Teach ESL Korea

I just wanted to make a little post about how I actually managed to end up in Korea.

There are a few ways to apply for EPIK (English Program in Korea)/ SMOE (Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education):

• Directly to EPIK/SMOE
  
• Through an EPIK coordinator
• Through a university
• Through a recruiter

I went via a recruiter because the application process is long and very very technical, and I wanted to have someone to answer my questions/guide me through the process. There are many credible recruiters out there, and a lot of scammers. A way you can tell if you are being scammed, is if the recruiter is asking you for payment. EPIK/SMOE pays the recruiters for its applicants so you shouldn't have to pay them anything. That being said, you will need to pay for other associated costs, such as photocopies, VISA, passport if you need it, school transcripts and the like.

I went with TeachESLKorea since I had heard good things about them from current EPIK/SMOE teachers in Korea. Their website was well put together, informative, and user friendly. They seemed to know what they were talking about and had placed teachers not only in Seoul but also in Korea, so I thought they were a reliable recruiter. The fact that I am now teaching in Korea is a testament to their credibility.

TeachESLKorea is run by Dan & Aggie and they are extremely professional, proficient, and friendly. Any questions I had were answered in a timely manner, and they always kept me in the loop (especially during the dreaded waiting process which was basically weeks of not knowing anything while EPIK/SMOE looked over all applications). Aggie handled my case specifically, and she went above and beyond to make sure I was being taken care of during each of the many steps of applying with EPIK/SMOE. She would even send follow up emails to check on how I was...even after I landed in Korea.

I can't say enough good things about Dan, Aggie & TeachESLKorea. If you are thinking about teaching in Korea and are debating how to apply, I would highly recommend going through a recruiter, and TeachESLKorea at that :)