it's getting
there - especially in new hospitals. If you need
to visit a hospital, you should be able to
receive good care without any problems. In Seoul,
there are many doctor's who have clinics
for foreigners. If you go to a local clinic and
require some medicine, the fee is almost always
less than 10,000 won. Very cheap.
Banking
Banking in Korea is easy. Your employer can help
you set up an account if there isn't anyone
at the bank who can speak English. To open an account,
you'll need your passport and alien
registration card - your employer will take you
to the nearest immigration office to get this.
If you want to send money home each month that's
no problem. You can send 66% of your
monthly pay home either through wire transfer or
money order. In either case, just take your
passport and pay stub with you to the bank.
If you send money via wire transfer the bank
takes a small percentage. Also, the bank that receives
the transfer will take a small
percentage. It usually takes two or three days for
your bank to receive the funds. Unlike in
the West, not all bank machines are open twenty
four hours a day. Most ATM's are only open
between 8 AM and 10 PM. Keep that in mind when you're
planning to stay out late.
Transportation
Transportation systems in Korea are very extensive.
You can take a bus to almost any place
in the country and it's dirt cheap. City buses only
cost between 600 won and 1100 won
depending on the type of bus. In either case, it's
less than a dollar! The major cities also have
subways and they are very cheap as well. If taxis
are more your style, there are millions of
them. All you have to do is stick you hand
out. Taxis are very cheap and offer a good chance
for you to practice your Korean - whether you speak
it or not. Finally, domestic air travel in
Korea is incredibly cheap. Regardless of where
you fly in Korea, a return ticket will always
be less than $70 US. If you want to fly during the
vacation season I recommend that you book
a flight long in advance.
Climate
The weather in Korea is incredible during the spring
and fall. It's sunny almost everyday and
the temperature is perfect for outdoor activities.
During summer it's hot and humid.
Temperatures range between 25 and 35 degrees celcius.
If you're used to cold winter's you'll
find winter in Korea a breeze. Temperatures
rarely go below -10 degrees celcius,
especially in the southern parts of the country.
Snowfall also tends to be light, even in Seoul
which usually gets the most snow. The rainy season,
which you may have heard about on
the news, usually starts around mid June and finishes
around mid July. Except for a few parts
of Korea, the rainy season is absolutely nothing
to be worried about.
Food
Whether you're a seafood lover, meat eater or vegetarian,
Korean cuisine has something for
you. If you find that you just can't get into the
food, there are plenty of western style
restaurants. The old faithfuls - MacDonald's, Burger
King, and Kentucky Fried Chicken - are
also well represented. Korean food, however, is
the best option because it's good for your
body as well as your pocket book. The "red" problem
can easily be solved be learning how
to tell the waiter or waitress to bring your food
with a little sauce. If that's not good enough,
learn to ask for the sauce on the side.
Cost of Living
In general, your monthly cost of living will be much
lower than in the West but it depends
mostly on your spending habits. If you're frugal,
350,0000 won a month will be enough. If
you like to eat in restaurants, and or go drinking
every weekend, your monthly expenditures
can easily top 500,000 won. Most people tend to
spend somewhere between 350,000 and
500,000 won a month.
GUIDE TO ENJOYING YOUR LIFE IN KOREA
1) Always be patient, flexible, and open minded.
This is important because often you will
be given less than complete
information. To make matters worse, when you are given
information, it's almost
always at the last minute. I have met many foreigners who were
driven crazy by this. My
advice is to just go with the flow and not get worked up about
anything sudden. Life is
too short and the Koreans around you won't understand why you're
upset with them.
2) Don't expect things to be done the way they are
at home because things are done much
differently here in Korea.
Koreans don't even staple paper together the way we do. My
advice to you is leave your
expectations at home. Not expecting things to be done the way
you're used to will save
you more stress than you can imagine. Also, if you expect to get
feedback about your job
performance, forget it! The only time you'll receive any feedback
is when there's a problem.
3) Although it's not necessary to learn Korean, I highly
recommend that you learn as much as
you can. In many cases,
the more Korean I was able to understand, the less paranoid and
alienated I felt. Alienation
and the paranoia which often accompanies it is 90% the result
of the foreigner's inability
to understand what is happening around him. Even a little
ability will make a difference
in how comfortable you feel.
4) Make friends with both foreigners and Koreans.
Having a good mix of friends will help
you to adjust more quickly
and maintain a balanced perspective. Maintaining a balanced
perspective is important
if you want your experience to be all that it can be.
5) Get involved in some kind of leisure activity. Doing
so is not only a great way to meet new
people, it's a great way
to release stress. If you're into physical activity, there are
thousands of health clubs
and martial arts schools. There are also many places to go
cycling or hiking. For those
who have different interests, classes in traditional arts and
culture are always being
offered. Frequently, they are offered to foreigners free of charge.
6) Korean Society is extremely hierarchical. What that
means for you is that your boss thinks
he's God! That being the
case, you should treat him with respect and never mouth off
regardless of how upset
you are. Challenges to his authority will create problems that you
can't even imagine.
7) Always be polite and professional - even if you're ready
to explode. Politeness will take
you a long long way in this
society. My advice is to always bow and say hello - in Korean
when you know how - when
you arrive at the school and when you see your boss for the
first time that day. When
you leave the school, you should bow and say goodbye to
everyone. This may seem
like sucking up, but I can't emphasize enough the importance of
polite greetings in this
culture.
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