South Korea

South Korea is by far the most popular destination for ESL teachers, this is due in part to the financial benefits that Korea has to offer.

Firstly a foreign teacher’s basic salary is quite generous in comparison to the local salary. As part of the standard package on offer to foreign teachers, the teacher will receive free return flights to their home country, free accommodation, a month’s salary as a bonus and 50% of a teacher’s medical insurance will be paid by the school.

The above offer is however conditional on the teacher completing a 12 month contract with the school.

South Korea has about 11,000 foreign teachers living and teaching there at any one time. This basically means that wherever you find yourself in South Korea you probably won’t be the only foreigner there!

In the following subsections we have detailed all of the relevant information that teachers require and have requested over the years. Everything from the financial rewards available to your need-to-know visa documentation and application process to some background info such as a brief history of Korea to the vaccinations that are recommended you get prior to arriving.

To begin with here is some basic information on Korea and the topics covered on our site are listed below or you can follow the main menu tree.

Official Name: Republic of Korea (abbrv. ROK)

Population: 50 Million

Capital: Seoul

Language: Hanguel / Korean,

Religion: 25% Christians, 25% Buddhism, 50% local philosophies.

Currency: Won

Money Matters - Teacher Benefits - How to apply - Application & Visa - Telephone Interview - Vaccination & Packing - Teachers Duties - Nightlife & Activities - Shopping - Internet & Phones -  Korean History - Time Zone & Weather