Don't Teach English in South Korea

[@Kide]

I've been teaching in Korea for almost 3 years and I COMPLETELY agree with you about how the whole system is corrupt and essentially indentured servitude/slavery. I'm going through an extremely difficult and exasperating time desperately trying to switch visas and leave my current job (thankfully I'm in therapy) and I've learned so much about just how flawed, toxic and easily exploitative the E2 visa is as well as how the mistreatment of foreign English teachers is so prolific in this country. I really appreciate your video and congratulations on winning your case!

[@dontteachinkorea]

Thank you! I wish you the best of luck on switching jobs. I can only imagine how hard that is. Hang in there and stay strong! 🙂🙏

[@FreeTruthNow]

3 Years? Why don't you just quit so people don't have to hear you complain?

[@Yoliee0909]

It's not that easy to just quit in S. Korea. ​You might want to educate yourself on that matter. Watch the video vand others stories about working in a foreign country. @@FreeTruthNow

[@azizurrahman1091]

Wow that’s shocking! What about for students? I wonder what it’s like for students? My student is attending a university in South Korea 🇰🇷

[@MichaelRWright]

I'm still living here and have been for 24 years, and I completely agree with this KZbinr and you.

[@csb9861]

I've been doing extensive research to decide whether I should teach in South Korea and bring my one-year-old daughter with me. I looked into everything from application requirements to the cost of diapers and daycare. As a single mom, I believed I could provide a better future for her there. However, my maternal instincts kept telling me that something wasn’t right. The more I learned about how children are often forced to behave like robots, attending private lessons all day until midnight, the more I felt it wasn’t the right choice. Ultimately, this led me to decide to stay in London. Then, by God's grace, I came across your video, which confirmed my uneasy feelings about this major decision. Thank you for sharing your experience!

[@QUINTUSMAXIMUS]

@@csb9861 Most people in the city I live in Gwangju doesn't have the kids often going to those academies. In Seoul, definitely. It's risky, though, to come here as a single mother.

[@naonaoent]

If you're in London, and aren't sure of the quality of life you can have here, I'd say move to another large UK city, London is absolutely crazy expensive lately, and hats off to you that you stayed with a baby. Even just moving a bit more east from London can provide you close proximity to the capital, but much lower cost of living. I moved to Zone 6 East from Zone 2 East, and the difference is incredible. But under no circumstances do you want to give up an equal, mostly fair quality of life in the UK to go to Korea and have your basic human rights as a woman taken away from you. Not to mention that single mothers are pretty much at the bottom of society, doesn't really matter why you're single. It's seriously terrible and unfair. Good on you for not going, you deserve better.

[@emmaphilo4049]

Don't go to SK, it's worse than whatever you don't like in the UK. The UK has issues but it's still a better place.

[@John-qd5of]

You have a one-year-old child. For that very reason, I would advise you to leave South Korea alone! Please do not teach there! There are several reasons. A major reason is job instability. You do not want this if you have a small child. For example, I taught at a 9-6 kindergarten for over 2 years. The kids liked me and I was rated fairly highly. I had a proven ability to teach. However, the job ended. A new job started. The boss didn't speak English. The job only lasted 3 weeks. The next job only lasted 4 months. Reason-a new boss had taken over, but the old boss had lied. He gave me a year contract but leased the flat for only 4 months. I ended up leaving Korea.

[@crunch2yy2]

As someone who grew up learning English from foreign teachers in hagwons, I’m sorry to hear about the experience you had in Korea. The learning experience i had was truly valuable. Some of the foreigners I met during my teenage years were more than just English tutors; they were real teachers. I suppose you were overqualified to be just an ordinary foreign English teacher in Korea. You had an education degree and were ready to devote yourself to teaching, but you ended up in the wrong situation and couldn’t easily get out of it. I believe it would have been better for you to teach students directly, without the middlemen like hagwons. Competent teachers will get well paid. I'm very sure about that cause my parents paid a lot to make me it's fluent in english. The advice you're giving in this video seems quite legit. I hope my country addresses the E-2 visa issue so that employers can no longer take advantage of young people like you.

[@QUINTUSMAXIMUS]

Thank you for your kind words. I teach at a university, but did teach at hagwons. I did love the students, but I did deal with dishonest and exploitive bosses then. Also, in Korea, they are paying the same salary as 15 years ago to the E-2 teachers, which is very wrong.

[@QUINTUSMAXIMUS]

@@crunch2yy2 Thank you. I don't think the government really cares. In Japan, foreigners own their own visas. It should be that way here, too. We don't have enough protection and sometimes even universities break the law in regards to foreigners. Some instructors at one university were pushed out of university housing in violation of their contract even.

[@encapseoulate]

I left Korea at the end of 2023 after living there for 17 years after I calculated that my public school teaching salary was less than than 2024 hourly rate of Korea's minimum wage. Nuff said.

[@georgeo2664]

And it took you 17 years to figure this out huh? Nuff said

[@rosalindash6830]

If Koreans are like this how are they different than the North Koreans?

[@John-qd5of]

@@rosalindash6830 That's a VERY good question! What do they have in common? Both countries have had dictators. In both countries, there is a tendency to follow the leader. Both North and South Korea have a tendency to follow an ideology with all the mad zeal of a new convert. In the case of South Korea, that means extreme neoliberalism. It means that while some jobs are "protected" the majority of jobs are not. It means short-term contracts with poor conditions and shrinking wages. But for the lucky minority, the opposite.

[@MichaelRWright]

I have lived here (Seoul, Korea) for 24 years and are on my way to another country, but I have had many friends and EVERY single thing you've said here is completely true. Completely!! Stay safe and listen to this video.

[@criland1348]

Thank you for posting this. I’ve seen alot of “teaching in Korea” videos but most are like new grads who wanted to travel. To see a competent English teacher who actually went to Korea and experienced the same treatment as the new grad w/ a cookie cutter degree is telling. I watched this one KZbinrs video whereby they put her in a classroom full of kids with various learning disabilities and behavioral issues. Her meals at work were the scraps left behind by her students. With her wages she barely made enough to feed herself and even that was a challenge

[@hik9800]

선생님께 아이들이 먹고 남은걸 준다니요?그런일은 절대 있을수 없는일입니다. 만약 그렇다면 공론화시키세요. 한국에서 선생님은 굉장히 존경받는 위치입니다. 선생님들끼리의 힘겨루기는 잘모르겠습니다. 그렇지만 확실한건 한국은 선생님에대한 존경이 바탕에 깔려 있는 나라입니다. 스승의날이 있을 정도니깐요.다만 저분께서 경험하신건 너무 슬프네요. 그렇지만 일반화 하지 말아주세요. 좋은곳 안좋은건 늘 섞여있으니깐요. 늘좋은 결정은 신중한 검토끝에 해야 한다는 겁니다. 늘 행복한 일만 있길 기도 할께요 😭

[@sunstricken]

@@hik9800 The respected position for teachers is a deteriorating myth. Teachers commit suicide because there's no support for them -and I mean Korean teachers themselves. That being the case, how even less support foreign teachers are getting. I'm not saying we should have more support than Korean teachers but it is to say that the system is long overdue for a re-evaluation. People want to put their heads in the sands and ignore all the bad by thinking that the 'good' can ever over ride the bad. The fact is, doing that doesn't solve the problem at all and makes things worse. People really need to learn that not all critiques are bad criticisms: critiques are made because there can be improvements.

[@yasminbarry7941]

Yes, there are other former teachers in Korea who are reporting the exact same situation. Exemple: Queentiwa here on KZbin

[@osalinasable]

Thanks for sharing your story. The whole world needs to hear it.

[@actualizinganna]

Taught in Korea for one year.. I loved Korea but my workplace was terrible. No breaks and never able to leave. Severely bullied my my coteacher and even though the bosses saw it and would talk about how horrible it was nothing was done because I was basically the bottom of the food chain as the youngest foreigner …

[@EliaraEldor]

Girl, remain bless. I just find your video. And it’s not related to my case but everything you’ve said makes sense and is helping me

[@Lordyung89]

I worked at a public school in Incheon. I had a wonderful experience. Also a recruiter is a sales job, their purpose isn't quality it is quantity. I would only work at a public school or a proper International school.

[@Lordyung89]

Also, this is video is for Hagwons (cramschools) only. I would look into public schools. The experience is so much better.

[@Apocalyptichist]

@@Lordyung89 I understand that there are issues with EPIK, but because of the person I know who worked through EPIK and left for family reasons (she wishes she were still in Korea), I cannot believe her saying all of these issues would be the same at public schools. Namely, the issue with the "free" apartment that she had. My friend very much had a free apartment with the alternate option of a stipend. She straight up told me the way to not be screwed over is to start at EPIK then move to a hagwon or know someone at a good hagwon who can hook you up. I would love to watch a video on issues with EPIK but haven't come across that yet.

[@John-qd5of]

EPIK is not perfect either. People can have bad experiences there too, but problems with abusive management are less common than at hagwons. At EPIK, you will be paid on time. Native English speakers who work with EPIK are NOT supposed to teach alone, since they are not licensed teachers. However, sometimes, the coteachers may not provide any help or guidance, and not come to your class. If that happens, inform the EPIK coordinator.

[@drv4543]

This video is an invaluable resource. Thank you for such a comprehensive breakdown!

[@azizurrahman1091]

I agree thanks for this insight

[@jwho369]

You seem so sweethearted. I'm so sorry that happened to you, and I appreciate the video. Regarding choosing a country to teach in, I'm back to the drawing board.

[@natyramento9044]

I am an Asian (Filipino), their people considered as a 2nd class citizen truth of the matter is “racist” attitude. Anyway I am now in Toronto proud to live here peacefully, Canadian accepted me as Healthcare worker. They need teachers in Toronto I invite you to apply a job. Again I am glad you told the truth about it. Remember confusionism culture.

[@ixluvxsunflower]

This is so helpful to watch. It’s making me re think this whole thing. So many KZbin channels that romanticize the whole thing.

[@kelly2444]

Other foreigners can't be trusted in South Korea, because they have their own agenda and will 100% romanticise their whole experience. I was at a hagwon and was gaslit and exploited by my school AND the other foreigners there. HOW,? I blindly trusted the other foreigners, but they were desperate koreaboos with no home life and/or skills to hustle, in their own country - so wanted to stay permanently in SK. I was swindled out of money by the school and the other foreigners agreed with what happened.

[@CariW90]

Or maybe some KZbinrs had high expectations and they’re just negative about it because it didn’t work out for them. I’ve seen some KZbinrs who went to Korea to teach English and are still there and probably even dating or married.

[@propertymanager9149]

people romanticize English teaching job in korea? LOL

[@Justcetriyaart]

I'm glad more and more of this is coming out and more people, the koreans themselves are posting as they can about the real issues that arent' safe.

[@TravelWithMe-sn2my]

Agree with you! I have taught English in Korea. I have experience in the Hagwon and public school. The E2 visa is awful. I personally think English in Korea is dead. There is no need to teach English there. Skip that place. If you are coming because you want to live in Korea, okay that is fine but do not teach there. The E-2 visa in Korean means English conversation. So this means, the English Teacher on a E-2 visa is not suppose to teach grammar, math, science, etc. Hagwon's and even some public schools do not respect this, or do not even know the E-2 regulations or care to learn and follow it. The obsession with Korea is problematic. Korea has become expensive. If you want to pay your student loans, teaching English Korea is not the place. Thank you for sharing with the public. Sure there are some people that have had good experiences. But please do not thing that this is the case for everyone. Even though my experience in Korea has not been horrible but there has definitely been many negative experiences, yes I had some positives as well. Do I recommend to teach in Korea, no stay away. Again if you want to experience Korean culture, do not teach English. If anyone has questions feel free to message me.

[@davidp2847]

Do you know anything about the ENOW academy?

[@Yemella1]

Thanks for the video. Don`t forget to mention that Korean teachers get extra pay for English camps while Foreign Teachers have it embedded into their contract as free labor. I`m just disgusted at this point.😤😤😤

[@nikicarrie4071]

They're 1940 racist to black people. They actually physically put their hands on BP

[@azizurrahman1091]

Noooo I had no idea! 😮

[@John-qd5of]

You are talking about EPIK, which is in a death spiral. An EPIK teacher told me that foreign teachers used to get the extra pay for English camps too.

[@welfareleech1525]

I've been working in Daegu for 3 years and it's been fantastic. I work 1:30pm-7pm and get paid full time with the nice health care etc. zero complaints.

[@emmaphilo4049]

Very good video!

[@kelly2444]

I keep coming back to this video, mostly as I feel validated as I also had a terrible experience, but also hoping it goes viral and more people are warned about this dishonest and corrupt system.

[@thsu8]

Why do you people think Korea is any different from Japan or China or Vietnam or Taiwan or Thailand?

[@osalinasable]

I’m sorry you had to go through all that.

[@cherylhastings1609]

No wonder there are so many k drama themed stories about Korean corporate culture especially their education educational systems. You have got your own real life kdrama. Glad to hear you made it home safe.

[@yoshikorieben8069]

You're never welcome to korea.

[@Shirley.sThirties]

I think the most painful part about all of this is the fact that other foreign teachers will not have your back 😭 it’s so scary!

[@Jimalcoatl]

This is not universally true. At my last two hagwons, the foreign teachers all had each other's backs. It was really nice. We basically formed an informal union and told the director that we would all walk off when they did shady shit. That may have been a rarity, but when everyone is just one more bad experience from a midnight run anyway, it does give you the leverage to affect change or at least demand better treatment for yourself and your colleagues. I now reccomend that every hagwon teacher be ready to midnight ruun at a moment's notice. It's the most powerful tool you have for standing up for yourself until the visa laws here get changed.

[@juahl]

​@@Jimalcoatl what is a midnight run?

[@Jimalcoatl]

@@juahl It’s when a foreign teacher buys a plane ticket home or to another country and just disappears without telling their school/employer. It's often one of the only options to get out of a bad school because of the letter of release laws.

[@juahl]

@@Jimalcoatl Ahhh! Gotcha! Prayers your situation improves. 🙏🏻

[@Jimalcoatl]

@@juahl My situation is fine now. I moved on from that job as soon as my contract was over.

[@octopusfly]

Great video. You give solid advice. Your observations and deductions are accurate. It was very brave of you to stand and fight... hopeless, but valiant. Consider yourself to be " Lucky in your bad Luck," So much worse could have happened to you. Yet, you escaped and lived to share your warning. Thank you for sharing in such detail. I've been in South Korea teaching English for over 22 years. It's behind you now and you learned so much. Best of luck to you in all of your future endeavors. ~An American in Korea 🇰🇷

[@nikicarrie4071]

Tf😊

[@CEOfromtheHell]

'Hagwons' or some 'English academy' are owned by private personal. Therefore, it is possible that foreign teachers may be treated unfairly or receive unfair wages. Before foreigners find a job in Korea and start working, they need to learn about the Korean Labor Office and Labor Standards Act, and if they have any questions, they need to contact the Labor Office immediately to find out.

[@anon19086posts]

Same experience in Saudi. Loved the country but major toxic work environment

[@criticaloptimist]

Working for a Japanese ceo at a Japanese company in the states meant I witnessed many things prohibited by employment law. I can only imagine what that would be like teaching English there.

[@juned1719]

If they treat their own citizens poorly in the workforce how do you think they’ll treat foreigners they don’t respect? 😒

[@Wendy-fi5hb]

I wish I saw this video a year ago. Now, I'm stuck in a public school with toxic Korean co-teachers who bullies me. Anyway, I hope this video helps a lot of people who wants to teach English here to rethink their decision bc this is not work; it's purely abuse.

[@chocoholic5645]

Co teacher bullies you?Hard to believe(don't mean u are lying)as long as I know Koreans we are more willing to help foreign teachers TT. So bad and still hard to believeTT. Why would the teacher bully us.

[@QUINTUSMAXIMUS]

@@chocoholic5645 Well, one of my friends worked at a public school back in 2007 and one of the teachers even stole money there, and the principal begged the foreign teacher and his Korean girlfriend not to tell anyone because he was going to retire. One of my friends left Korea in 2007 because of some toxic relationship with her co-teacher. She couldn't handle how she was treated. I once got very sick at a hagwon because my hagwon lied to me and made me work almost double the hours. I was too tired. I almost took my first principle to court. You better believe these stories.

[@nikicarrie4071]

Leave. They don't deserve us

[@nikicarrie4071]

​@chocoholic5645 no they're not they're terrible humans

[@joanncolon8617]

Thank you for sharing. Fortunately, I had a mostly-positive experience teaching in Korea for 6 total years between 2010 - 2020. However, one thing that bothers me to no end is how the Korean government, school admin, or whatever powers that be don't really care--or want--the kids to truly learn to speak English. If they did, why did they take away all the foreign teachers from the middle and high schools but allow them to stay in the elementary schools? The kids may get a grasp and some confidence to speak English in elementary school but that gets stifled and killed off in middle and high school, where they have to focus on reading and grammar. I get the teachers try to prepare them for the Sunung (uni entrance exam), but why not change that exam to focus on English speaking instead of reading and grammar? This is what's done in some European countries and those people speak better English than Koreans. I think English is treated as a subject like math and as a cash cow. It's all about the money, not actual learning. Sadness. 😢

[@abbe1abbe156]

Queentivia posted a video about a Korean American guy too who was very scary. He locked her in a room at night, turned off the light and yelled at her. Maybe you both worked for the same company.

[@malachite3]

Thank you so much for sharing your experience. It would be nice if you could further your channel to compile a set of interviews from other foreign workers, who have worked in other sectors and job fields of Korea and from different countries. This would help people make a more informed decision before choosing to work in other countries.

[@SeekingTruth2023]

Thank you very much for sharing!!

[@scarletred522]

That's why so many foreign English teachers that "escape" SK...

[@marymimouna]

What wonderful, frank advice.

[@FeedMeJuice]

This sounds like Creverse. I’m going with Epik, my friend has been there for 7 years and she loves it. I only want to be there for a year so hopefully everything works out. I’m going with money to set aside to do the run if anything doesn’t go well lol.

[@alfonsowillock5801]

What like to ask have any teachers this reported to the state department? And if so I am so ashamed of the US for not doing anything about this. US should be protecting its citizens.

[@peterdeneke8401]

I also had a bad experience. I was fired my second week . Im nervous to file a report with MOEL in case they dont pay my salary and I cant leave the country.

[@perfecthollywood]

why would you not be able to leave the country?

[@v2cantthinkofahandle]

what is your situation now?

[@peterdeneke8401]

@@v2cantthinkofahandle I filed a report after I left korea, but it got rejected

[@v2cantthinkofahandle]

@@peterdeneke8401 sorry to hear that ): hope things are going alright for you now

[@jeffmccord575]

Singing...My wife (a Korean) taught her students Halo by Beyonce. Supermarkets would have canned music. Halo would come on and kids would be singing it by their parents. big selling point.

[@jeffmccord575]

I rarely spent time out with employers or other Korean teachers. I found the Korean teachers didn't always have a good grasp of English, but they had no benefit from backing me up on issues. It is all that cultural stuff where you never question or correct a superior. No just in English either. When I wanted to do stuff with other teachers. There were teachers at our Hagwon and others in town. World Cup was going on which was an excuse to support the home team and get lost in Seoul. I get where you come from about teaching methods for kindergarten. It's just like that k-12. Teaching to the test is the way they do it. What they wanted at the time was someone that engaged with the students and had a skill like being funny animated or musically inclined. Teaching there is a lot like my current job in the US at a juvenile prison school. There is a method and have to adapt. Not everyone is cut out for the job. I have empathy for you. I've been there. Never ran. The first time manager told he would F me up I was scared. When I realized it was a common threat I challenged him. That was long ago. Would I ever go back? Yes but never to work there again. I'm 51 with a bachelor's degree. Not great for teaching young kids. The pay range is about the same as it was in 2013 when I left. The top end requirements are higher. Lastly the B.S. is the same. There are so many great aspects to Korea . The reason their system continues to flounder is that there is never ending supply interested native English teachers.

[@nikicarrie4071]

Privileged

[@johanreiners3202]

I've been teaching in Korea for almost 18 years and love every moment of it. I'm sorry to hear about your horrible experience, though. However, it's important to note that your experience cannot be generalized. Like any other country, Korea has its dark side. However, living and teaching here can also be an enriching experience. I'm sure that the positive stories balance out the negative ones. So, if you want to teach in Korea, make sure you understand the culture as thoroughly as possible. Do not expect to work according to a Western way of thinking and Western cultural practices; it simply doesn't work that way.

[@jusblaze99]

CAP

[@nikicarrie4071]

It can bc others are speaking out

[@sunstricken]

Those who say good things are quite possibly also doing so under the fact that saying anything bad about Korea can get any of us in trouble. Those defamation laws are no joke. And she's even said in the beginning that it IS her experience. Many people do have horrible experiences but as always there's a swift comment from people who defend Korea and try to downplay ANYTHING negative. Let's normalize being able to LISTEN to critiques also realizing that good experiences are just individualized experiences or from Stockholms.

[@SomethingNewAMBW]

mmm, sounds like China 2.0, pros n cons. damn, but i can relate to a few of these when I taught in Beijing

[@natyramento9044]

I enjoyed watching your video, in SK their culture is different ( past history confusionism)

[@swhaster]

I'm very sorry about your experience. Most of these work horror stories I hear tend to be about private academies and their program directors. As far as the education system in S.K. and the pressure that is put on kids, it is my belief that they are a sophisticated form of child abuse. Even with this enormously obnoxious pressure put on kids, most private academies and schools alike are not serious about English education. The reason for hiring foreigners is to primarily provide an experience with a Westerner in classrooms. This is probably one of the reasons why so few of these foreign teachers have a degree in education and lack teaching experience. So even with the enormous pressure put on kids to do well in school, as far as the quality of actual English education is concerned, it isn't up to par. If you look at the English proficiency of an average college graduate after 10 years of English education it's underwhelming. The proof is in the pudding. I've heard that many older Korean English teachers know English grammar better than most native English speakers but lack practical language skills. They can barely speak or write in sentences.

[@CHASE88888]

I did it in Japan for 20 years different story same thing! I did a few videos on it.

[@naijacamer]

😂😂 Should we assume that your country treats foreigners better than that? 😅

[@mologadicathy9714]

😅😅😅😅😅😅

[@德语与文化]

Thats for sure actually

[@daniella8400]

Yes, way easier to immigrate to US and work them South Korea.

[@nikicarrie4071]

Better than this, yes

[@Ray-lw2rh]

Yes 100%

[@AccentAmbassadors]

Even in america company group chats will bombard you. I dont join group chats

[@themotherlander7258]

not advertising or anything, but China seems to be a better place to be an English teacher. at least they're paid competitively here

[@QUINTUSMAXIMUS]

While I understand you being disgruntled, but the X on the Korean flag is horrible. That's like an attack on all Koreans for your experience. I have worked at a couple of bad hagwons, but I wouldn't put an X on the flag. It's not respectful.

[@KuopassaTv]

You are horrible. Please stop commenting here.

[@sosukeaizen2116]

Same experience in China

[@JK-gh9ng]

The mocking accent @31:44 was wild! 😱 I believe any decisions an adult makes first requires ownership and responsibility for choices that are made rather than shifting all the blame. Don’t exactly hear any of that here which raises a lot of red flags. But I hope some self-reflection or perhaps wisdom over time can help you with viewing and accepting circumstances. Regardless, after doing teaching, “corporate” work, and teaching English overseas, hopefully you can land yourself in a situation that suits you better now.

[@makaa7049]

Exactly!!! Very well said. We are all in charge of our decisions as adults and most people who come to Korea in this day and age and have a horrible experience is mostly due to them not doing enough research. There are plenty of resources online to help you vet potential employers. You chose to come to Korea and work in a shitty job of your own accord. Nobody forced you. You signed a contract that only gave you 10 days of vacation in 1 year and you're shocked that it turned out to be a horror hagwon. I have lived in Korea for 2 years now and I've had an amazing experience. And I wasn't running away from anything in my home country, I came here to make a difference and impact student's lives. I love my job, my co-workers and most of all, my students. I highly recommend people coming here if they are interested but you have to do your due diligence, your research and don't sign shitty contracts. There are schools with good contracts here, you just have to find them.

[@propertymanager9149]

uh what in the actual fuck?

[@yasminbarry7941]

Exemples ?

[@JustmeLB-10]

Doing research doesn’t stop toxic people from doing them! WTF

[@nikicarrie4071]

This is why she's speaking out. To warn others

[@batmanlikespizza2541]

Thank you

[@jeffmccord575]

Labor laws are published in English as well

[@AccentAmbassadors]

Korean hospitals are super good , just commenting while lstening because your in position to influence including me and yeah you make me want to hate korea but i am just not so sure

[@德语与文化]

If you know the bad stuff in advance, you can mentally prepare: the basics are: Korea is extremely racist, if you are white it will be alright still, its very hard to make friends with koreans in korea (but very easy in a foreign country) hospitals are fancy but try to scam you, it helps you to avoid the traps

[@nox7282]

Unless you are subject to discrimination at the hospital from racist, colorist and xenophobic Koreans.

[@actualizinganna]

👏👏👏👏

[@KW-hk5kw]

Although I agree with some of your points, other points are making generalizations. Have been teaching in Korea for nearly 20 years and love it. Yes, I have heard of some shady English academies and practices, but I have also heard of many good cases as well. Just seems like you had a pretty crappy experience which left a bad taste in your mouth. My word of advice is before accepting a job, research the academy/school. There are forums with plenty of foreigners giving their opinions of academies/schools.

[@ritas3696]

Way to be dismissive of someone else's experience! YOU and many others have had a great experience...yay!! However, there are literally plenty of videos from people who have done their research, asked questions, etc. All the things you're supposed to do when moving to another country and they STILL ended up having a horrible experience. I would say that "bad taste" in their mouth is warranted.

[@sunstricken]

Still being armed with knowledge doesn't negate negative experiences. Also, she's not just being negative, she's providing additional information so as a WARNING video, which this is, it's good to be able to hear both sides.

[@oh_my_gochu]

She conveniently glossed over her reasons for turning down the job with EPIK (which is well known to be superior to academy jobs in every way, shape and form). She probably thought she could make an easy 2.7 per month at an academy rather than accepting an EPIK job for a lower starting salary (even though EPIK provides a month vacation and a support system for their teachers). Then she starts kicking it off with her bosses. What did she think was going to happen?

[@yolysantana7525]

Who would not want a better salary,especially someone experienced… plus most would think private academies would be a superior environment as it be better funded especially coming from the US where some of our public schools don’t have good funding. It really don’t think her reason for accepting the private school job offer invalidates the horrible employment practices described …

[@sunstricken]

Well actually -when you have a bachelors you should be paid a certain salary anyway which is also common for the US, no? 2.7 is still quite low especially since it's below minimum. It should be at 3.0 and above. 2.7 is 'high' if you worked here in the early 2000s

[@oh_my_gochu]

@@sunstricken "Should be" is a long way from "the way it is". Accept the realities of the monthly wage or go teach somewhere else. Pretty basic stuff.

[@andrewstewart5195]

Loads of mistakes made here . Korea can be a fantastic place to work. Do your homework. Don't yell at your bosses. Don't think you're better than 'these people'. And you can have a great teaching career.

[@sunstricken]

Lol. You don't even need to 'yell' at bosses, any kind of even simple questioning can be seen as disrespect. Foreigners always ask so many questions because most times, we genuinely don't know something but they get so tired of us asking questions that they don't even want to help half the times. And I say this as someone who still work here (since 2009). 'Respecting' people only mean that they will give you more work and expect you to continue to 'respect' them by doing everything they give you even though it's usually last minute things that they dump on us.

[@TapiTTwala]

You were scammed.

[@NotoriousEKB]

It's kind of hard to take this video seriously. Just because this woman was foolish enough to be swindled and chise to work at a for-profit academy does not mean Korea us a horrible place. Sounds like she romaticised and assumed instead of doing careful research.

[@propertymanager9149]

I mean shes an English teacher in asia. no one has high opinion of these idiots

[@criland1348]

Everything she’s saying is spot on. The only thing that is shocking is that Korea had a competent English teacher at their disposal and they treated her the same way they treat other English teachers which is shocking because typical English teachers in Korea are new grads looking for a travel experience. The only requirement is a bachelors in an English speaking country and a tefl certification. The whole English teacher gig in Korea is hella janky

[@propertymanager9149]

@@criland1348 they have plenty of competent English teachers they are dime a dozen Its a good thing because what they need less of is emotionally immature, under qualified recent grads.

[@SoniaKaur-ny7mf]

Is it just you don’t take women seriously? I mean for you guys in Korea for having the lowest birthrate in the world then

[@nikicarrie4071]

Well there's videos of other people saying the same its not just her

[@adjovie]

How ethnically/racially diverse were the teachers at this school?

[@nikicarrie4071]

Its terrible for black people there. One black woman teachers student actually tried to slice her with sizzors . And the parents made fun of her and physically watched her on tvs its gross . Really gross like 1940 racism

[@guy1166]

Going from one America to another America

[@yvette4933]

Great video, sadly people will still go there to teach

[@ritas3696]

I was sorta kinda trying to understand her until 29:17. Lady, you're in their country and find it "distasteful because it wasn't something you had to do in the states?!" Of course you didn't, cause that isn't our culture here. You had expectations going over there, and it sounds like you expected things to be the same as back home.. In a patriarchal society. Okay😂😂

[@Stephania_77]

Most Koreans hate it, too. They do it because they're forced to.

[@FreeTruthNow]

There's two type of people who end up teaching abroad. 1. Those looking for adventure and travel and use it as an opportunity to visit new parts of the world and make a little money. And 2. People who like to complain and see negativity in everything and think their better than others (BTY syndrome better than you) who can't find a job in say, the US or Canada cause they don't want to work fast food, who wouldn't be happy anywhere .

[@nikicarrie4071]

There are videos about this

[@ArielaShines]

Sounds ike you were dealing with direct teaching instead of creative teaching philosophy. For an American trained teacher, outside of charter schools, this can be very frustrating. You really did not adapt well to the work culture there or the way people communicate. It just was not a good fit for you s a teacher. It does sound like you had a very abusive experience though. Good job suing them and winning! Going to any job in a foreign country is a bad idea in general without solid legal patways to rely on.

[@sebastianmartin8665]

I wanna teach there, but all the pro and con videos scare me

[@keithj2010]

you must have worked for deborah bright

[@hyeonoklyoo7171]

It sounds she is exaggerating!

[@nikicarrie4071]

Shes not . Other people are saying the same thing

[@tatianalp2847]

Sadly, she's not!

[@riccia888]

Im not a teacher but is it true that in korea they eat a lot of ginseng that is why they are so smart and tall. When i was in korea they are selling me ginseng left and right even my friends went to korea said the same thing.

[@QUINTUSMAXIMUS]

Is that a joke? Ginseng doesn't make you tall. And they don't consume that much ginseng. They're taller mostly because they consume a tonne more protein including meat. In the mid 1980s, they didn't have as much protein to eat in comparison. It's not about being smart. They go to so many language, math, and piano academies and study for so many hours.

[@riccia888]

@@QUINTUSMAXIMUS its not a joke 8 heard this a hundred times. If you don’t believe me try go to a travel agency. I believe the travel agency also earned money from kick back ads to the ginseng products. Not only that there are many other products they sell when the bus stops. Its in their itinerary list.

[@Thverse2263]

Asia is very large. The countries you talk about are in East Asia.

[@nikicarrie4071]

I think she said Korea...

[@tatianalp2847]

She is only talking about one country, South Korea.

[@chocoholic5645]

What u did to Koreans national flag I s unforgivable and u crossed the line.

[@oh_my_gochu]

Yeah really. Very disrespectful and uncalled for.

[@MyName-xl1lz]

People like this think it is ok to do whatever in another country with their anger issues or depression then they complain & make vids about it. There had to be at least one positive experience or thing.. but no this whole almost hour long vid is just a negative rant.

[@nox7282]

Wow - sounds like free speech is prohibited in SK 😂 Sad!

[@nox7282]

@@MyName-xl1lzShe described the positives. You filtered that out and had an emotional reaction to the valid criticism.

[@nikicarrie4071]

No what they did to her is unforgivable. She has righhts,too and its deserved. They exploit everyone including kids that can't be helped but crossing out a flag is unforgivable. Get over yourself. You go and work and come back

[@robertsanders5873]

America 🇺🇸 is the best country period end of story

[@nikicarrie4071]

Dont go that far 😂😂

[@tatianalp2847]

Nope, it's not!

[@centgswag]

You are an education major because you don't like math and you don't want to work. And you want to 'work with children' because you want kids of your own. You volunteered yourself to a contract you didn't review to be a human tape recorder because you wanted to be a tourist.

[@alekspoljak8668]

She probably worked 10times harder than most Korean office workers who just sit at their computers pretending to look busy and taking 8hours to do something that only takes 2 lol.

[@centgswag]

@@alekspoljak8668 Working harder might not always be working smarter. Accountants and software engineers will be paid better than a delusional tourist speaking phrases in her native language on command, of course. I think the correct career choice for her would be to become a feminist HR princess or a schoolteacher, since she has the really repugnant and lazy personality for it.

[@ArielaShines]

The education major in the US is not the same as in other countries. Teachers are very we educated in several fields, including math. You do not know what you are taking about. Also, saying she is bitter because she does not have children is a low brow personal attack. Poor debate...ad hominem.... You do Hanguk no favors with this attitude. Sorry, just true. If you disagree with her, then address the issues she brings up. Teachers in the US work all year sometimes 15 hours a day, and spend so much money on the children they teach. They also have yearly continuing education. You really do not know.

[@nox7282]

You sound like the parent of a naughty, difficult South Korean child… upset that your child is failing in school 😂

[@nikicarrie4071]

You haven't worked as hard as her for one. For 2 you making things up out of your ssa. If you don't know what that means ask one of your English teachers. She don't like YOU Your really weird and invasive. You live in your mother's basement. FYI you don't have to want kids to like them. And just bc you have doesn't mean you like them. Many are abused by their own parents. Your probably the creep in this video shes talking about. Get a,life. Your sick.

[@tombows6980]

All i can say is that although these problems with hagwons are pretty common, it is unusual for epik. The korean teachers that teach in those schools are fully qualified.

[@tombows6980]

I can't really talk about my experience with epik due to the NDA we are forced to sign.

One have got to be strong. You were not a drinker in your country maintain your cultural norms. If you go don't drink ,don't let anyone push you into drinking alcohol. It is their culture not yours