Glad i found your video! Ive been in Korea for a really long time. Ive met tons of foreigners here and have heard a LOT of stories, both positive and negative, however around me, the majority are positive and a lot of the foreigners I know have been here for a long time and most likely will stay here for the long term, like me. If you are unhappy with the system, the system won't change, so perhaps try 1 of 2 things. 1, change how you think about it. Yes it's a business, but its only successful if the students are improving. The students are joining that academy because they are trying to enter better schools and have better futures, so if they improve, you actually ARE making a huge impact on their future. 2, perhaps try finding a different job at a public school or a university, it's a completely different vibe and setting. I will say, the longer you stay, the harder it is to leave, ive seen this a lot and lots of people who leave end up coming back. Just some thoughts! Looking forward to more videos from you!
thank you for ur insight! i completely agree with you, at the end of the day, if the kids are improving and getting something out of the hagwons then the teachers have successfully done their jobs! it's very interesting that you said that a lot of people come back to korea even after leaving, something for me to think about~
It's a scam as they only want those speakers from white countries like UK, Australia, Canada, USA & non from some Caribbean countries where english is the prime language. But of course, now & then they have to cover their act. Think people. 99.99999999999% Koreans don't speak english to each other, so why are they learning it. It's not 1 of their official languages.
What do you mean like British decent? Should be alright for like a year but I’ve never heard a positive story for longer then that unless they start their own company or something
Thanks for making this video! I'm making a solo trip in 2 weeks trying to evaluate if I want to live there someday, for which I feel like you've turned my hard maybe into still a hard maybe. For my advice for you, me being a 29 year old living mostly-happily in the northeast US: I feel like you've already done the hardest part. You survived your first year, and then you survived your second year, and you got teaching experience in Korea. I feel like things will only get easier for you if you keep going. Of course, based on everything you've said, it would also be perfectly reasonable to leave, and then if you did you could always come back. At the same time, if you stay, you can maybe find a drastically different place to teach, a different area to live in, or change anything else within your control. I think you can legitimately be happy living in either place. Sorry to give such a non-answer :D Follow your heart, and don't regret whichever choice you make.
Thank you for sharing your experience in Korea. I agree with the realities of teaching, but It's still a unique opportunity that most countries do not have the chance to take part in ( non-native speakers like me are excluded). I don't have the opportunity myself, but have American teacher friends who still enjoy it despite the low pay and business focus. Subscribed, looking forward to your next content!
If you don't have anything tying you down to Korea, I would leave for at least a year and go back to Canada and start working there. That way you can get a clear comparison of which place you enjoy more. You can always travel back to Korea later. I lived in Korea and am glad I left. I would have only stayed if I had gotten married with this Korean chick but glad I did not because she was insane lol.
Here my advice to you…choose something you know you'll enjoy and that offers plenty of job opportunities. Social work is an excellent choice because it provides a clear career path and allows you to explore various fields such as administration, case management, counselling, education etc. It's not limited to one specific area, so if you lose interest in one aspect, you can pursue other avenues with the same degree. Many people spend a lot of money on degrees that don't lead to jobs or pay the bills. At this stage, focus on building your career. Once you're settled, you can explore and travel. But for now, prioritize completing your education; otherwise, you might always put it off. Time is of the essence. While you're young, use this period to build yourself and your career, ensuring you have what you need to flourish and pursue your passions. Best of luck ☺️
wow thank you for your insight!! i never knew about the different fields in social work so that's super interesting and definitely opens up the opportunities! i am interested in social work and it aligns with my psychology background, but the thing with social work that i'm worried about is that i'm still hoping to travel more in the future and i'm not exactly sure where i'll end up permanently living yet so i'm hoping to get into a career that is more globally transferrable. i feel like social work is very community based so if i get into that in canada, it'll be difficult to work in another country and build a community again if i ever decide to move :)
I think it’s important to remember that there are lots of transferable skills that will apply globally as well. If you succeed in a career path and you really excel and improve yourself those transferable skills are harder to be taught and that adds value for an employer.
@@cutthelandline also Canada right now is experiecing s housis crisis, unchecked and unsustainble immigration, fraud in univerisities due to international students, doctor shortage and food fraud bc only 3 companies control the whole food industry. Have you looked into the GKS (Global Korea Scholarship) application? If I were you I would try to do something global bc as a young person life in Canada is going to get worse not better. Trudeau has come and said verbatim "Trudeau says real estate needs to be more affordable, but lowering home prices would put retirement plans at risk". If you're going to be living paycheck to paycheck and not be able enojy anything, honestly....might as well move to a country you like. Sorry to scare but as a person wanting to move out of the country before it collapses and becomes argentina (look up what happened to them) i feel like you're in the perfect situation to not have to deal with all these things.
When you know it's your time to go, you just KNOW. The expats all told me that and being the indecisive person I am, I thought that wouldn't be possible. But it was. When you know, you know.
I will say a lot of what she says echos my experiences in other foreign countries I've lived & taught English in. Most of the immigration officials were rude, unhelpful and make you feel unwelcome. The school themselves even when working for public or private its about money. How much they can make and how little they can get away with paying you while also making you do 3 to 4 times the work of the average teacher in the schools. At one point I was teaching per week 900 to 1k students. The average teacher might teach 56 to 200 students. So yeah I feel for this lady. Either you learn to accept the culture, the prejudices, the scams and just the pure abusive stuff some locals will say in their native language about you thinking you don't know what they are sayiing.
Plenty of great English speaking hair salons here (Lucy Hair, Cutting Point, Hair n' Joy and many of the Juno Hair places). For dentists there is Esarang in Gongdeuk, The Oaks in Gangnam among others. Agree mostly about the part time stuff but as a Canadian you get a Working Holiday Visa and do exactly that, part time. I know many WHV holders here and they all have non teaching jobs. The important thing is networking.
Thank you for all the suggestions~ ☺️ from what i understand the working holiday visa is a great option for a short time stay, after that I’d still have to switch to a long term visa. And totally agree, networking is so important!
It’s so unfortunate that if you decide to move to Korea right after graduating and don’t want to teach or go to grad school there that there are not may opportunities for you (legally) there. For me personally the reasons why I want to move to korean and “plan” on living there long term is 1) I have been studying korean for 3 years and I don’t really have many opportunities to use it in the US. 2) I plan on doing my last semester of college online and with the money I have saved (form part time jobs) would barely last me 6 months in NYC. 3) In the past year I have been to Korea twice (3 months at a time) and I have made a life for myself there which is way I feel so lonely and sad in the states. With all of that said, I am worried about how my opinions will change once I finish my working holiday and after I’ve done a year of teaching. I’m afraid that I’ll want to leave after 2 years because I can’t really grow career wise there (or at least it will be very hard to). So I’m honestly not sure what advice I have for you. If you want to grow career wise go back to Canada but if you really want to stay in korean longer and you don’t want to go back to teach, I’d recommend getting a working holiday visa.
hi sweets! happy to see you back and always happy to read your comments~ yeah the thing is, i did want to move to korea to teach so i'm really happy i did make the move and i honestly have no regrets! after graduation, i still think this was the best thing for me to try something completely new. i think now i'm at the point where i do still really like korea but i also want to build out my career more so my priorities have changed after gaining some more life experience. i like the idea of a working holiday visa though, but i think i'd have to go back to canada to gain some marketing experience so that i can apply to a korean company~! i hope your future korea adventures are all that you hoped for! what do you study? perhaps your studies can help you get a E-6 visa for a more long term stay and grow your career :)
@@cutthelandline I’m studying marketing and design, which would unfortunately fall under the E7 version, but since I’m moving to Korea a semester before I graduate, There’s gonna be no way for me to qualify for that visa. My plan is to maybe get a scholarship and go to grad school or try English teaching.
@@imaginary-yl2cw oops yeah I meant E7 visa haha. E7 is a great option and marketing jobs are definitely a good route for a longer stay in Korea, best of luck!! 🥳
Marketing in Atlanta is actually code for scam, when it comes to job applications- be careful ❤ I found myself in a similar bind when I was forced to leave my home city after rent prices doubled. I miss it. Every day is a struggle. I hope the best for you, that you get to live in the place you like without sacrificing too much of your peace
@@cutthelandline it may be as legit as essentially a call center, but won’t pay minimum wage, or anything hourly. None of the pay is guaranteed, only commission; however, it doesn’t work like a regular marketing job in that regard, where your commission would be larger (like for selling printers) Instead you’d make a small commission based on your success over the phone. Usually I think it has to do with health insurance or union benefits (this is in America; it’s obviously not the same scam in countries with better healthcare). I’ve also seen ppl just walking around the city with cardboard boxes of stuff, you’ll get a position selling the items in one of these boxes by answering an ad for a marketing job. This is all based off of my own experience from 9-6 years ago. My friend, however, still lives in the city and has mentioned most of the job opportunities being scams, without mentioning marketing specifically. Ironically we both ended up substitute teaching, with can be kind of demoralizing at times but at least is legit as a job. Not trying to comment on what is best for you, because that is your decision and only yours. But I sincerely hope that you find happiness wherever you choose to go, or stay. ❤️
hiii mabel!! thank you for sharing your perspective of working in Korea! i believe that at the end of the day, you should do what you think is best for you, what setting would be most effective for you, or which option you see yourself having a future with! wishing you all the best!!
i haven't heard of other people talking about this, so hopefully it's helpful in getting a better understanding of what living in korea is REALLY like! do you agree? what are some pros & cons that you can think of? AND any advice about life would be very much appreciated~~~
I struggled twice when I was there when it came to buying something. One was at a convenient store. The cashier was a big of an older lady, like grandma age or mom of teenagers. Like around that age. I gave her my t-money card and money to put on it. I didn't think I needed to communicate much but she got frustrated because I wasn't speaking Korean to her. She gave me my money and card back. Another place wasn't rude but it was stressful. Lol Mcdonalds. It was crowded, fast paced, and busy. While ordering, about 2 or 3 workers helped me. They showed me the menu and asked me to pick something. It was just a little stressful I admit.
yeah there are definitely some bad eggs wherever we go. i think for me, the culture and language barrier here can sometimes make me feel really rushed and pressured. which is why 'pedal' (food delivery) is so convenient for me haha
New viewer who stumbled across your channel just now, curious what you decided on? Whatever you pick I hope you enjoy it and don't feel locked in for good since you're really so young
Your teaching experience feels like my very first teaching job in Japan. If you haven’t made a decision yet, you can always go back to Korea. I ended up doing two stints in Japan.
@@cutthelandline while you will always have a job and always be able to find one, for what you have to put up with the pay isn’t worth it, burnout is high dealing with other people’s emotions and issues as well as your own becomes too much to do. You get tired of it real fast. A lot of headache and not enough relief from it. If you do administrative social work you may get a bit of a break but there is also a lot of paperwork associated with that and in social work in general. It may seem like there are a lot of services to assist people but there isn’t and what is available is tied up in red tape, thus increasing your frustration. The client think you are their savior when they get to you but you become the devil when you can’t help. If I could go back, I would not have chosen this in hindsight but each journey is a lesson and I have definitely learned and grown from doing this job. Looking for my way out 🤷🏾♀️.
안녕하세요~ 한국생활 진짜 많이 힘들어요 ㅜ. 케나다가 좋죠~ 그리고 한국어가 가능한 상황에서의 한국생활하고, 한국어가 안되는 상황에서의 한국생활하고 편차가 클꺼에요. 그리고 한국인들이 영어 울렁증이 있어요, 외국인이 영어로 말할까봐 많이 무서워해요. 싫어서 그러는거는 아니에요 ㅋㅋ 어느 곳에 머무르시던 행복하세요~
The visa policies in Korea need to change asap for the sake of the economy here. More immigrants are needed but there's almost no way to actually migrate to Korea.
I would go back to Canada..get a teaching degree / M.Ed. You can always just vacation in korea during the summer when school isnt in session in vancouver. I think more options you have the better. Ive travelled to korea many times. The novelty fades.
yeah i think if i go back to canada i would have to consider which career route to take as well. not sure if i'd like going into education right now but the benefit of the long vacations would be so nice haha
@cutthelandline you also want to consider how automatable is the career and whole bunch of other factors. AI is getting better everyday. In about 20 years we might get something close to AGI. Working as a kindergarten teacher for example unlikely to be replaced by robots lol plus kinders are sooo cute !!
@@cutthelandline my 2 main issues with S.Korea were: lack of variety of cuisines. Yes u can have italian or greek or chinese food but i think vancouver has a better selection and more authentic. Also Korea is colder than calgary in the winter and hotter than toronto in the summer. I like visiting korea every few years to meet friends but i would rather live in a SE asian country
your video came up on my feed! interesting perspective. I'm from Toronto and just came back from 1 month in Korea. Loved my time there! You're lucky you get to teach english and live in korea for an extended period of time. I'll check out some of your other vids!
I didn't know it was so hard to get Visa in Korea. Korea has the lowest birth rate and is always trying to get tourists to visit Korea. So I don't understand why Korea is making it so difficult for people wanting to stay or work there. It defies logic and things need to change in Korea. They need more people to come to Korea.
right?! i mean from what i've heard getting visas in any country is going to be complicated but the english teaching industry here makes it even harder to stay in korea considering the cons :/
If you are a native English speaking person teaching English in Korea, you are officially just a marketing aid for them. This girl has a little more advantage with the kids because she is Asian herself and the kids will be suspicious if she actually understands what they’re saying and can relay to the parents. The Koreans that speak both languages are the actual educators. With no Korean language ability, you offer nothing to them except being the face of their school. You become a glorified babysitter for kids under 10yo. Once they are around 11-12, they can communicate on a basic level and actually learn some things.
In my experience, Korea is such a fun place to visit! Of course it depends on what type of travelling you’re looking for tho. If I could figure out the work visa situation, I would live in Korea permanently because the pros outweigh the cons for me haha
That's not true about needing a car to live in Vancouver. Many areas it's better not to have a car/ Out in the burbs tho. Yes you better have a car. Having a car in the West End isn't the best.
Bro canada blows but being a hagwon teaching slave is even worse for your mental health 😅 I returned to america and yah at first i regretted it because america is so overpriced but my mental health improved fast within 2 months I do live near beaches 😅 tho in florida and an hour from orlando so lots to do But i did 4 years in korea teaching hagwons And my mental health was down the drain and i didnt wanna admit it 2 years in seoul and 2 years in jeju If i were you i would at least do 2 years in Korea Travel to other parts of Asia too while you're there Canada is not going anywhere and canada much like america is going through a terible awkard phase 😅 I will say i missed asia after 1 year back in america so I'm moving to tokyo in September
wow that's exciting that you're moving to tokyo!! some people have suggested to me to teach in japan. what made you decide to move to tokyo rather than coming back to korea?
@cutthelandline I always preferred japan It's just that I arrived in Korea the week korea was the second country hit by the pandemic And japan closed its borders that same week But once they opened up I kept visiting I'm a 90s kid so I grew up japan content and back then they were massive how korea is now
Hiiiii, you’re so cute 😂 thank you for sharing your story and posting this video. It takes a lot of courage to express those feelings. I’m 38 and I felt all of your “I don’t know’s” 😂 I don’t live abroad yet, but I have a dual citizenship with my home country and the US. I travel back and forth often, but I don’t know where I want to truly live :3 I’m debating the pros and cons of each too.
haha thank you for your kind words~ 😊 I think the thing I'm trying to accept is that there's no ONE right answer, just as there's no wrong answer either. We can't see the future and predict what will happen in life so maybe the best thing we can do is to choose one and do our best with that decision :)
Mabel: 만나서 반가웠고 영상 감사합니다/ Great to meet you and thank you for the videos! I lived in Korea in my 20's after living in China studying Mandarin Chinese. Lived in Busan from 1996-end of 1997, returning home as the Financial Crisis hit. Seems while not so long ago, it was also last Century or Millennium😮! I experienced what you described with a couple of scams, needing to job hop 7x in 16 months... anyhow, you were saying the (hakwons) are 'scamming the system'- what do you mean? The instructors, students, students families, &/or...? I visited Vancouver & 'Vic' in late 2007 Sept/Oct... fortunate with good weather then. I reside in Norwalk, Connecticut, USA now...Thank you and all the best!
I’m South African and Muslim. I’m considering moving to Korea to teach after my degree, but I’m honestly scared due to my religion. I’m not really sure how Koreans feel about Muslims and whether the environment will be conducive to me. But we’ll see.
Solution is for you to look for a wfh job in canada ang live in skorea. No pressure with anything there, work, visa etc and you'll probably earn more. But you will still be able to stay in SKorea as visitor and have fun. At least that, you are not forced on doing anything in SKor. Like you dont have to deal with coworkers, company, looking for job etc. Only think about the fun stuff and you can stay at home as much as you can while enjoying the perks of SKorea like the food delivery.
That would be the dream haha, but the only way to achieve that from what i understand is the digital nomad visa and one of the requirements for that is an annual salary of $110,000 cad 😅
Do they not have any good translation apps? Could you stay if you got a work visa from a company? Seems to me like they make it difficult for people to immigrate to that country, which for them is not really a bad thing. Look at countries right now, and the big issues because the high influx of immigrants. If you like it there, stick it out until you’re able to live there legally and then you can do other things, that you want to do. Who knows you might meet someone and fall in love, that would definitely make things easier.
But you’re ethnic Korean though? Or are you of Chinese or mixed East Asian decent or something. If you’re ethnic Korean, your complaints seem mainly language related. It seems you’ve found it too easy to find ways to keep using English a lot the exposure and trying to speak is where you lean the most. I’d assume there are some foreign (western companies just like in Japan I’ve heard that many westerners have a good time working at those. But again if you’re ethnic Korean and you date Korean guys there don’t you expect to speak Korean with them all the time or you expect to speak English with someone you date because that’s also something that can improve your language hugely. Especially if it’s someone companionate and intelligent enough to be able to help you with things you don’t understand so you can actually learn efficiently
Hi, love your video! im in a similar situation to you where i have to choose if i should stay here in the UK and just do something with my psychology degree like join the police or something, or to go to korea. I literally have like 2 days to decide purely because im so indecisive and its driving me nuts. Only thing im worried about is the work culture and if i can actually do the teaching properly, since i have never worked with kids before. so im very nervous. Any thoughts?
@@davidp2847 I completely understand how confusing and stressful it can be! If it helps your decision process, know that majority of teachers don’t have previous experience teaching or classroom running of any sorts. I think any hard working and patient person will be able to teach English in Korea. I was lucky in that they provided me with all the class material so I didn’t have to plan anything and the training prepared me before I taught my first class. Personally, I don’t regret going. It was a big risk, but I was able to learn a new culture/language and fall in love with something bigger than what I have previously known. Of course, my quarter life crisis of not knowing what to do with my degree and career has been delayed until now so there’s also that haha 😅
Thank you for the quick reply. I hope you are finding some good ideas to use your degree. I may use mine to do policing here in the uk. Oh btw, do you know if it’s true that if I cancel my E-2-1 Visa now before going there, that I’d have to wait 6 months again before being allowed to re-apply for another school? I feel a may need a few months to make the decision to finally go. Still thinking
yeah maybe more opportunities would be available and more stable. i really wanted to choose my location of seoul though. how was your experience of EPIK?
yes, i've always loved europe! i'm not sure what jobs would be available for me there yet but i've always thought about living somewhere in europe for a couple of months :)
@@cutthelandline In most countries in Europe is it relatively easy to get a freelance job or being a paid apprentice. Look for Germany or the baltic states.
So your video also popped up on my feed and as a recent uni graduate, who is right now in Korea as a "graduation vacation" I also wanted to comment. I get that the choices of what to do back at home can seem overwhelming. Many people I know had the exact same problem when they decided what to do after school. However, maybe you can see it as an opportunity. There are many different paths open to you and during your time in Korea you already had the chance to explore a bit what you want, thus thinking about doing something in education/ social work (at least this is the impression I´m getting watching your video). It is great that you could get experience abroad and broaden your horizon, yet I also get that you want to build your life further from here. To me it seems a bit that you have a one-way street in Korea right now, while in Canada you can do a degree etc. which can be very beneficial for your future. So, if I were you I think I would go for Canada. Especially, as even after getting a degree back at home there will be many doors open for you and in case you miss Korea and teaching you can also always move back. But I don´t want to push you in any direction, it is only my personal opinion on this :)
Thank you for ur insight! Yeah i think im leaning towards this as well considering all the pros and cons of both. Hope you’re having a fun time in Korea rn !!! 🥳
I’ve never really considered the states, so prob not anytime soon. I would assume similar visa struggles would apply there too in terms of sponsorships 🤔 would you recommend it?
I lucked out and got a "decent" hagwon (it later went to sh*t and I did not stay). But! When this school was decent, I still hated how much we had to push the kids. It was so much work for 6yr olds! They never got time to be kids and I hated how much work I was required to assign. I felt like some kind of foreign villain ruining their childhood with vocab tests.
@cutthelandline I originally planned on switching to Epik. The English language public school curriculum, while still a lot, is incorporated into their normal school day. So, students aren't forced to go to extra English classes until midnight. But, my sister had a baby and I ended up back in the US. I'm finally putting my science degree to use and I'm lab coordinator for Microbiology research. While I loved teaching and being in Korea, getting to use my degree has been equally rewarding. Somedays, I stop and enjoy how quiet the lab space is and how much I control my work now.
I think something I really appreciate about working in Korea is how it taught me to value life outside of work. After work in Korea, I would write, paint, walk, hike, etc. And I never did this in the US because I was stuck in a boring but comfortable routine. Now, I keep up with my hobbies, plan trips, and enjoy life after work in the US. I remind myself that I can enjoy life in both Korea and America, but that it is up to me to put forth the effort in both locations.
Wow sounds really lovely! Sometimes I wonder too if I should continue pursuing my psych degree but I think travel is still one of my top priorities and it would limit where I would go I think
I don't really know where you live in Vancouver but the few times I visited I didn't find there is a lack of cafes, restaurants, or things to do. On top of that there are a lot of outdoor activities you can do. In Toronto where I live, the amount of cultural activities, nightlife and new restaurant is endless. Besides transportation and climate, I honestly don't think you'll find Canada lacking if you actually went out and looked for things to do
If you want to gain subscribers quickly, try creating short-form content like day-in-the-life videos, shopping trips, or cafe visits. These types of videos are currently performing better than long-form content. Once you have a solid subscriber base, you can start making longer videos. Look at popular short-form content creators and follow their frameworks. Be sure to use the right hashtags as well.
haha yeah short-form content definitely reaches more people! from what i've saw though, because so much of the content is the same, it's really difficult to get engagement and build a follower base off of that. most people watch and then swipe away 😅 i've always loved long-form content and even though building a platform here is harder, i think it's more rewarding because it's truly a community that supports each other~ maybe a balance of both is the way to go! :)
One has to be clear as why he/she wants to live in any country....for how long....or ultimately he/she wants to not only live...but bury his/her bones in that country. Each choice helps you to have a right set of mindset. If you want to be a short timer, you do not have to learn the language....just enjoy your time there. OTOH, if you are going to bury your bones in that soil then you'd better learn the language, perhaps marry an aborigine, and assimilate. That will lead to actual jobs, careers, etc..etc in that country. That is pretty much the same in any country. Good luck.
there’s so many options so just pick something and try it out and see :) if you don’t like a career path you can always change it! living in korea sounds fun but it’s unfortunate the immigration is so difficult
i took korean classes in college and always had a plan to live in korea the summer after graduation. i had an internship lined up and everything and then covid happened and i never went to korea. and now i’m not as excited about the thought of living in korea briefly as i used to be. but i am still considering going for a summer if i quit my job. if you still really enjoy staying in korea and financially it’s not a problem, then don’t let immigration discourage you ❤
yeah i gotta remember that life is not that serious and that i'll never know how it'll turn out until i actually pick and try one career path. thank you for the reminder :)
if everything aligns and the opportunity arises, summer in korea will be so much fun for you (minus the heat)! it's still such a great place to live for me as well, but i'm trying to be an adult and plan for the future more career-wise haha
I would recommend she take an aptitude test which shows her strengths and recommends career paths. I'm surprised is she is a psych major she hasn't already thought about that.
So, teaching is not what you expected in Korea. Well, fact is that there are many who will replace you. And, what did you learn in College about supply and demand?
Either you like the culture and are able to go with the flow or not. It seems everyone who goes to Asia to teach English. starts a TH-cam channel and waffles endlessly over their personal minutia. Get over yourself. Basically, you are at the bottom of the food chain,, no one cares. I taught overseas for a few months but it led to better things. I've been expatriated fir 35 years now. No regrets, not going back. You are young don't over think all this and enjoy your experience.
How can lanugage be a Con? It's like going to Vancouver and saying well, I cant speak English. Thus, learn the language of the country you are in. It shows your lazy mindset. And about the job, what did you expect from any Job? Scam the system? You are obviously getting paid. You need to stop being a child and become an adult. I've worked in the states since I was 14. In order to be successful in life, you need to cultivate grit and hard work ethic. Then you can follow your dream as a hobby! First, you still need to learn much as you can and work hard. And don't confuse view counts with anything. Ppl just watch ppl for fun.
Glad i found your video! Ive been in Korea for a really long time. Ive met tons of foreigners here and have heard a LOT of stories, both positive and negative, however around me, the majority are positive and a lot of the foreigners I know have been here for a long time and most likely will stay here for the long term, like me. If you are unhappy with the system, the system won't change, so perhaps try 1 of 2 things. 1, change how you think about it. Yes it's a business, but its only successful if the students are improving. The students are joining that academy because they are trying to enter better schools and have better futures, so if they improve, you actually ARE making a huge impact on their future. 2, perhaps try finding a different job at a public school or a university, it's a completely different vibe and setting. I will say, the longer you stay, the harder it is to leave, ive seen this a lot and lots of people who leave end up coming back. Just some thoughts! Looking forward to more videos from you!
thank you for ur insight! i completely agree with you, at the end of the day, if the kids are improving and getting something out of the hagwons then the teachers have successfully done their jobs! it's very interesting that you said that a lot of people come back to korea even after leaving, something for me to think about~
Any South Africans here planning to teach in South Korea or planning to leave soon???
It's a scam as they only want those speakers from white countries like UK, Australia, Canada, USA & non from some Caribbean countries where english is the prime language. But of course, now & then they have to cover their act.
Think people. 99.99999999999% Koreans don't speak english to each other, so why are they learning it. It's not 1 of their official languages.
What do you mean like British decent? Should be alright for like a year but I’ve never heard a positive story for longer then that unless they start their own company or something
Me!
@@zikhonatshwaku1725Hi 👋...when do you leave?
@@sashlovesbeauty Feb!
Thanks for making this video! I'm making a solo trip in 2 weeks trying to evaluate if I want to live there someday, for which I feel like you've turned my hard maybe into still a hard maybe. For my advice for you, me being a 29 year old living mostly-happily in the northeast US: I feel like you've already done the hardest part. You survived your first year, and then you survived your second year, and you got teaching experience in Korea. I feel like things will only get easier for you if you keep going. Of course, based on everything you've said, it would also be perfectly reasonable to leave, and then if you did you could always come back. At the same time, if you stay, you can maybe find a drastically different place to teach, a different area to live in, or change anything else within your control. I think you can legitimately be happy living in either place. Sorry to give such a non-answer :D Follow your heart, and don't regret whichever choice you make.
Hahah oh no “still a hard maybe” hopefully this video helped with what to expect if you choose to move to Korea. Thank you for the kind words!
thank you for talking about your experience!! rooting for you, I know you’ll figure things out with time, you got this girl!!!
aww thank you so much for ur kind words~~ 🥹🫰🏻
Thank you for sharing your experience in Korea. I agree with the realities of teaching, but It's still a unique opportunity that most countries do not have the chance to take part in ( non-native speakers like me are excluded). I don't have the opportunity myself, but have American teacher friends who still enjoy it despite the low pay and business focus. Subscribed, looking forward to your next content!
It definitely is a unique opportunity! Thank you so much for your kind words and support! :)
If you don't have anything tying you down to Korea, I would leave for at least a year and go back to Canada and start working there. That way you can get a clear comparison of which place you enjoy more. You can always travel back to Korea later. I lived in Korea and am glad I left. I would have only stayed if I had gotten married with this Korean chick but glad I did not because she was insane lol.
yeah i think getting a comparison is a good idea!
good thing you got out when you did then haha
Here my advice to you…choose something you know you'll enjoy and that offers plenty of job opportunities. Social work is an excellent choice because it provides a clear career path and allows you to explore various fields such as administration, case management, counselling, education etc. It's not limited to one specific area, so if you lose interest in one aspect, you can pursue other avenues with the same degree. Many people spend a lot of money on degrees that don't lead to jobs or pay the bills. At this stage, focus on building your career. Once you're settled, you can explore and travel. But for now, prioritize completing your education; otherwise, you might always put it off. Time is of the essence. While you're young, use this period to build yourself and your career, ensuring you have what you need to flourish and pursue your passions. Best of luck ☺️
wow thank you for your insight!! i never knew about the different fields in social work so that's super interesting and definitely opens up the opportunities!
i am interested in social work and it aligns with my psychology background, but the thing with social work that i'm worried about is that i'm still hoping to travel more in the future and i'm not exactly sure where i'll end up permanently living yet so i'm hoping to get into a career that is more globally transferrable. i feel like social work is very community based so if i get into that in canada, it'll be difficult to work in another country and build a community again if i ever decide to move :)
I think it’s important to remember that there are lots of transferable skills that will apply globally as well. If you succeed in a career path and you really excel and improve yourself those transferable skills are harder to be taught and that adds value for an employer.
@@cutthelandline also Canada right now is experiecing s housis crisis, unchecked and unsustainble immigration, fraud in univerisities due to international students, doctor shortage and food fraud bc only 3 companies control the whole food industry. Have you looked into the GKS (Global Korea Scholarship) application? If I were you I would try to do something global bc as a young person life in Canada is going to get worse not better. Trudeau has come and said verbatim "Trudeau says real estate needs to be more affordable, but lowering home prices would put retirement plans at risk". If you're going to be living paycheck to paycheck and not be able enojy anything, honestly....might as well move to a country you like. Sorry to scare but as a person wanting to move out of the country before it collapses and becomes argentina (look up what happened to them) i feel like you're in the perfect situation to not have to deal with all these things.
When you know it's your time to go, you just KNOW.
The expats all told me that and being the indecisive person I am, I thought that wouldn't be possible.
But it was. When you know, you know.
I will say a lot of what she says echos my experiences in other foreign countries I've lived & taught English in. Most of the immigration officials were rude, unhelpful and make you feel unwelcome. The school themselves even when working for public or private its about money. How much they can make and how little they can get away with paying you while also making you do 3 to 4 times the work of the average teacher in the schools. At one point I was teaching per week 900 to 1k students. The average teacher might teach 56 to 200 students. So yeah I feel for this lady. Either you learn to accept the culture, the prejudices, the scams and just the pure abusive stuff some locals will say in their native language about you thinking you don't know what they are sayiing.
@@jackwest3282 holy moly 1,000 students a week!?!?! That’s crazy! Luckily my academy was pretty small so I taught around 55-90ish from what I remember
Plenty of great English speaking hair salons here (Lucy Hair, Cutting Point, Hair n' Joy and many of the Juno Hair places). For dentists there is Esarang in Gongdeuk, The Oaks in Gangnam among others. Agree mostly about the part time stuff but as a Canadian you get a Working Holiday Visa and do exactly that, part time. I know many WHV holders here and they all have non teaching jobs. The important thing is networking.
Thank you for all the suggestions~ ☺️ from what i understand the working holiday visa is a great option for a short time stay, after that I’d still have to switch to a long term visa. And totally agree, networking is so important!
It’s so unfortunate that if you decide to move to Korea right after graduating and don’t want to teach or go to grad school there that there are not may opportunities for you (legally) there.
For me personally the reasons why I want to move to korean and “plan” on living there long term is 1) I have been studying korean for 3 years and I don’t really have many opportunities to use it in the US. 2) I plan on doing my last semester of college online and with the money I have saved (form part time jobs) would barely last me 6 months in NYC. 3) In the past year I have been to Korea twice (3 months at a time) and I have made a life for myself there which is way I feel so lonely and sad in the states.
With all of that said, I am worried about how my opinions will change once I finish my working holiday and after I’ve done a year of teaching. I’m afraid that I’ll want to leave after 2 years because I can’t really grow career wise there (or at least it will be very hard to).
So I’m honestly not sure what advice I have for you. If you want to grow career wise go back to Canada but if you really want to stay in korean longer and you don’t want to go back to teach, I’d recommend getting a working holiday visa.
hi sweets! happy to see you back and always happy to read your comments~
yeah the thing is, i did want to move to korea to teach so i'm really happy i did make the move and i honestly have no regrets! after graduation, i still think this was the best thing for me to try something completely new. i think now i'm at the point where i do still really like korea but i also want to build out my career more so my priorities have changed after gaining some more life experience. i like the idea of a working holiday visa though, but i think i'd have to go back to canada to gain some marketing experience so that i can apply to a korean company~!
i hope your future korea adventures are all that you hoped for! what do you study? perhaps your studies can help you get a E-6 visa for a more long term stay and grow your career :)
@@cutthelandline I’m studying marketing and design, which would unfortunately fall under the E7 version, but since I’m moving to Korea a semester before I graduate, There’s gonna be no way for me to qualify for that visa. My plan is to maybe get a scholarship and go to grad school or try English teaching.
@@imaginary-yl2cw oops yeah I meant E7 visa haha. E7 is a great option and marketing jobs are definitely a good route for a longer stay in Korea, best of luck!! 🥳
Why not try teaching in Japan?
@@cowboyuniverse7258 Me?
Nothing is permanent, do whatever works for you now and try something different if it doesn’t work! Whatever you decide will be okay ❤
thank you!! 🥹
Marketing in Atlanta is actually code for scam, when it comes to job applications- be careful ❤
I found myself in a similar bind when I was forced to leave my home city after rent prices doubled. I miss it. Every day is a struggle. I hope the best for you, that you get to live in the place you like without sacrificing too much of your peace
aww thank you for ur support! omg scam? as in they're fake job applications and companies? how do you spot them? can you tell me more about it 🤭
@@cutthelandline it may be as legit as essentially a call center, but won’t pay minimum wage, or anything hourly. None of the pay is guaranteed, only commission; however, it doesn’t work like a regular marketing job in that regard, where your commission would be larger (like for selling printers) Instead you’d make a small commission based on your success over the phone. Usually I think it has to do with health insurance or union benefits (this is in America; it’s obviously not the same scam in countries with better healthcare). I’ve also seen ppl just walking around the city with cardboard boxes of stuff, you’ll get a position selling the items in one of these boxes by answering an ad for a marketing job. This is all based off of my own experience from 9-6 years ago. My friend, however, still lives in the city and has mentioned most of the job opportunities being scams, without mentioning marketing specifically. Ironically we both ended up substitute teaching, with can be kind of demoralizing at times but at least is legit as a job.
Not trying to comment on what is best for you, because that is your decision and only yours. But I sincerely hope that you find happiness wherever you choose to go, or stay. ❤️
Wow that’s really interesting! I gotta be careful out there 😅
Thank you for all the support, it truly means a lot~~
@cutthelandline ❤️
hiii mabel!! thank you for sharing your perspective of working in Korea! i believe that at the end of the day, you should do what you think is best for you, what setting would be most effective for you, or which option you see yourself having a future with! wishing you all the best!!
yeah it's such a tough choice, both have pros and cons though haha. thank you for all your support and kind words ella! ~~
I still cant decide... this was top of my list 😅
i haven't heard of other people talking about this, so hopefully it's helpful in getting a better understanding of what living in korea is REALLY like!
do you agree? what are some pros & cons that you can think of?
AND any advice about life would be very much appreciated~~~
I struggled twice when I was there when it came to buying something.
One was at a convenient store. The cashier was a big of an older lady, like grandma age or mom of teenagers. Like around that age. I gave her my t-money card and money to put on it. I didn't think I needed to communicate much but she got frustrated because I wasn't speaking Korean to her. She gave me my money and card back.
Another place wasn't rude but it was stressful. Lol Mcdonalds. It was crowded, fast paced, and busy. While ordering, about 2 or 3 workers helped me. They showed me the menu and asked me to pick something. It was just a little stressful I admit.
yeah there are definitely some bad eggs wherever we go. i think for me, the culture and language barrier here can sometimes make me feel really rushed and pressured. which is why 'pedal' (food delivery) is so convenient for me haha
New viewer who stumbled across your channel just now, curious what you decided on? Whatever you pick I hope you enjoy it and don't feel locked in for good since you're really so young
Thank you for the kind words!
It's ok to take a step back. You have to do what is best for you.
Thank you for your kind words ☺️
Your teaching experience feels like my very first teaching job in Japan. If you haven’t made a decision yet, you can always go back to Korea. I ended up doing two stints in Japan.
Yeah I think remembering that going back is always an option makes the decision making less scary
@@cutthelandline Hopefully you can find a Tous Les Jours if you’re ever back in the Vancouver
I don’t think I’ve ever tried that… bakery? Is it good?
@@cutthelandline I have been to two of them here in Michigan. Both Western and Asian style pastries are available. I think the offerings are good.
wish you luck, we are all clueless here just trying our best, its hilarious lol
thank you! adulting is realizing that nobody else knows what they're doing either haha. it's hard out here but i'm so grateful for everything too 😅
Advice from a social worker…do not choose social work. Hope that helps…good luck.
Haha I love the honesty! This is actually really helpful insight, can i ask why? 😅
@@cutthelandline while you will always have a job and always be able to find one, for what you have to put up with the pay isn’t worth it, burnout is high dealing with other people’s emotions and issues as well as your own becomes too much to do. You get tired of it real fast. A lot of headache and not enough relief from it. If you do administrative social work you may get a bit of a break but there is also a lot of paperwork associated with that and in social work in general. It may seem like there are a lot of services to assist people but there isn’t and what is available is tied up in red tape, thus increasing your frustration. The client think you are their savior when they get to you but you become the devil when you can’t help. If I could go back, I would not have chosen this in hindsight but each journey is a lesson and I have definitely learned and grown from doing this job. Looking for my way out 🤷🏾♀️.
안녕하세요~ 한국생활 진짜 많이 힘들어요 ㅜ. 케나다가 좋죠~ 그리고 한국어가 가능한 상황에서의 한국생활하고, 한국어가 안되는 상황에서의 한국생활하고 편차가 클꺼에요. 그리고 한국인들이 영어 울렁증이 있어요, 외국인이 영어로 말할까봐 많이 무서워해요. 싫어서 그러는거는 아니에요 ㅋㅋ 어느 곳에 머무르시던 행복하세요~
ㅎㅎ 좋은 말씀 감사합니다~ 🤭 맞아용 캐나다와 한국 모두 힘든 부분이 있어요
You seem very positive … I’m sure the kids feel that
thank you~
Girl you need to see Busan
The visa policies in Korea need to change asap for the sake of the economy here. More immigrants are needed but there's almost no way to actually migrate to Korea.
🙃😪
I would go back to Canada..get a teaching degree / M.Ed. You can always just vacation in korea during the summer when school isnt in session in vancouver. I think more options you have the better. Ive travelled to korea many times. The novelty fades.
yeah i think if i go back to canada i would have to consider which career route to take as well. not sure if i'd like going into education right now but the benefit of the long vacations would be so nice haha
@cutthelandline you also want to consider how automatable is the career and whole bunch of other factors. AI is getting better everyday. In about 20 years we might get something close to AGI. Working as a kindergarten teacher for example unlikely to be replaced by robots lol plus kinders are sooo cute !!
@@cutthelandline my 2 main issues with S.Korea were: lack of variety of cuisines. Yes u can have italian or greek or chinese food but i think vancouver has a better selection and more authentic. Also Korea is colder than calgary in the winter and hotter than toronto in the summer. I like visiting korea every few years to meet friends but i would rather live in a SE asian country
your video came up on my feed! interesting perspective. I'm from Toronto and just came back from 1 month in Korea. Loved my time there! You're lucky you get to teach english and live in korea for an extended period of time. I'll check out some of your other vids!
I’m glad you had a good time here! Korea is so much fun! Thank you for your support~~
I didn't know it was so hard to get Visa in Korea. Korea has the lowest birth rate and is always trying to get tourists to visit Korea. So I don't understand why Korea is making it so difficult for people wanting to stay or work there. It defies logic and things need to change in Korea. They need more people to come to Korea.
right?! i mean from what i've heard getting visas in any country is going to be complicated but the english teaching industry here makes it even harder to stay in korea considering the cons :/
South Korea wants the benefits of foreigners being in South Korea without the actual foreigners being in South Korea.
The older you get, the harder it is to acquire points for the F2-7
@@t-and-d-productions ahh interesting, why is that? Is it the points for age section?
@cutthelandline exactly. Once you reach 36, you lose a significant point value...it's still attainable, but almost impossible after 45
Lots of Rain 🌧️
If you are a native English speaking person teaching English in Korea, you are officially just a marketing aid for them. This girl has a little more advantage with the kids because she is Asian herself and the kids will be suspicious if she actually understands what they’re saying and can relay to the parents.
The Koreans that speak both languages are the actual educators.
With no Korean language ability, you offer nothing to them except being the face of their school.
You become a glorified babysitter for kids under 10yo. Once they are around 11-12, they can communicate on a basic level and actually learn some things.
Korea sounds like one of the most oppressive places to live, or even visit
In my experience, Korea is such a fun place to visit! Of course it depends on what type of travelling you’re looking for tho. If I could figure out the work visa situation, I would live in Korea permanently because the pros outweigh the cons for me haha
That's not true about needing a car to live in Vancouver. Many areas it's better not to have a car/ Out in the burbs tho. Yes you better have a car. Having a car in the West End isn't the best.
You have so so much more time than you think. I am 40 and considering teaching in Korea.
Thank you 😊 I hope you have the best time if you decide to come!!
Im not native english speaking However, can I become a language teacher in Korea?
Bro canada blows but being a hagwon teaching slave is even worse for your mental health 😅
I returned to america and yah at first i regretted it because america is so overpriced but my mental health improved fast within 2 months
I do live near beaches 😅 tho in florida and an hour from orlando so lots to do
But i did 4 years in korea teaching hagwons
And my mental health was down the drain and i didnt wanna admit it
2 years in seoul and 2 years in jeju
If i were you i would at least do 2 years in Korea
Travel to other parts of Asia too while you're there
Canada is not going anywhere and canada much like america is going through a terible awkard phase 😅
I will say i missed asia after 1 year back in america so I'm moving to tokyo in September
wow that's exciting that you're moving to tokyo!! some people have suggested to me to teach in japan. what made you decide to move to tokyo rather than coming back to korea?
@cutthelandline I always preferred japan
It's just that I arrived in Korea the week korea was the second country hit by the pandemic
And japan closed its borders that same week
But once they opened up I kept visiting
I'm a 90s kid so I grew up japan content and back then they were massive how korea is now
Hiiiii, you’re so cute 😂 thank you for sharing your story and posting this video. It takes a lot of courage to express those feelings. I’m 38 and I felt all of your “I don’t know’s” 😂 I don’t live abroad yet, but I have a dual citizenship with my home country and the US. I travel back and forth often, but I don’t know where I want to truly live :3 I’m debating the pros and cons of each too.
haha thank you for your kind words~ 😊 I think the thing I'm trying to accept is that there's no ONE right answer, just as there's no wrong answer either. We can't see the future and predict what will happen in life so maybe the best thing we can do is to choose one and do our best with that decision :)
Mabel: 만나서 반가웠고 영상 감사합니다/ Great to meet you and thank you for the videos! I lived in Korea in my 20's after living in China studying Mandarin Chinese. Lived in Busan from 1996-end of 1997, returning home as the Financial Crisis hit. Seems while not so long ago, it was also last Century or Millennium😮! I experienced what you described with a couple of scams, needing to job hop 7x in 16 months... anyhow, you were saying the (hakwons) are 'scamming the system'- what do you mean? The instructors, students, students families, &/or...? I visited Vancouver & 'Vic' in late 2007 Sept/Oct... fortunate with good weather then. I reside in Norwalk, Connecticut, USA now...Thank you and all the best!
I’m South African and Muslim. I’m considering moving to Korea to teach after my degree, but I’m honestly scared due to my religion. I’m not really sure how Koreans feel about Muslims and whether the environment will be conducive to me. But we’ll see.
Muslims aren't as welcome in Korea
i hope everything works out for you! sending you all the luck :)
Solution is for you to look for a wfh job in canada ang live in skorea. No pressure with anything there, work, visa etc and you'll probably earn more. But you will still be able to stay in SKorea as visitor and have fun. At least that, you are not forced on doing anything in SKor. Like you dont have to deal with coworkers, company, looking for job etc. Only think about the fun stuff and you can stay at home as much as you can while enjoying the perks of SKorea like the food delivery.
That would be the dream haha, but the only way to achieve that from what i understand is the digital nomad visa and one of the requirements for that is an annual salary of $110,000 cad 😅
Do they not have any good translation apps? Could you stay if you got a work visa from a company? Seems to me like they make it difficult for people to immigrate to that country, which for them is not really a bad thing. Look at countries right now, and the big issues because the high influx of immigrants. If you like it there, stick it out until you’re able to live there legally and then you can do other things, that you want to do. Who knows you might meet someone and fall in love, that would definitely make things easier.
Haha yes marriage is definitely the shortcut 😅
But you’re ethnic Korean though? Or are you of Chinese or mixed East Asian decent or something. If you’re ethnic Korean, your complaints seem mainly language related. It seems you’ve found it too easy to find ways to keep using English a lot the exposure and trying to speak is where you lean the most. I’d assume there are some foreign (western companies just like in Japan I’ve heard that many westerners have a good time working at those.
But again if you’re ethnic Korean and you date Korean guys there don’t you expect to speak Korean with them all the time or you expect to speak English with someone you date because that’s also something that can improve your language hugely. Especially if it’s someone companionate and intelligent enough to be able to help you with things you don’t understand so you can actually learn efficiently
Hi, love your video! im in a similar situation to you where i have to choose if i should stay here in the UK and just do something with my psychology degree like join the police or something, or to go to korea. I literally have like 2 days to decide purely because im so indecisive and its driving me nuts. Only thing im worried about is the work culture and if i can actually do the teaching properly, since i have never worked with kids before. so im very nervous. Any thoughts?
@@davidp2847 I completely understand how confusing and stressful it can be! If it helps your decision process, know that majority of teachers don’t have previous experience teaching or classroom running of any sorts. I think any hard working and patient person will be able to teach English in Korea. I was lucky in that they provided me with all the class material so I didn’t have to plan anything and the training prepared me before I taught my first class. Personally, I don’t regret going. It was a big risk, but I was able to learn a new culture/language and fall in love with something bigger than what I have previously known. Of course, my quarter life crisis of not knowing what to do with my degree and career has been delayed until now so there’s also that haha 😅
Thank you for the quick reply. I hope you are finding some good ideas to use your degree. I may use mine to do policing here in the uk. Oh btw, do you know if it’s true that if I cancel my E-2-1 Visa now before going there, that I’d have to wait 6 months again before being allowed to re-apply for another school? I feel a may need a few months to make the decision to finally go. Still thinking
5:50 This is why you should work for the government through EPIK!
yeah maybe more opportunities would be available and more stable. i really wanted to choose my location of seoul though. how was your experience of EPIK?
Hahaha people always talk about transportation in “Korea” when they really mean “Seoul”.
haha yes i definitely meant Seoul oops. not too sure about other parts but even Busan's bus schedules were limited
Thinking in a completely differnt direction, if you want learn more about the world: how about going to a european country?
yes, i've always loved europe! i'm not sure what jobs would be available for me there yet but i've always thought about living somewhere in europe for a couple of months :)
@@cutthelandline In most countries in Europe is it relatively easy to get a freelance job or being a paid apprentice. Look for Germany or the baltic states.
Hey! New to your channel. I wanted to ask if you worked for a Hagwon?
Welcome to the channel! Yes I worked at a hagwon in Seoul
So your video also popped up on my feed and as a recent uni graduate, who is right now in Korea as a "graduation vacation" I also wanted to comment. I get that the choices of what to do back at home can seem overwhelming. Many people I know had the exact same problem when they decided what to do after school. However, maybe you can see it as an opportunity. There are many different paths open to you and during your time in Korea you already had the chance to explore a bit what you want, thus thinking about doing something in education/ social work (at least this is the impression I´m getting watching your video). It is great that you could get experience abroad and broaden your horizon, yet I also get that you want to build your life further from here. To me it seems a bit that you have a one-way street in Korea right now, while in Canada you can do a degree etc. which can be very beneficial for your future. So, if I were you I think I would go for Canada. Especially, as even after getting a degree back at home there will be many doors open for you and in case you miss Korea and teaching you can also always move back. But I don´t want to push you in any direction, it is only my personal opinion on this :)
Thank you for ur insight! Yeah i think im leaning towards this as well considering all the pros and cons of both. Hope you’re having a fun time in Korea rn !!! 🥳
would you ever move to the states
I’ve never really considered the states, so prob not anytime soon. I would assume similar visa struggles would apply there too in terms of sponsorships 🤔 would you recommend it?
1:46 - The Penthouse, no?
yes! i was rewatching for the second time 😅
I lucked out and got a "decent" hagwon (it later went to sh*t and I did not stay). But! When this school was decent, I still hated how much we had to push the kids. It was so much work for 6yr olds! They never got time to be kids and I hated how much work I was required to assign. I felt like some kind of foreign villain ruining their childhood with vocab tests.
Truly! The amount of times students would get nosebleeds from stress/lack of sleep etc. in class is pretty concerning
Can I ask, did you decide to change hagwons after or chose something else entirely? :)
@cutthelandline I originally planned on switching to Epik. The English language public school curriculum, while still a lot, is incorporated into their normal school day. So, students aren't forced to go to extra English classes until midnight. But, my sister had a baby and I ended up back in the US. I'm finally putting my science degree to use and I'm lab coordinator for Microbiology research. While I loved teaching and being in Korea, getting to use my degree has been equally rewarding. Somedays, I stop and enjoy how quiet the lab space is and how much I control my work now.
I think something I really appreciate about working in Korea is how it taught me to value life outside of work. After work in Korea, I would write, paint, walk, hike, etc. And I never did this in the US because I was stuck in a boring but comfortable routine. Now, I keep up with my hobbies, plan trips, and enjoy life after work in the US. I remind myself that I can enjoy life in both Korea and America, but that it is up to me to put forth the effort in both locations.
Wow sounds really lovely! Sometimes I wonder too if I should continue pursuing my psych degree but I think travel is still one of my top priorities and it would limit where I would go I think
This video should be titled "Please help...I DONT KNOW" lol
😅 I really didn’t know and did need help haha
omg im like you i just want to expereince everything i hate it
“Bug” someone😕I get it
I don't really know where you live in Vancouver but the few times I visited I didn't find there is a lack of cafes, restaurants, or things to do. On top of that there are a lot of outdoor activities you can do. In Toronto where I live, the amount of cultural activities, nightlife and new restaurant is endless. Besides transportation and climate, I honestly don't think you'll find Canada lacking if you actually went out and looked for things to do
Have you thought about working in another country?
Not really because I initially moved to Korea to teach English in order to specifically live in Korea haha
If you want to gain subscribers quickly, try creating short-form content like day-in-the-life videos, shopping trips, or cafe visits. These types of videos are currently performing better than long-form content. Once you have a solid subscriber base, you can start making longer videos. Look at popular short-form content creators and follow their frameworks. Be sure to use the right hashtags as well.
haha yeah short-form content definitely reaches more people! from what i've saw though, because so much of the content is the same, it's really difficult to get engagement and build a follower base off of that. most people watch and then swipe away 😅
i've always loved long-form content and even though building a platform here is harder, i think it's more rewarding because it's truly a community that supports each other~ maybe a balance of both is the way to go! :)
You're so cute!
You can just work in Japan and fly to Korea anytime and they probably pay you more anyway
i would imagine these pros and cons would be prevalent in japan too, no? do you have experience working in Japan? :)
One has to be clear as why he/she wants to live in any country....for how long....or ultimately he/she wants to not only live...but bury his/her bones in that country. Each choice helps you to have a right set of mindset. If you want to be a short timer, you do not have to learn the language....just enjoy your time there. OTOH, if you are going to bury your bones in that soil then you'd better learn the language, perhaps marry an aborigine, and assimilate. That will lead to actual jobs, careers, etc..etc in that country. That is pretty much the same in any country. Good luck.
One of my goals is to become fluent in korean, thank you for the motivation! :)
there’s so many options so just pick something and try it out and see :) if you don’t like a career path you can always change it! living in korea sounds fun but it’s unfortunate the immigration is so difficult
i took korean classes in college and always had a plan to live in korea the summer after graduation. i had an internship lined up and everything and then covid happened and i never went to korea. and now i’m not as excited about the thought of living in korea briefly as i used to be. but i am still considering going for a summer if i quit my job. if you still really enjoy staying in korea and financially it’s not a problem, then don’t let immigration discourage you ❤
yeah i gotta remember that life is not that serious and that i'll never know how it'll turn out until i actually pick and try one career path. thank you for the reminder :)
if everything aligns and the opportunity arises, summer in korea will be so much fun for you (minus the heat)! it's still such a great place to live for me as well, but i'm trying to be an adult and plan for the future more career-wise haha
@@cutthelandline hehe sounds like you already have an idea of what you want to do now :)
is this a universal issue i hate it so much
It rarely rains there, unlike in RAINcouver
Truly 🥲☔️
There's Koreans in Japan just get a AI translator 📲💭💕
😅
I would recommend she take an aptitude test which shows her strengths and recommends career paths. I'm surprised is she is a psych major she hasn't already thought about that.
Girlfriend..... you should have gone to Japan! A lot more interesting culture!
I went to Tokyo for the first time recently and I want to travel to other cities too! Any that you recommend?
So, teaching is not what you expected in Korea. Well, fact is that there are many who will replace you. And, what did you learn in College about supply and demand?
0:33 let meeeeeeeeeeee *insert yodel
my brain malfunctioning haha
Either you like the culture and are able to go with the flow or not. It seems everyone who goes to Asia to teach English. starts a TH-cam channel and waffles endlessly over their personal minutia. Get over yourself. Basically, you are at the bottom of the food chain,, no one cares. I taught overseas for a few months but it led to better things. I've been expatriated fir 35 years now. No regrets, not going back. You are young don't over think all this and enjoy your experience.
What's my chances of marrying a K-pop idol girl? 😂
You look like Jenny from Blackpink. 😍
haha not sure that i see that myself, but thank you!!
How can lanugage be a Con? It's like going to Vancouver and saying well, I cant speak English. Thus, learn the language of the country you are in. It shows your lazy mindset. And about the job, what did you expect from any Job? Scam the system? You are obviously getting paid. You need to stop being a child and become an adult. I've worked in the states since I was 14. In order to be successful in life, you need to cultivate grit and hard work ethic. Then you can follow your dream as a hobby! First, you still need to learn much as you can and work hard. And don't confuse view counts with anything. Ppl just watch ppl for fun.
You're so cute!