I also spent 6 months living in Seoul recently. I was there as an exchange student, and I stayed over the break. I left in January, but it was a great experience, and I met many interesting people. Feel free to ask me any questions.
PrettyBrown_Eyes wrote: This is exactly what I want to do! I want to get a teaching lincense and teach english all over the world, first stop Seoul!
How did you go about the process?
Are you going to be a permanent Korean citizen? or applying?
If you dont mind me asking, are you american or asian?
And how much korean did you know before moving there?
For starters, you don't need any education credentials to teach English in Korea. Foreign teachers come to Korea on an E-2 visa, which is sponsored by your employer. Your visa is good for one year, and you are bound to that employer through your visa. You want to make sure you end up with a good employer, because it's nearly impossible to switch jobs while on an E-2. I know one woman who was starting her second year as a teacher, but she had to leave the country because her new employer was awful.
You do not need to speak any Korean, although I highly recommend learning as much as you can before and during your stay in the country. Foreign teachers are paired with a Korean teacher to help them out with things, and when you first arrive in the country, you will be dependent on them for a lot of things.
The main requirements for an E-2 visa are that you are a native speaker of English, and you have a Bachelor's degree. White Americans, Canadians, and Britons are the ideal candidates. It's not impossible for non-whites to get a job teaching English, but it is more difficult. Korea is a very homogenous country, and while not hateful, many people are ignorant when it comes to racial or cultural issues. I know some Latino Americans who had a tough time trying to find new jobs. They ended up leaving too.
That said, foreigners of any race will face challenges. You need to keep an open mind, and take things in stride. Don't expect people to be accommodating to your ways. You're in their country. It's not a slight against Korean people, but that's just the way it is. We can already see Korea taking the first steps towards multiculturalism, but it will take many years to ultimately change the way people think about the country and it's inhabitants.
