OutsideInKorea

I haven’t written any articles for OutsideInKorea in a good long while. Rather than offer the usual excuses, let me point you to my new project, one that has taken up most of my time in recent months, and something I’m pretty excited about: jobsee.kr.

E2 (English Teacher) Visa Changes

Like every government everywhere, the Korean government has a long and storied tradition of getting things exactly wrong, of creating policies by fiat and without consultation that worsen the problem they were intended to address, and result in unintended consequences down the line. The newest proposed change to regulations for the single largest group of foreign temporary residents — holders of 1-year E2 English teacher visas — neatly fits the bill.

44 Tips For Getting A Job In Korea (and Keeping It)

Here’s a braindump of some tips and tricks for getting a job in Korea, and keeping it once you’re here. I’ll add to it periodically as I think of more. If you have any specific do or don’t questions, or you disagree with any of my advice, feel free to leave a comment. Don’t forget to check out my Teaching In Korea — The Skinny as well, if you missed it the first time.

A Free Korean Language Course

So, without further ado: here’s a belated Christmas present, Level One of Mastering Korean. Share and enjoy.

Circles

On a community website where I spend a lot of time, someone asked recently for advice on how to deal with his noisy neighbours. He doesn’t live in Korea, but he thought that the couple next door was Korean, and that when they were shouting at each other in the wee hours, they weren’t shouting in English. He reasonably took this as an indication that some knowledge of their cultural background could come in handy if he girded his loins enough to talk to them about it.

Textbooks That Suck And Textbooks That Don’t

There are, to put it bluntly, a lot of ESL textbooks for adult learners that are, to varying degrees, crap. There are many and varied reasons why these books are awful. Many of them are weighed down under more than one layer of language guano. You’re waist-deep before you even get started, digging through the stink to find something useful.

A Short Korean Food Primer

Are you new to Korea (or planning to come) and want to know how to order food at one of the local eateries, or just know what it is? Do you live somewhere else and want to impress that beautiful waitress (or waiter, I guess) at your local Korean restaurant?

Well, despair no more, friends, because I’m going to give you the beginnings of a Rosetta Stone for ordering Korean food with style and aplomb and hopefully not too much embarrassed-for-you giggling.

A Brand New Day?

I can count on one hand the number of English teachers I’ve met in the ten years since I first came to Korea who were actually certified teachers back in their home country. If the proportion topped 2%, I’d be shocked.

Learn To Read Korean — Part Two

This is Part Two in a multipart series of articles covering the basics of reading and writing in Korean. By the end, you should be merrily sounding out anything you run across (and doing it with better pronunciation than most foreigners I’ve met who’ve been here for years).

Learn To Read Korean — Part One

This is Part One in a multipart series of articles covering the basics of reading and writing in Korean. By the end, you should be merrily sounding out anything you run across (and doing it with better pronunciation than most foreigners I’ve met who’ve been here for years).

Revolution Rock?

There’s a new LG Telecom ad that’s been playing on Korean television recently. As happens all too frequently, I’m having a little trouble telling if it’s hilariously clever or dumb as dirt.

On Visas

For the vast majority of people entering Korea to work as teachers, the E-2 is what they will be applying for. If you are offered a job, you can either apply for and get the E-2 before you leave your home country, or come to Korea without a visa and do The Visa Run later. The most common destinations for visa runs are Fukuoka and Osaka, in Japan. Both Korean embassies are well-used to the constant, endless stream of E-2 applicants trooping through, and are quite efficient. The do tend to have odd opening hours, but if you time things right, you can leave Korea one day and be back the next, E-2 in hand.

Where next?