FAQ Korea

Q. Does it matter that you are based in Ireland and if I am not Irish?
No not at all; we recruit from all the following English speaking countries; Australia, Canada, Ireland, New Zealand, South Africa, UK & USA. We also have an office in Korea with more to follow as we expand our services.

Q. Do I need a degree before I can teach in Korea or is my TEFL certificate sufficient?
Unfortunately, all the institutes and schools we recruit for require teachers to be native English speakers and hold a recognized university degree.

Q. Is it essential to have a degree?
Yes, it is essential to have a degree and without one you would not be issued with a working visa for Korea. We would strongly advise against teaching illegally in Korea.

Q. I have a charge of assault on my criminal record from when I was 16, I will be 21 by July 09. Will this prevent me from being offered a teaching job?
The assault charge would also stand against you when it comes to being issued a visa and we could not guarantee you would be successful because of this.

Q. What is the shortest term of a contract available?
The minimum term for a contract in Korea is 12 months. Schools are generally not willing to offer shorter term contracts because of visa processing times and staff turnover levels.

Q. When is the best time to apply?
You can apply at any time that suits yourself; we will keep your details on file and then contact you roughly two months before your intended starting date. This will give you enough time to arrange your visa documents and in general prepare for teaching and living in South Korea.

Q. My partner and I are very keen on teaching in South Korea early next year. Is there accommodation available for couples?
Yes, there is accommodation available for couples; we can find positions for couples at the same school so as they can share accommodation.

Q. Can I apply with my friends?
Yes we accept groups or friends applying to teach in Korea. While we can’t guarantee positions in the same school, we will place friends close to each so you can regularly meet up.

Q. I am considering teaching English in Korea next year. Would it be feasible to bring my 16 year old daughter?
There are English speaking schools in Seoul in particular. We would suggest contacting your embassy in Korea as they should be able to assist you with a list of suitable schools for your daughter. Should you find a suitable school for your daughter and can commit to a minimum 12 month contract, please apply through our website and include the location in which you would like to live (near to daughters school, I would image) and we’ll do our best to find you a suitable teaching position.

Q. I have my C.V/Resume, but I can’t upload my photo on your website. What should I do?
Please contact us at your earliest convenience and we will have the matter resolved as soon as possible. You can also email your CV & Photo along with your preferences (student age groups, starting date, salary, location) to recruitment@tigerenglish.com

Q. What will this endeavour of teaching English cost me?
There is little cost to a teacher applying for a teaching position through Tiger English. Firstly, we don’t charge any recruitment or placement fees to teachers. However, the main costs are incurred in arranging your visa documents and once ready, sending them to our office in Korea via a reputable and safe courier (i.e. UPS, FedEx & DHL).

Teachers will also have to pay a small fee to the Korean embassy for processing your E-2 visa. Flights are paid for in advance by private schools and institutes and your accommodation will be ready upon arrival. Please note public school contracts require teachers to purchase their own flights and are then reimbursed after arrival in South Korea. Teachers should convey the cost of the flight to Tiger English, to ensure the school director is in full agreement of the flight cost.

Q. Will the school reimburse my flight if it is a 1st class or Business class ticket? It was the only one available on the day I would prefer to depart.
No, the school will only pay for an economy ticket.

Q. Currently I am living in London, will it be a phone interview or will I have to do a personal interview?
All interviews are telephone interviews. We recommend you supply both a mobile/cell phone & landline telephone number to ensure the interviewer can contact you at the designated interview time. 

Q. Is it possible to stay for longer than one year?
Yes, it is possible to stay longer than a year. Schools generally encourage teachers to extend their contract, as this benefits the school and students. You would most likely receive a higher salary upon resigning for your school. If you want to continue teaching in South Korea but you wish a change of location, contact our team and we can go through your options both in Korea and in other Asian countries.

Q. Should I try negotiating salary before I’m interviewed or during my job interview?
Of course you can, but we would recommend waiting until after the interview. If you are offered the position it may then be possible to negotiate salary. To ask before the interview might not go down well as you can imagine. If you don’t have any teaching experience and relevant TEFL qualifications, the task of negotiating salary can be all the more difficult. We would recommend having attainable salary expectations, based of qualifications and experience.    

Q. Why is Starting Date on my contract blank?
This is something not to worry too much about. Why most schools leave it blank is because your starting date may vary depending on when your visa is released and flight availability. Your E-2 working visa will last for 12 months, so your first day in the school after your arrival is your correct starting date.

Q. I have received a contract offer from a school, what should I do to secure it?
Once you have received a job offer, we recommend you carefully read through your contract and any other information Tiger English has provided you about the school, location and contract. Then we would recommend returning a signed and dated scanned copy of the contract to our office via email. If you procrastinate for too long, the school may move on to the next available candidate. It has happened in the past so to avoid disappointment, we ask teachers to make a prompt decision and return their contract signed as soon as they are ready to accept the job. Of course, if you have questions about your contract, contact our staff right away and they will go through it with you or they will have the school provide clarity on any points. 

Q. Can I avail of the Housing Allowance in the contract?
The housing allowance section is only stated in the contract for teachers who are already in Korea or wish to seek their own accommodation. We would not really recommend apartment hunting for teachers who are new to Korea. From experience, we know how difficult this can be and it would only add to the stress of moving overseas. It is also much better to know some other teachers first, so maybe in your second year you can share the burden of rent with them. The housing allowance may not cover the total cost of an apartment on your own.

Q. Do I need a TEFL Course?
You do not need a TEFL course in order to apply for a teaching position in South Korea. Although, some teachers find it beneficial to complete one and it would also make you a more attractive candidate to employers.

Q.  Can I obtain a TEFL qualification online?  Do I really need one?
A TEFL course is not required but may prove helpful in getting a position as well as actually teaching day to day, an online course would also be fine.

Q. Do you have to start working at the beginning of the semester or is it a month by month job.  If it must be at the start of the semester, when would that be?
Jobs are available on a monthly basis, so you can basically choose what month would suit you best to start teaching. Just for your own information, the public school year semesters commence in February/March and August/September but they have little relevance on the private institute/academy positions where most of the TEFL jobs are available to university graduates.

Q. I would much prefer to teach elementary level English and the job offer I have received involves teaching some adult classes. I’m a bit unsure about teaching adults as I don’t have any teaching experience.
Teaching adults may sound more difficult than it actually is. I should point out that it isn’t the age but rather level of English that you are concerned about. Just because they are adults doesn’t mean that they will be anywhere near fluent in English.

Overall the standard of English in Korea is low, especially among many adults. Teaching adults does have its advantages just as teaching kids does. Teaching adults can involve working on more interested subject matter/topics, while you won’t have any problems with classroom management when dealing with adults. After all, adults are there to learn English of their own freewill and learning English generally helps open up career opportunities for them, so it can be very rewarding teaching adult classes. I would recommend doing a little extra preparation for adult classes, just to keep these classes interesting.

Q. How are lessons taught?
All classes are taught through English from course books that are provided by the school. The native English teacher is expected to cover the coursework within the prescribed time. Teacher guides & supplements are generally available with each course.

Q. Will I be a teacher’s aide?
Whether you are in a private institute or public school, you will have a co-teacher. The workload is split between you both. Your Korean English teacher will handle areas where say grammar needs to be taught through Korean, while conversation and reading skills are often better taught by native English teachers. It’s important to build a good working relationship with your co-teacher to get the rest of out of your students.

Q. Are there jobs available in Korea during Christmas break for three months?
Tiger English does not have any clients interested in taking teachers for less the minimum commitment period of 12 months.

Q. How much money do I need until my first payday?
We would usually say about 600-700 euro or equivalent in your local currency for your first month just to be on the safe side, but an advance on your salary can be arranged if you need extra funds to see you through to your first payday.

Q. Is it not possible to get my degree certificate/scroll in advance of my graduation for situations like this?
From our experience and the feedback we’ve received from other teachers, universities refuse to issue degree scrolls before the official graduation date.

Q. When will get my Degree/Diploma scroll returned to me?
After arriving in Korea, you should ask your supervisor or director for your degree scroll as it would have been returned to the school after Immigration finished with it.

Q.  How long does it take for the application to be processed?  I get my graduation certificate (Bachelor of Business) in 2 weeks so when would be the soonest that I could start?
Once you have all your visa documents, it can take 6-8 weeks from interview to boarding a plane for Korea (All going to plan with your interview, contract and visa).
It mostly depends on how prepared you are in relation to visa documents, what your job preferences are & how flexible you are on locations. For example, if you are determined to teach adults in say a small popular tourist island like Jeju-do, it may take much longer to arrange an interview and competition will be much higher.

Q. My transcripts are signed but not stamped, will they be accepted?
No, they must be in a sealed envelope, stamped on the seal of the envelope with your university’s official stamp and there must be a signature of the person who prepares/releases your transcripts accompanying the university stamp on the envelope seal. This is a security measure used by Korean immigration to avoid teachers handing in fraudulent transcripts.

Q. What if the courier opens by sealed transcripts?
Unfortunately if they do open the sealed envelope, a second set will be required. We’ve had some instances of this in the past but not for 6-8 months at time of writing. Some couriers supply document envelopes and this can reduce the risk of customs opening the sealed envelope. It may be worthwhile mentioning it to the courier when he/she picks up your documents.

Q. Is there anything else we need to do now or do we need to wait until we get our visas back from immigration?
There isn’t anything else you really need to be doing at this point except preparing to leave for Korea i.e. packing, arranging finance, vaccinations and farewell parties!

Q. Can you just explain the Japan visa hop please? How long would I be in Japan for? Is it just fly there and back without staying? To which city do I fly?
Once your visa has been issued to you by Korean Immigration, your school will book a weekend-return flight to Japan usually Osaka. You would exit Korea on your tourist visa and then re-enter on your new working visa. Note: This is just for teachers who have arrived in Korea before their working visa is arranged at the request of schools. If you have entered Korea on your E-2 working visa, this does not apply to you.

Q. Who Will Pay For Your Trip (when undertaking a visa hop)?
The school will generally pay for your flight and accommodation while travelling to Japan. It may be prepaid or reimbursed depending on your school.

Q. What are the restrictions on baggage and hand luggage?
The weight restriction on an economy class ticket is 20 – 25kg. You should check your ticket or consult with our travel agent. 20kg would generally be a full 100 litre Rucksack. You can also bring one piece of hand luggage so you may want to put more delicate or heavy items in it. If you’re bringing a laptop, that’s usually fine, and not counted as your one piece of allowable hand luggage. If you have questions about this, you can speak to our travel agent before departure for clarity as rules can vary or change.