a few questions

[Mark]

Hi,

I have read that teaching in Korea requires a four year degree. In Australia, Bachelors degrees are typically 3 years. Will this be a problem when I apply for a visa?

I will have my degree and transcripts by the end of December 2007. What do you think would be the earliest date that I could start teaching in Korea? When should I send you my resume and picture?

Are there many jobs available in or near Seoul? Almost all of my Korean friends from uni live there and I would really like to work as close to the city as possible.

The only English teaching experience I have had is tutoring exchange students at my University. Will this lack of experience have a big impact on my chances of finding work?

Have you found that it is easier to find jobs for applicants who are TESOL/TEFL qualified?

Thanks for your help

[Dan Henrickson]

Hi Mark.

To qualify to teach in Korea, you must have a valid passport, from one of 7 native English countries listed on our site, Australia of course being one of them.

As for a degree, you must have a 3 or 4 year degree, from any major, from an accredited university that is in a native English speaking country. This means your 3 year Bachelor's will qualify. We have the same 3 yr programs in Canada.

** You will only "apply for a visa", once you agree to a detailed contract from a school, and in most cases successfully have a phone interview. The first step is that you will courier a package to the school, so they can start the E2 Teaching Visa process at the local immigration office. You'll need to send: Original university degree, sealed university transcripts, 4 color passport sized photos, copy of your resume, copy of the info page in your passport, signed contract with your new school.

For your start date, we can start the job hunt before you have all of your documents, but in this case you'd need to be 100% sure as to when you'll receive your degree & sealed transcripts. You can start as soon as 5 weeks after you will have all documents in your hands. This is how long the E2 Teaching Visa takes to complete. If you receive your documents by say the 3rd week in Dec, you can start as soon as Feb 1st, 2008.

***The next semester starts March 1st, so your start date, would be closer to the 3rd week of February.

There are lots of schools & jobs in the Seoul area. I have a few schools that already need teachers for around Feb 23rd in this area. Your lack of experience will not hinder your chances of finding a great school, since most new teachers in Korea are the same.

Having a teaching certificate will help you with some schools, but I do find the increase in pay as a result is not quite as high as what teachers expect.

Thanks for the great questions!