Apply for Placement in Korea

ITF Korea is seeking up to 10 instructors to come to Korea from ITFNZ to teach Taekwon-Do for a period of 6 months minimum; one will be required to start at the end of May when Mr Brown leaves and another one or two in June. The others will be required dispatched out throughout the rest of the year and into 2008, as demand increases and instructors rotate.

You will ideally be aged between 20 – 28 years old, and at least a 1st dan. This is not to exclude older or younger instructors, but be aware that you may be in a flatting situation with younger people, some of them possibly Koreans, and late nights are often a way of life here. A high degree of technical knowledge is not a requirement for these positions (hence they are best suited lower ranking black belts), but you must be competent with all patterns and theoretical knowledge requirements to your rank, and have TKD teaching experience.

Your students would be mainly children - white and yellow belts and speak on average a minimum of English, some none at all. You must like teaching children, and cater for their learning styles, which can be different from NZ students.

If you are interested please read the offer and conditions of employment and complete the form below. You will then be put in touch with Mr Gwyn Brown who can provide more details and answer any questions you have. A final decision as to who will be selected will be made by the Technical Committee in consultation with Mr Gwyn Brown and ITF Korea.

Please apply by 6 May 2007.

Offer and conditions of employment from ITFK

Your students are mainly junior white and yellow belts and speak on average a minimum of English, some none at all. You must like teaching children, and cater for their learning styles, which can be different from NZ students.

Term of employment
6 mths minimum time required. You must abide by the conditions outlined below, and obviously in any employment agreement signed by you later. 1 years employment is preferred though (preference will be given to those who can stay longer than 6 mths) with the terms agreed to before your employment is accepted.

Wages
$1600US cash in hand is paid on the monthly anniversary of the date your employment started, which is 2 days after entering Korea. Pay rate will also increase every 3 months - more details soon. $200 US is deducted per month and held on your behalf as a bond. This is to cover things like bond on your flat, or if you have to go home in an emergency and have outstanding bills etc. Look at it as a compulsory savings account.

What's included

• Accommodation is provided (will more than likely be a home-stay for a portion of your stay)
• All meals are provided; they may entail you cooking if the accommodation is in a flat.
• All airline and traveling expenses to and from Korea (ex Auckland, and including medical insurance) are provided (half your airfare is reimbursed with the first paycheck in cash, the other half after 3 months).
• Some sightseeing in Korea to historical sites, many of TKD significance.
• The experience of a lifetime, to teach TKD in Korea!
• Assistance with gaining a working visa.

What's not included
Day to day expenses if you choose to eat/drink out on your own, or travel on your own time etc. Extra travel, accommodation expenses etc if you choose to go away for the weekend to Japan (yes you can, it's very cheap) or China for example.

Teaching conditions

• You will be required to teach TKD, and English in most cases (simple English, and usually in a normal training environment).
• Each class is for 1 hour with a minimum break of 30 mins between. You may have 2 -6 classes per day depending where you work. Most classes start in the afternoon, leaving the mornings free, and go till 9pm in most cases, this is Monday to Friday.
• Saturday and Sunday are usually free days for you to travel and explore, or just rest (for exceptions, please see below). There may be a planned outing for you which you can choose to go on or not.
• You may be required to work on a Saturday or Sunday, for a grading, seminar, or camp etc. You will usually be roistered on duty on a basis depending on the number of instructors in your area. For example, if there is a seminar in the weekend you are on duty, you will be required to teach there. If there is nothing on, then the weekend is free. You may swap with someone, or agree to do turn about etc. Or you can arrange it amongst yourselves how you think is fair. The main part is that there will be some weekend work involved. As much notice as possible will be given.
• You may also be required to work some mornings advertising ITF TKD, but this isn't common.

Holidays and sick leave

• 1 1/2 weeks of paid leave is provided per 6 months of employment, with 1 months notice needed ahead of the time you want off. This is to allow time to find someone to cover your work, or change timetables etc.
• You are entitled to 5 days paid sick leave per 6 months, but bear in mind that this will be a huge disruption to your students and their parents, so only take sick leave if you absolutely have to.

Tips and actual conditions - What is Korea like to live in and work?

Korea is a very safe country, without doubt the safest I have traveled in. People here do not lock their cars, and in the smaller cities, the restaurants leave the money box (small box where customers pay for their meals) conveniently right by the door, open for anyone to help themselves. No one does.

Most younger Koreans speak some basic English, and most taxi drivers, ticket sellers, market shop owners etc, generally people in business speak enough basic English to help you. If you get lost, ask a school kid, it's easy. All streets and the subway, motels, and information centers have signs in Korean and English to help you as well.

Foreigners are very welcome here, most people will try to talk to you, and are very impressed if you speak a little of their language, but you don't need to. Carrying the address of the place you are staying at in Korean is a simple way of not getting lost, people can read it or a taxi driver can take you there. A 20 minute ride is usually no more than $10, which is very cheap if you do manage to get very lost. And there are lots of taxis here.

Korean food is very hot and spicy, but there is always western food available if you choose to have it. Koreans eat a lot of food, and often, and the food is very cheap. Dinner for 4 is usually less than $20, unless you go somewhere up-market. Practice using chop sticks!

Clothes are reasonably cheap, especially in the markets, but electronic goods may be the same price as home, although the latest gadgets available are sold here first. Big companies like Sony, Motorola etc have realized that Koreans are very technology fashion conscious, so they try their latest stuff here first. But be aware, gadgets like mobile phones, MP3s etc might be in Korean only!

In short, if you are thinking of coming, you will find Korea at times very different, and at times strangely the same. But one thing to remember is that it's not NZ, different laws apply, different customs, different ways of doing things and different values. You should at all times remember that this isn't wrong, it's just different.

I can promise you that if you do come, you will have an experience that you will never regret, or forget, and you will learn a lot about this part of the world.

Please email me at the above address to ask more specific questions or to register your interest.

Gwyn Brown,
4th dan, Midlands RD, ITFNZ