Korean society makes a sharp distinction between an individual's inner circle of family, friends and business colleagues, and outsiders. Members of the inner circle must always be treated with absolute respect and courtesy, while strangers are treated with indifference. Korean society is not egalitarian: a person's status is strictly defined in relation to others. How do foreigners fit into this scheme? The simple answer is they don't.

Most Koreans who travel abroad do so in group tours, which limit their interaction with the foreign environment. Korean society thus remains very inwardly focused.

Living in Korea as a foreigner requires patience and fortitude. Most foreigners have found that Koreans can be quite friendly and warm

The apartment you live in will be comfortable.  Typically the schools offer single, bachelor style apartments for their teachers. 

That means you should expect to have a kitchen, a bathroom, and an open-concept bedroom/living room.

It will be furnished for you with a bed, dresser, TV, likely a VCR or DVD player, hot plate, dishes, a washing machine, and other such items. Many places also have air conditioning. 

Apartments are also available in 1-2 or 3 bedroom options. Should you decide to have roommates. Your apartment will typically be within walking distance of your school. In a case where you require transportation, your employer will be responsible for getting you to and from school.

Yes, you will meet tons of teachers from all over the world. It is easy to develop new friendships with teachers from Canada, the United States, England, Ireland, Whales, Scotland, South Africa, New Zealand and Australia.

You will likely be living alone. A few years ago, the norm was to live with a roommate. These days, most schools offer single acommodations for their teachers. 

Although, there is a chance that the schools you apply to have two-bedroom apartments. You will be fully aware of the living arrangements before signing a contract.

Yes, it is.  If you decide to take on this adventure alone as many do, you will quickly find that there are tons of social opportunities.

There will be a lot of people with similar interests as you, since you share the attributes of enjoying travel, being independent, and taking on adventure. Before long, you will develop a new circle of friends.

I encourage you to get to know some locals in addition to getting to know other foreigners. Get to know people who have a totally different life experience. You will learn a lot.

 Korean food is delicious and healthy. Whether you are a meat lover or vegetarian, Korea has what you are looking for. The diet is very healthy and many English teachers live a very healthy lifestyle. I would recommend visiting a Korean restaurant in your city to try it out! Fresh markets and grocery stores are abundant so you can always make your favorite dishes just as you do in your native country.

Yes, most schools provide free language lessons for teachers. Also, you will have a lot of time to learn on your own while teaching in the classroom. The language is easy to write and speak. You will be amazed at how fast you will learn Korean just from working in the classroom. The students will teach you while you are teaching them!

Public transportation in Korea is fantastic and cheap. It is very popular as most teachers do not own cars. The taxis, buses and trains are cheap and operate 24 hours a day. Taking a 10 minute taxi ride might only cost you $2 at most. Some people buy motorcycles or scooters to get around but this is risky as there are tons of motorists on the road.

Yes, you can buy any of these and many English teachers do.

Please keep in mind that public transportation is clean, cheap, quick, easy, and always available.  The same applies to taxis.

To operate a motor vehicle in South Korea, you must have an international driver’s license.  To obtain this license you must bring your license to be inspected and have some photos taken.  You can do this at home before leaving at your local CAA, AAA or local license bureau. 

As you only work 30 hours a week, you will have lots of free time. A popular past time is private karaoke rooms. You can rent a room for $5 per hour and they have many English songs. Also, you can learn Taekwondo, the Korean national sport or you can travel around the country. Some teachers also choose to continue their education by working on a Masters degree while overseas. You can do pretty much anything you like just as you do in your home country.

Yes, you will get 10 days paid vacation, plus 15 national paid holidays. That is a total of 25 days paid holidays per year!

Yes, you will have a lot of time to travel.  Korea has 15 National holidays, plus you have weekends and your vacation days.

Since Korea is geographically small, it is easy to hop on a bus or train on the weekend and get to various destinations.

On weekends, you can adventure around to other locations in Korea! Also during holiday time you can go to any other countries in Southeast Asia. Japan and China are very close by. Traveling within Asia is very cheap, a fraction of what flying costs in your native country.

There are 24 hour internet cafes on just about every street corner in Korea. These “PC rooms” are all over Korea. You can use the computer for an hour for only $1.50. The internet is very fast and efficient in Korea. You can also get internet hooked up in your apartment. If you have a notebook, or plan to bring/buy a computer, you can also get high-speed access in your apartment. Your school will help you set this up.

You can get a phone in your apartment and chances are there will already be one in your apartment. The cost is about $5 a month. Cell phones are very common and just about everybody has one, as they are very cheap.

 Most teachers purchase prepaid long distance calling cards. These can be purchased at any convenience store, which are open 24 hours a day. This is a great way to avoid running up a huge long distance bill on your apartment phone. If you just call on your landline without a calling card, you could be paying a $1 per minute. I recommend using an online telephone service to call home such as Skype. They are often free and easy to use.

 Absolutely! Most people who are teaching in Korea love to get together and socialize. You will find that you have so much in common with people as you all are teaching and traveling the world! There are many existing social groups that include ultimate Frisbee teams, touch rugby teams, hockey teams, softball teams, hiking and outdoor clubs. There are so many great opportunities to meet new friends and experience new things!

Yes! Keep in mind that teaching (especially teaching English) is a highly respected profession in Korea. Koreans are very kind and friendly and will go out of their way to make you feel at home. They love meeting foreigners and often when you are walking down the street, many will stop and say hi or mention you look like Brad Pitt or Angelina Jolie!

Cell phones are very popular and cheap in Korea and I would recommend you get one.      This way you can program your director's number and friend's numbers into your phone and if you ever have any problems, you have someone to call.

Yes, you can.  Dogs are quite popular as pets in Korea, although cats are not as popular.

You must make sure that your pet has been vaccinated and has received its rabies shot at least 30 days before arriving in Korea. 

There is also a fee charged by the airline, and certain restrictions may apply.  Most airlines have a section on pets on their site. For example:

http://www.aircanada.com/en/travelinfo/airport/baggage/pets.html

Also, you can visit this link for detailed info on the vaccines and process required for bringing your pet to Korea:
http://www.airport.or.kr/iiacms/pageWork.iia?_scode=C1202010700&fake=1146343475524

No, you do not need any ESL training course to be considered for employment in Korea. For university positions, additional ESL training courses may enhance your resume and better your chances of being hired. University jobs require a year or more teaching experience in Korea.

It is not recommended to break a contract because it looks bad and it may be difficult to get another job in Korea. If you have to leave for a legitamit reason, employers can be flexible and arrange for you to leave and return home. If you want to terminate your contract, you must give your employer 2 months notice first so they can find a replacement. Your employer will then give you a release letter to terminate the contract. It is important to get a release letter because with out one, you won't be able to work in Korea for 5 years.