As of Wednesday, April 4th, 2012 at 1:30 am (our time) we landed a job in Busan, South Korea.
Here is the story:On Tuesday night at 10:30pm we received an e-mail from a Korean man telling us (in the subject of the e-mail) "if you have not found a job Skype me". We were excited to get this e-mail, but were a little skeptical whether it was legit. Luckily our recruiter, Dan, was online so I asked him if he knew who this Korean man was.. and he did!! he said we should definitely Skype him asap. When we heard this news we were sitting in our sweats watching some TV.. so we hurried to put on a nice shirt and sat down in front of my Mac to Skype this guy. We were nervous and extremely excited. It turns out we didn't have to video chat him, we just talked with him over Skype phone (but we looked really good doing it). He asked us a few questions, such as "When do you graduate?" "Do you want a couples job" "When do you want to start?" etc. He posted a few jobs in Skype to show us what started in August (that is when we told him we thought we would start). The jobs he posted were in places we had never heard of before. We were quickly looking them up online and trying to figure out where they were. Turns out they were in the same province as Seoul. Somehow Bobby mentioned we were looking for a job near Busan. The man says," oh you want Busan, okay." and he posts a job in Busan for us to look at. Even better news is that it was a couple job, while the others were not. We preferred a couples job, but were trying to be flexible. I liked the idea of walking to work together, being able to have lunch together and talk about our day. This job in Busan was a couples job and it was in our #1 city of choice (WOO HOO). So we told him we were interested in that job. He told us it starts July 2nd, not in August.. Although we would regrettably miss our great friends wedding, we told him, "we can make that happen!" We sent him our resumes and photos of us and he e-mailed us that night (while we were sleeping) and said we have an interview with the school tomorrow and to call him at 9am his time (5pm ours). We were so excited. Screw homework, I just wanted to think about the interview and process the idea that we really might be moving to Korea.
I spent part of the afternoon (after I finished homework and classes) looking up some information about ESL job interviews, questions they might ask, and questions that I might ask them. I read online that job interviews can be very laid back and that in some cases the school already knows they want to hire you even before they interview you. This was nice to read, but I still wanted to be prepared for whatever might happen.
So we found out the school was going to phone interview us at 8pm our time. It was 7:15pm and we were sitting at home, when I got the craving for a Butterfinger blizzard. I dismissed the idea, but my fiancee insisted I should go treat myself before our interview. The ice cream shop is only a few blocks away so I said OKAY. Leaving all my notes behind, we left for ice cream).
On our way back home from DQ, we got a phone call...
I look down and instantly say "NOOOOOOO IT'S THEM!" We pulled into a parking lot and answered the phone call. It was an American girl named Emilie from the english institute. She informed us she was the teacher whose spot we would be taking (as well as her boyfriend). She was very friendly and just asked us a few basic questions such as "how will your degrees benefit you in teaching English?" and "why do you want to teach children?" We answered the questions with ease. She told us about the school, about the apartment we are taking, and even told us she was making a powerpoint and an information packet to send to the new teachers to prepare them. It was such a relief to have the interview with an American girl instead of a Korean Director just because I knew she would 100% understand my answers.
Half hour later our recruiter skypes us and asks us if we want to accept the job. We said yes. He said he will contact the school and see if they want to hire us. That night I could not sleep at all. From what I had read online, schools usually contact you that day to let you know if they want to hire you. At 2:30am (our time) my phone beeps telling me I have a new e-mail. My nerves get the best of me and I got out of bed to check my e-mail...
WE GOT THE JOB!!! I read it like 3 times and then just laid in bed. The house was dead quiet and my mind was racing with thoughts. "It is really going to happen", I thought. "We are moving to Busan!" Finally after 1 1/2 hours I wake Bobby up and tell him the news.. he is excited.. but is able to fall back asleep. I just lay there.. finally I get out of bed at 4:15 am and get ready for my shift at Starbucks that starts at 5.
That day we get a congratulations e-mail from Dan. Then, Wednesday (yesterday) we get an e-mail with our contract and an e-mail from Aggie to start working on the E2 Visa process.
So that is where we are now. It is Thursday afternoon, I am sitting here with the contract by my side. We have read it numerous times and have sent it to a few people to look over. Everything looks legit. Here are some details:
- We will be working at Corem Language Institute
- We will arrive in Korea around June 25, 2012
- We will begin work July 2, 2012
- Our contract will end February 28, 2014
- Our contract is 19 months long instead of a year because our director does't wants us to leave in the middle of their school year because it can be hard for the children. This is actually good news that they are planning ahead like that.
- We will be teaching Kinder-Middle school 5-15 year olds
- We will have a furnished private senior studio apartment that will have a, "bed, a fan, closet or clothes rack, a desk and chair, blanket, pillow, a refrigerator, a washing machine, a telephone, a stove, a TV, a kitchen, and a bathroom."
- We will have 25 classes per year of paid sick leave
- The dress code is:
- For men: dress slacks, necktie, button-down shirt, suit, appropriate shoes
- For women: skirt and blouse, dress slacks, dress, suit, appropriate shoes
Here is a great website about Busan (and other cities in Korea): http://www.travelandteachrecruiting.com/teaching-English-in-Busan-Korea.html
Here is a website for what to pack (which I am still not 100% sure what I want/should bring!)
http://www.esl4kids.net/packing.html
The average temperature in Busan in the summer is 75-80 degrees(F), with 8-12 inches of rain (July), and 77%-84% humidity. WOW... a lot different than Lewiston Idaho!!
Oh well it should be good for my skin.. right?
We are both utterly stoked.
Cheers,
Jestine and Bobby
