Destiny Nation: Korea

Destiny Nation: Korea

Published by Tom Gates at Smashwords

Copyright 2016 Tom Gates

Smashwords Edition, License Notes

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Table of Contents

Chapter 1: Why Teach English in Korea?

Chapter 2: Make the Decision

Chapter 3: Korea in a Nutshell

Chapter 4: Getting a Teaching Job

Chapter 5: Teaching Certifications and Licenses

Chapter 6: Teaching Tips

Chapter 7: Making Good Use of Your Down Time

Chapter 8: The Reality of Korean Culture

Chapter 9: Saving Money

Chapter 10: Tutoring On the Side

Chapter 11: Learning the Korean Language

Chapter 12: What to Expect from Your Apartment

Chapter 13: Healthcare Coverage

Chapter 14: Shopping for Food and Clothing

Chapter 15: EPIK vs. Hagwons

Chapter 16: Closing Thoughts

About Tom Gates

Chapter 1: Why Teach English in Korea?

Teaching English in Korea ultimately became something that I never expected. Though in some ways I had an idea, so much of my time in Korea took me down other paths both in experiences and in personal development.

It amazes me sometimes to see the volumes of videos and blogs online about Korea now. Only a few short years ago the videos on YouTube were limited to about a half dozen channels that put out consistent, useful content. I remember trying to find apartment tour videos wishing there were more. How things have changed.

Being a textbook type-A personality, I scoured all the information that was online hoping to learn what Korea life was going to be like and if I was crazy for leaving my old life behind.

I eventually reached a saturation point where I was unable to find untapped videos and blogs about Korea. I came to the realization that I needed to stop fantasizing and just decide whether or not I had the guts to put my life on its ear.

I went for it.

In the beginning, coming to South Korea to teach ESL through their public school program was a little bit of many things to me.

It was part get me out of this career I’m in!

Part save me from this economy!

Part now is my chance to finally travel to Asia

Part Korea sounds cool!

Part I miss Korean food!

Part what’s all this ESL stuff about?

Part I want to do something cool with my life too!

It is safe to say that after four and a half years of being in Korea, all of those musings were addressed. My life, however, has morphed into something completely unexpected and the future now looks entirely different than I ever thought it would be. All those days of toiling over videos and blog posts were ultimately in vain. In essence, YouTube videos and blogs are a bit like movie trailers. They give a bit of a surface teaser, but once you watch the movie you look back and realize how much hidden information there really was. I guess that is the purpose of a trailer; to get you to go see the movie.

Teaching ESL is a way to visit another country.

This is a reason why many people travel to a place like Korea. After that is a myriad of things. I have observed and learned that the reasons also include saving money or paying off debts, meeting someone for dating or marriage, and having something to do post-university graduation. People do it for a year or two and then move on to take care of life and business back home.

For me there were a bunch of semi-reasons for coming to Korea, but the one that was most prominent was using it as a way to exit the IT industry indefinitely. I knew early on that there were many directions I could take with teaching ESL abroad if I wanted to make it a long-term endeavor. I just had to make it happen.

I obtained multiple certifications including a state teaching license. I made valuable connections with many teachers in Korea which will serve as important references in the future.

I heard it said before by someone famous, Once you’ve experienced being hungry, you’ll never be full. I had been through so many years of drudgery in the corporate world. I decided that if there were tasks that I needed to execute to prolong and flourish in teaching abroad, I would do them tirelessly. I completed many of those tasks, but I also continue to look for other ways to broaden my own horizons with teaching overseas.

As for you, this anomaly of an endeavor called teaching English in Korea will be a reflection of you. Your motives for going will in due course become a friend or an enemy once you are in the thick of things. The way you view other cultures with regards to yourself will manifest sooner or later.

Some people have amazing times in Korea; others hate it (with a capital H). And then there is everyone in between. Where you fall on the scale is entirely up to you. This is the truth. Do not let anyone in an ESL forum, Facebook wall, or YouTube video tell you otherwise.

Your experience in Korea is going to be different than what you are thinking as you read this. You may encounter some of the horror stories you heard about. Conversely, you could get a great apartment, meet other cool foreigners from around the world, find the humor and irony in Korean culture and the people, become addicted to the food, and make the time count. Or, it could be a little bit of both as in my case.

I made the most of my circumstances because in my life I learned that no matter how dreamy or vial a situation is, it is going to change. After all is said and done, your mind will remember the good points with more emotion than it will the bad points.

A very wise man once told that there are three types of people in the world; those who can count, and those who can’t.

My point is this, keep count of the good things, not the bad things, and own your ESL adventure. It’s only one year.

Chapter 2: Make the Decision

Don’t get stuck in analysis paralysis! Those were the fateful words of a friend back home as I sat in my living room speaking with her on the phone. To paraphrase a popular saying, either do your business or get off the pot.

Unlike most people who embark on this adventure, I had two phases in my life with regards to teaching ESL in South Korea.

The first was when I was fresh out of university. My motives at the time were very different than most people wanting to teach abroad, and they were very different than my reasons now. My original reason for wanting to travel to Korea or Japan was for martial arts training. I received a bit of pushback from my family and I was persuaded against the idea. Keep in mind that in those days teaching in Korea was just starting to blossom. EPIK was only a few years old and hagwons were popping up with more frequency. I know this because my college roommate took the leap at that time.

Also keep in mind that this was in the days when internet was uncommon, there were no smart phones, and YouTube would be a concept of science fiction! Just imagine how to spend your down time. What would you do? Read books?!

The second phase was nearly fifteen years later in the midst of the biggest economic correction in US history. I was working in the IT industry, drudging through each day as did most of my comrades. The meltdown shook the world to its core and I believe no one was left unaffected.

The financial crisis seriously disrupted my life for about two years. It really rattled me and it made me start to think about the big picture of my life again. I hemmed and hawed, and though I had secured a full-time position in Miami, Florida, my mind had already been made up.

My time in IT had run its course and I was fully disenchanted with corporate life. It was out of my system. Actually, it was out of my system for many years, but I needed a catalyst to commence the makeover.

Re-enter teaching ESL in South Korea. There would be no more fifteen year gaps of letting others decide for me. The stage was set, the time was right, and the opportunity was there.

Most of you are likely much younger than I was when I started. That is not to say that there are not many teachers in Korea who are in their 30s, middle-aged, and up to retirement age still teaching.

The vast majority of teachers are out of university and mid to late twenties. No attachments, no responsibilities, just young and free! If this describes you, then there should be nothing holding you back other than your own fears. When you go back home after a tour abroad, you will find that nothing will have changed.

For the older crowd who, when they hang out together look a bit like a wedding reception, the same applies. Unless you have children, you should not let fear, a car, health insurance, a business card with a title on it, or anything of the sorts hold you back.

Ponder, decide, and take action.

Chapter 3: Korea in a Nutshell

What Korea Is NOT Like

Before anything else, it is important to talk about what is in your head. What are your impressions and expectations of what is to come when you finally set foot in the land of the morning K-pop group?

What South Korea will be to each individual will vary greatly.

For me to talk about what you can expect Korea to be like, I need to first give some perspective on what it is NOT.

The single greatest bit of advice I can give people about what they can expect of Korea can be boiled down to the following statement:

Take all impressions and imagery you have received through mediums such as K-Pop videos, K-dramas, YouTube videos, travel blogs, Korean restaurants, Taekwondo classes, and Korean cooking shows and hit double delete.

If you come to Korea with the notions and expectations that those things suggest, there is a very good chance you will get disappointed. The things I mentioned above are all facades and are not based in the reality of what you will encounter in South Korea on a daily basis. There may be some hints of these things, but by and large, they are meant to sell an image that does not necessarily exist.

I speak strongly on this topic because I have seen many people come and go, often left embittered and confused because they had a dream that was off-kilter.

Many come here thinking they are going to meet that girl from the music group or the prince charming from the dramas, and when rejection hits for some of them, they become bitter and hurt. They believe everyone will be like the shows and videos; kind, formal, Zen, honorable, perfectly primped and glossy, giving you all your deserved respect and admiration as a foreigner gracing their country.

In my opinion, I have noticed a push on Korea from multiple media outlets. I think this is a great thing because Korea is a great country with a fantastic story to tell of their successes as a nation.

The media (news, books, blogs, travel outlets, the music and entertainment industries, etc.) is only showing the selling points, not necessarily the daily life that you will be living.

Clear your head of your current opinions and expectations and come to Korea with a blank slate and an open, patient mind.

What Korea IS Like

So then, what is Korea really like? If the guys and girls are not like the music videos and dramas – then what are they like?

In a nutshell, they are just people. They are every personality type and shade of grey that you could expect from people back home. They are the same, yes. That is right. They are the same but with a history far different than ours in a region of the world located directly opposite us on this planet.

It is my personal opinion that people are people regardless of culture and location, but the environment from where they are born and nurtured is what makes the differences appear. Some cultures are more conducive to certain aspects of human nature than others, and vice versa.

South Korea is an East Asian country with a war-torn past, based in non-Christian religions such as Confucianism and Buddhism, still in the midst of civil war, and trying to re-establish their culture and history.

South Korea can be deemed as a conformist society that is deeply committed to its economic development and market share. As a base ingredient of their success as a nation is something that will affect you as a teacher coming to their country as a guest. That ingredient