Note: This post is part of a series about the logistics of getting a job teaching abroad in South Korea. If you just want to hear about our fun adventures (not paperwork and visas) stop reading. When I did my research I never found a site that talked about the job process from beginning to end, so that is what I’m doing with this series. Enjoy and I hope it helps!
At this point you’ve done your research, applied to the recruiters and/or schools by email, and are hopefully getting responses asking for interviews! The two ways of going about the process (recruiter or school directly) have very different interview stages, so I’ll address them separately. First, however, some general tips on interviews:
- You will be speaking to someone in Korea, so depending on your time zone it’s likely that they will want to schedule the interview very late at night (I had one at 1:30am) or super early in the morning (6am).
- Make sure to ask whether the interview will be by phone or by Skype. I found that the recruiters tend to use Skype while the schools tend to use the phone. If it’s super expensive for you to receive international calls, you might set-up a Skype phone number and give that to them instead of your cell phone.
- Go to a distraction-free place to do the interview. At best the person to whom you speak will have slightly broken English, at worst you will barely be able to understand them. I had both experiences and had to concentrate really hard to understand my interviewers.
- Dress up for the interview, even if they can’t see you! It helped me, at least, be professional and feel more prepared.
- Smile and act excited and enthusiastic!
- Speak clearly; they are hiring you for your voice after all.
- Be prepared for the questions: Why do you want to come to South Korea, and why did you choose South Korea over other countries?
- Ask questions! This might be your life for a year (or more!), so don’t be afraid to ask any question you want. My suggestions (a.k.a, what I wish I would have asked!) include: How much time off do I get and is it paid? Do I get sick days? Do the teachers at your school renew their contracts? Can I have the contact information of a current teacher? How long has your school been in business? What will my class sizes be? What will my living arrangements be and how far will I have to walk to get to the school?
The Interview Process with Recruiters:
After you apply, the recruiters will ask you for an interview. This is just to make sure you are a real person and can speak decent English without too much of an accent. These interviews generally take about ten minutes and are short and to the point. They will then ask you to start the paperwork process (my next post) and get back to them when you have your FBI background check. Again, this doesn’t mean that you are hired, only that the recruiters are starting to match you with schools that might potentially hire you.
Skip ahead a few steps (and a few weeks): you email them the documents and they match you with a school or two. The recruiter then sets up the interview time between you and the school. Often they will email you before the interview as a reminder and an encouragement, which is nice. The interview I had with the school that my recruiter connected me with was pretty short, about a ½ hour. The lady who interviewed me spoke very broken English but I was able to understand her. After the school interview, you call the recruiter and tell them how it went and whether or not you want to accept the job (if it was offered). This is as far as I went with a recruiter.
The Interview Process with a School:
Since there is no middleman, only one interview is needed. However, an interview video is a must-have when dealing directly with schools! They will ask for it; be prepared to email them the link. Ideally the link would be in your initial email.
Disclaimer: I only dealt with one actual school, so this might not be the norm. However, this was my experience: In response to my initial email, the school asked for an interview video. I made the video at 1am (not recommended!) and sent the link. They watched it that night and I was asked for a phone interview. It took place at 11pm and lasted 1 ½ hours (by far my longest interview). The school director was fairly easy to understand and super nice. She did ask me some rather personal questions (like, “do you want to have children”!!) but the majority of the interview was her talking about the school. I learned later that she called my references directly after the interview!
Bonus “Interview”: a Current Teacher
Hopefully in your school interview you got the contact information of a current teacher. DON’T ACCEPT THE JOB BEFORE TALKING TO THEM. I can’t emphasize this enough. They will be able to tell you things that the contract/job info/interview won’t. Ask them if they like the school, what the living conditions are like, if the boss is nice/professional (this is essential…), if they plan to renew next year, and if they have any suggestions/tips for you.
As always, if you have any questions about any part of the process, sound off in the comments! Blessings!
Wandering about, wondering about. 