The Process

If you ever plan to teach in South Korea, I sure hope you enjoy paperwork. No, seriously, it will make everything so much easier.

I cannot speak for other programs, but the program I am working with, Korea SDA, happens to be part job and part mission work, so I had to go through a very lengthy application process.  First, I filled out an interest form with a recruiter (I also had the option to do this online).  Then I was contacted for a phone interview with a representative from the language school in Korea.  When all the preliminary requirements were completed, I received instructions detailing what steps to take next.  This is where it all got very stressful and confusing.  I had to simultaneously begin three separate application processes:  one was the SDA Language school application, another was through Adventist Volunteer Services to receive General Conference approval, and yet another was with the Korean Consulate to obtain an E-2 teacher’s visa. Each of these applications included its own sub-application and mini mountain of paperwork.  There is no use trying to describe all of what I had to do, so I will just make an organized list below for your viewing pleasure:

Korea SDA Language School:

            Appendix Form

            Teaching Contract

            Health Statement

Adventist Volunteer Services:

            Online application

            Health Certificate

~signed by a medical doctor or registered nurse

            Beneficiary Form

            Release of Liability Form

            Reference forms (3)

            Preparation for Mission Online Course

~completion of twelve lessons covering twenty-eight chapters of Passport to Mission, eight reflection papers, an area study, and discussion board posts

                       

E-2 Visa Application:

            Visa Issuance Number

Application Form

Official Transcripts

            Updated Resume

            Notarized Copy of College Diploma (with attached apostille seal)

Notarized Official FBI background check (with attached apostille seal)

                        ~submission of application, fingerprints, and processing fee

            Copy of passport signature and photo page

            Passport-sized photo

            Visa Processing Fee

The ironic thing is that the Korean Consulate has just this year introduced an expedited application process for U.S. citizens going to South Korea, so this is actually the “short list."  It's funny, the list as a whole doesn't look like much when its all laid out like that, but it represents something that has occupied much of the last six months of my life.  Whew!

If you do happen to be interested in teaching in South Korea, you can visit SDA Language School website, or research some of the other available teaching programs such as EPIK or GEPIK.

Ouch!

My arm is still smarting from the shot I got yesterday.  Argh.  I do not like shots...but who really does?  I suppose compared to how it used to be for me when it came to getting shots, they are a rather pleasant experience nowadays.  After all, I'm no longer expending all that energy trying to dodge the needle (although it still takes some willpower to resist doing so).

South Korea being the highly-developed country that it is, there are no vaccinations required to travel there.  However, the Center for Disease Control and Prevention does recommend a pre-travel health screening to determine whether certain vaccines might be advisable for an individual prior to their departure.  In my case, I needed to get up-to-date on some routine vaccinations.  The CDC also recommends vaccines in the case of an outbreak of a disease such as Typhoid or Japanese Encephalitis.  If I travel to other countries in Asia, as I am planning to do, it is likely that I will need to get additional shots.  Great.

Now that those shots are behind me, I'm focused on immune system boosting.  Lots of exercise, fruits, veggies, and Vitamin C in my future!  Learn more about natural immune system boosting by clicking here.

The Waiting Game

As I write this I am exactly one month from my departure date. Part of me is so eager to go to South Korea that it seems an eternity to wait, yet I know time is going to fly by as I try to be as ready as possible for what awaits me there. For a little while there was a chance my friend Linds and I were going to leave before the end of September due to some sort of teacher shortage, but as it turns out, we are on as originally planned for October 16th.

I have, in many ways, already “checked out” here at home.  My apartment is in shambles from the moving process, the impossibly huge amount of paperwork has been submitted, and I have informed pretty much all necessary persons that I am leaving.   All there is left to do is wait.  Ah, the Waiting Game.  Why do they call it a game, anyway?  How does one go about winning said game?   I haven’t felt this way since I was six years old on Christmas Eve, suffering from the annually chronic ailment of “eager anticipation.”  Back then, the only cure was to somehow fall asleep until morning, and that is not really a realistic option in this instance.  I wonder, is it strategic to try to ignore the fact that I am looking forward to this new adventure, or does refusing admit that I am waiting mean that I am disqualified from playing the game?  I’m probably overthinking this.

From a more rational perspective, I know that I need this interim period in order to study Korean, pack, say proper goodbyes to everyone, and spend some preparatory time in prayer and Bible study.   I also think it would be wise to check my expectations, as I know they are likely under-informed and inaccurate.  This will help me to cope with culture shock and avoid disillusionment when confronted with things that do not match my assumptions concerning them.

Unfortunately, even understanding all of this doesn’t really help with my impatience…so I’m going to sing a little song (my typical way of handling most situations).  It goes like this:

 ♪ Have patience, have patience, don’t be in such a hurry

 ♫When you get impatient you only start to worry

 ♪ Remember, remember, that God is patient, too

             ♫And think of all the times when others have had to wait for you

You can listen to it by clicking here.  It's kind of a blast from the past.

안녕하세요

Hello everyone,

The title of this post is written in Hangul, the Korean alphabet. The romanized way of writing and pronouncing it is "anyong-haseyo," and it is a way of saying, "how do you do?" in Korean. It's actual meaning seems to be somewhat contentious, even among the native Koreans I know. It is somewhere between "good day" and just plain "hello," I think. Whatever the translation, I say it to you whole-heartedly!

I've been thinking and talking about starting this blog for a few months now. The title functions as my prediction of what the experience of teaching English in South Korea--and trying to learn Korean at the same time--will be like. It will probably be the case that much of what I try to communicate to others will be "lost in translation," as will much of what others attempt to communicate to me.

Anywho...at long last, introducing Laura's Korea Blog! Just one more blog in a long line of blogs completely dedicated to teaching abroad in South Korea. How can mine possibly be any different from all the rest? Well, I'll tell you one thing: none of the other blogs were written by yours truly. I guess we'll just have to wait and see...