Things to Be Aware of Before Teaching in South Korea

Photo courtesy of goabroad.com

Before you teach abroad in a foreign country, there is some information that you must know before arriving in that country. Within that country there are some risks you will take as well. Some people take safety risks (Saudi Arabia) for more money. Some people sacrifice horrible weather for more money (Russia), some sacrifice money for a laid back lifestyle (South America), and almost everyone has to adapt to culture shock (everywhere).

Today, I would like to only focus on South Korea because I've lived here for the past 15 years as an American. I can discuss how the English teaching market has changed in South Korea since 2003. And since I've lived in three different cities in South Korea, I can try to explain how different the experiences are based on where you teach and what you should expect depending on where you live.

Second, I will also focus on the "hakwon" (academy or cram school in English) industry because I've taught at five different hakwons. My experience can help those that are looking for jobs in that particular industry. It wouldn't be fair to comment on public school teaching jobs or university positions because I've never taught in those industries in South Korea or anywhere else for that matter.

Third, I will try to keep my comments as objective as possible and free from emotionally charged messages. One reason is that I still teach at a hakwon in South Korea and I still enjoy doing what I do. This post is in no way of telling you not to teach English in Korea, it's just a post to let you know what to look out for. Also, since I love job, I wouldn't want the posts to come off damaging to my current workplace. However, I also want to be honest and straight forward as to the disadvantages of teaching English in a hakwon in South Korea.

What to Watch Out for Before You Teach Abroad- Teaching Kids

1. Before you teach in a children's academy, realize that you probably will not get trained if that academy is in a small town in Korea. Usually kindergarten/elementary or elementary/middle school academies are so desperate for teachers in small towns, that they won't even train you. This happened at my first school in Ulsan.

2. Beware if the school is brand new. This was a double whammy for me. My first school in Ulsan was also brand new. It took about three months for the school to get organized. Sometimes I thought I had a break and then realized that I actually had a class or they had me teaching in one classroom, but told me to change classrooms midway through the class. Avoid new schools if at all possible.

3. Expect some level of discrimination based on age or appearance if you are looking to teach in a small town. When I lived in Yangju in 2005, I decided to quit after three months. I had no curriculum and all of the pressure was on me to find what to teach. When I decided to quit, I spent my own money advertising my school to bring in a replacement for me. Many teachers were qualified and had experience and/or Master's degrees. Yet my director wouldn't hire anyone based on the fact that they were either too old or not attractive enough. On the last day, we got into a heated argument and he blamed me for quitting on him. Now that we're in 2019, things have improved, but not completely.

4. In 2003 and 2004, I was a bit of a novelty. Kids would say hello as I walked down the streets of Ulsan, while older people would stare at me. As more non-Koreans moved into the city, the frequency of both decreased. Occasionally, people will stare at me in Seoul these days, but it's mainly by older people. Just be aware that you will come to a mostly homogenous country and if you don't live in a large city like Seoul or Busan, you're bound to stand out especially if you're a person of color.

5. If you are teaching kids in smaller towns, expect them to know very little about the outside world. If you're a teacher, you already have to know what your kids are interested in. This is doubly important if you're teaching to kids in South Korea. Since you're already a "foreigner", they will already feel different from you. They won't know anything about your home country or even a neighboring country. Bridge the gap anyway you can by learning about what music and games they are interested in. Watch some Korean movies or TV shows and you will immediately impress your students. And if you can sing a K-pop song, they'll love you!

6. Make sure you teach at a school that is recognized or isn't too small. I tried working at a smaller academy in my second year in Ulsan. That was a big mistake. I was the only foreign teacher (hated it) and the copy machine always broke down. I also taught 13 straight classes including one hour where I taught the director's two daughters. The other 12 classes were 25 minutes each. It was a bit intense. When I worked in Yangju I had great hours (2pm-8pm), but I taught six classes straight with no breaks and no curriculum. Smaller schools also focus on numbers. The more students they have, the higher chance you will get paid on time. If they're not bringing in the students, your director might delay your salary.

7. Since hakwons focus on numbers, keeping the kids happy is their #1 priority. If the kids don't like you, they tell their parents. The parents then pull their kids out of that academy and find another one. Then you have to balance between games and teaching really well. If you play too many games, they complain. If you teach too much, they complain. Keeping the kids happy isn't easy but it's even harder if you're working at a small school since their attendance means you get paid. I can't stress enough that working at a small academy is a big mistake. Teaching adults isn't much different. If you teach well, great. But more importantly is how the students view you. If they love you, you will get a high student satisfaction score and then the school is happy. If they think you're boring or unapproachable, it doesn't matter how many qualifications you have, the students will request not to have your class. When you teach adults, your smile and character are much more important than your teaching skills.

8. Because numbers are a key priority, the students' welfare will ALWAYS trump the teachers' welfare. It's a fact and will never change no matter which hakwon you work for. If you teach kids, you will be expected to teach if you're sick. In my previous job, I taught adults and had to show up to work despite having "pink eye". If you are working on the split shift and you get sickly ill after your morning classes, you can try to take the evening off but if your manager can't cancel or move your classes, expect to come in. The students might not be able to do their homework, but if they get refunds because they feel too much pressure, expect the homework policy to change in THEIR favor, not yours.

9. If your hakwon stops paying your monthly pension, quit. You pay into it and they are supposed to pay it back into your pension account. It's illegal if they aren't paying into your account and it's also a warning sign that the school is in trouble. If you get any signs that the school is losing students, take a trip to your pension office (NPS) and find out if they're still paying your monthly pension. This happened at my previous adult academy. I had been there for 3 years and things were going well. Then the CEO got greedy and started expanding his business too fast. Then he realized he was losing money. The annual Christmas dinner got canceled, three months later students were telling me that they could no longer park in the building (I later found out they couldn't afford to pay the rent of the building), and then my landlord told me that my school wasn't paying the rent of my apartment. After these three warning signs, I went to check if they were paying my pension. It turned out that they hadn't paid for three consecutive months. I decided to give them a 30-day notice and quit.

10. As Westerners, we are generally independent and we consider work for what it is. But make sure that you at least greet your Korean coworkers or boss each time you come and leave. It may sound silly, but that's what is expected in South Korea. It's a small gesture and it will show that you're adapting to Korean culture. Don't come into work with tunnel vision and head to the teaching materials without saying hello. It's rude and you don't want to come off that way since you want your company to know that you're a good person.

11. Take your job seriously. Sometimes westerners work abroad because they think they're going to have a year of partying and have a teaching job as a side gig to pay for their partying. This usually happens with younger teachers in their early 20s who haven't had much job experience and are very far from their parents. Please don't make us look bad especially if you're an American, since I'm American (smile). You represent our country, so please represent it well!


12. Getting a job in South Korea in 2003 was much more different than it is in 2019. In 2003, if you were a young, white, Westerner (preferably American or Canadian), you got a job if you just had a Bachelor's degree although hard if you were Irish or black. These days, immigration is stricter so you need a Bachelor's degree, a criminal background check, and a lot more experience since there are many non-Koreans compared to 15 years ago. However, it's a little easier for people to get jobs who are British, Australian, black, or South African. Even Asian Americans and Canadians are getting hired now, which was unheard of in 2003.

13. Teaching adults will require a split shift, paying your own rent, and an average salary. If you teach kids, you will get your rent covered so your salary will seem pretty high. If you enjoy teaching kids, that's where the money is at. If you want less stress, teach adults. However, in both situations the director or CEO of the company will change school policies in order to try to bring in revenue. Many times the changes seem ridiculous, but go with the flow. Chances are, they'll realize those changes in policies are silly and they will go back to what they had been doing before.

Scott Worden (The L.A./Seoul Guy)

Instagram: l.a.seoulguy