DREAM ESL
Working in Korea







So you're thinking of choosing Korea. While most teachers ask a lot of questions, much of the time these are the wrong questions. We will try to help you by answering the questions that you should be asking before going to teach abroad anywhere.


What is the social life like?

The greatest aspect to Korea is that it is entirely what you make of it. Some choose to enjoy their surrounding areas, make good friends and stay in one area, others travel to Seoul every weekend to enjoy the city. The best part is, whatever suits your personality is readily accessable.

What is the real cost of living?
Relatively cheap, but it entirely depends on you. It is cheap to eat basically everywhere. Kalbi, a Korean barbeque of different types of meat will run you about $10 with a bottle of soju, this is however a more social night out. If you are eating alone, you can expect to spend anywhere from $1 to $5 for a meal. A night on the town, if you are in a more suburbian area will run you around $10 for drinks and anjoo (snacks) If you want to visit Seoul's club district, expect to spend more. Entry into most clubs is $10-$15 dollars and drinks range anywhere from $5-$8. The subway does not run 24 hours a day, so most people living outside of the central club district will stay in the club until 5:30 am when the subway starts up again. Hotels will run you about $40-$50 if you are comfortable with modest accomodations. Sauna houses are a more economical option at about $7 but you do not have a private room, and sleep on a mat on the floor.

Travelling around Korea is fairly cheap, Seoul to Busan is one of the furthest trips (North West to South East)and will run you about $20 on the bus

What are the real working hours?
In all actuallity the working hours tend to be far less than typically advertized. Most jobs will advertise at 30 hours per week, a typical position will see you in class less than 25. MInd you the time advertized is infact teaching time, not working hours. You are not required to be at the school in most cases during breaks and lunch. If you fall under the allotted 30 hours per week you boss reserves the right *although most don't* to ask you to help out in other areas. What are the real living conditions?
Do I need to learn Korean to survive?
What is the food like?
What are the bars/clubs like?
What are the laws and how do they affect me?
Am I getting a pension?
What activities are there to participate in?
What is the cost of travelling like?
What is the Korean culture like?
How do I get around Korea?
Is Korea safe?
What are the kids like?
What items are not available in Korea?