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Post by EA Observer on Jan 19, 2008 12:16:33 GMT -5
Man, I don't know why this is so hard. If I was, say, a veterinarian working in New York (which I'm not) and making $75,000 per year and wanted to know someone who also had a stint as a veterinarian in Seoul, I suppose that's more specific to my situation, but's not even what I was aiming at. I simply asked for personal experiences of whatever work some people may have had anywhere in Korea, not just in large cities. That was all. And what if no one worked there as a vet? Then I may not get the responses from others who had other work experiences, thinking that I was only interested in a vet experience in Korea so that I wouldn't be interested in hearing about theirs. I wasn't asking the question to do any comparison with my current job status.
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Post by yongfook on Jan 19, 2008 12:36:11 GMT -5
Man, I don't know why this is so hard. If I was, say, a veterinarian working in New York (which I'm not) and making $75,000 per year and wanted to know someone who also had a stint as a veterinarian in Seoul, I suppose that's more specific to my situation, but's not even what I was aiming at. I simply asked for personal experiences of whatever work some people may have had anywhere in Korea, not just in large cities. That was all. And what if no one worked there as a vet? Then I may not get the responses from others who had other work experiences, thinking that I was only interested in a vet experience in Korea so that I wouldn't be interested in hearing about theirs. I wasn't asking the question to do any comparison with my current job status. Seriously. Whatever work? You surely must have some standards, or some idea of what you want to do when you are there. Would you be happy flipping burgers in a TGI Fridays in Seoul? Are you looking for a job where you can speak English, or one where you have to speak Korean? Do you want a job in a small local company or a large foreign company? These are like, seriously basic questions and I don't feel like I'm being pedantic asking them. Do you not realise that the guy flipping burgers in a TGI Fridays and the guy working as an account executive at a financial services company will have wildly differing opinions on quality of life and salary? You're making a huge move by thinking about relocating to a whole different country - don't tell me you haven't asked yourself the basics. To not do so is irresponsible, and, well, silly really. You're right in that it's unlikely that someone in this thread will be working in the exact industry in the exact region you are aiming for. I mean what, there's like 5 people on EAN actually living and working in Asia to begin with. What you can expect however, is that one of us will know someone with experiences similar to something you describe, and can either recount for you their opinion, or get them to get in touch with you directly.
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Post by avax on Jan 19, 2008 13:10:48 GMT -5
It doesn't sound like a case of not knowing. It sounds more like reluctance at providing too many personal details. EAO wants others to post personal details so that he can approach them himself. (which admittedly I've preferred doing in the past before). I can understand the frustration though for those who want to help. The brilliant part is that there are a few members who have such a wealth of experience and exposure that it would take writing several volumes for such a broad question.
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Post by fumanchu on Jan 19, 2008 22:34:16 GMT -5
Would teaching english be alright just to get by for 6months (not looking for a career there) in say japan/china? I've been looking at taking career break & long service leave to do that I've been teaching english in China for the past 8 months. For China you can get 6 month contracts as schools get desperate towards the start of semesters. But these schools will usually be in the less famous provinces, hence their inability to attract someone in the first place. Stick with a university and not a private school and you should be looked after. For those who are or have worked in Asia but originally grew up elsewhere, how on Earth did you get to where you are or were? I studied psych and management to masters level, but I had an interest in investing which eventually led me into a job where I learnt accounting and consulting. I had the option of putting up with drudgery, working a few more years into my early thirties and then being in a position to retire (not that I think I'll ever retire) or I could go pursue some goals, most pressing being learning Chinese before my grandparents pass, which will also give me the option of working a real job in Asia as well (as opposed to teaching). So I took option 2 and decided to learn Mandarin and headed off to China. Did you go to Asia with the intention of finding work there or were you re-located there for work purposes? And what caused you to go?Rather than study full-time, I decided to teach english to maintain a little income, and self-study Chinese. So yes, I came with the intention of working. The broader intention though is that I know if I can raise my Chinese level then I'll be able to get a job in finance etc and work some semblance of a real career here (as opposed to teaching english). My sister works for an investment bank so I've a foot in the door. There are still relatively few foreigners that can speak Mandarin and China requires senior executives of investment banks to pass a securities exam entirely in Mandarin. Apparently only 10 foreigners have passed since 2005. My Chinese is okay now after 8 months, but I'm doing a further 6 months of full-time study to fully focus. Are the language barriers a severe obstacle and being EA (or anything but full Asian) what was it like integrating with your collegues? Meeting new people and original funding?Where I am in China it is not so much the language barrier but the mentality barrier that can be difficult. When my mother visited she said the lifestyle was like HK in the 1960's. The other teachers complain that they don't really exist as human beings here, they are just amusing curios for the locals. This is partly true, some locals have literally never seen a foreigner in real life and the education system here is woefully inadequate to prepare someone to be an "international citizen". On the other hand, if you make no effort to learn the language you'll have trouble fitting in in China (unless you're in Shanghai/Beijing). Given the mentality where I am, I think it makes little difference whether I'm half Chinese or not. There are only full Chinese or foreigners. Colleague-wise, well, the foreigners stick together and have little interaction with the locals. I make the biggest effort but it is limited as I'm putting in around 6 hours study a day. If I hang with students I always feel like I'm cheating them if I speak in Chinese, given that they are english students. Hanging with local colleagues or other professionals, well, the cultural differences can make for interesting situations. A new acquaintance tried to take me to a whorehouse because that's what his friends want to do as soon as they arrive in town from his home province. I might be wrong, Jenming or someone might be able to comment more accurately, but I think being EA should be a big advantage once I can speak relatively fluently. If you look Chinese and speak Chinese you get treated as a Chinese person, which can often be like dirt. If you look foreign but speak Chinese you can get a lot of respect. If you can tell them you are half Chinese on top, well, it's just that little extra connection to smooth the way.
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Mr Brad Pitt
Full Member
Social Retard Spreading Sh.i.t
Posts: 467
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Post by Mr Brad Pitt on Jan 20, 2008 9:42:52 GMT -5
Looking half asian, IMHO, is not an advantage overall.
However, in the particular situation where one's a foreigner in an Asian country, one might be treated better than the non-Asian looking foreigners: locals would have the (conscious or unconscious) feeling that this guy is a "foreigner not so foreigner".
That's the hypothesis I've formed, but I have yet to refine it after travelling in other Asian countries.
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Post by helles on Jan 20, 2008 10:01:53 GMT -5
My sister has almost secured a deal with her company to transfer out to HK within the year. She's only been with her job just over a year since graduating and at her appraisal a couple weeks ago and mentioned her desire to move to HK and as they are expanding in asia anyway she asked if she could be sent out. She has the working visa and has proved good at her job, so they want to keep her and have more or less given the OK.
She's gonna be negotiating her expat package soon, or another company is likely to offer her a job too. lucky bitch.
Right time, right industry.
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Post by fumanchu on Jan 20, 2008 10:05:04 GMT -5
^ I don't particularly look half asian, that's why I have to tell people i'm half Chinese.
I agree that the way you look isn't an advantage in most Asian countries, but I'm not in most asian countries, I'm in China and China's a special case.
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Post by yongfook on Jan 20, 2008 10:05:05 GMT -5
My sister has almost secured a deal with her company to transfer out to HK within the year. She's only been with her job just over a year since graduating and at her appraisal a couple weeks ago and mentioned her desire to move to HK and as they are expanding in asia anyway she asked if she could be sent out. She has the working visa and has proved good at her job, so they want to keep her and have more or less given the OK. She's gonna be negotiating her expat package soon, or another company is likely to offer her a job too. lucky bitch. Right time, right industry. awesome. congrats to her, sounds like a good combination of hard work and things falling nicely into place.
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Post by helles on Jan 20, 2008 22:43:34 GMT -5
Yeah I know. It's good on her cos she has worked really hard and she has a passion for her job.
I'm trying not to be jealous sitting here at my dead-beat job, wondering if I should've stayed in UK for a couple of years (hmm.. thinking about it, I'm actually not, just need to change my job).. On a plus, I'll get free groceries once she gets here.
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Post by jericho on Apr 9, 2008 7:18:38 GMT -5
Well, it looks like I can join the list of people who are working in Asia. I have been accepted into the JET program. I haven't found out where I will be placed yet. I will be in Japan late July/early August.
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Post by yongfook on Apr 9, 2008 8:12:22 GMT -5
congrats man. the door is about to be opened on a whole new stage of your life.
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Post by jericho on Apr 10, 2008 7:19:10 GMT -5
Thanks a lot, it's all very nerve wracking and exciting all at once.
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Post by saeka on Apr 11, 2008 7:10:06 GMT -5
^ Congratulations
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Post by jericho on Jun 3, 2008 17:17:20 GMT -5
Thanks. The Japanese consulate got in contact with me and it looks like I am going to be based in Koriyama City in Fukushima Prefecture. It's 192kms north of Tokyo. Does anyone know much about this place or have been there? I've done some research on it but there's nothing that is really in detail. Anything at all would be helpful.
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Post by yongfook on Jun 3, 2008 20:07:57 GMT -5
oh man, your placement has a wikipedia page - that's HUGE en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kōriyama,_Fukushima So it looks like you've got an urban placement. Count yourself lucky if urban is what you wanted - the vast majority of JET placements are non-urban, in smaller villages. I was in a village of 1500 people during JET! You'll have a very different JET experience to the one I had! (not saying better or worse, just different) Jeez your city even has a bullet train station! haha...I'd say you have a great placement. In terms of comfort and social life you'll be partying in a small city where there are bars, restaurants etc all around you (many JETs out in the countryside don't have things like this nearby), shopping when you need it and good access to the rest of Japan via bullet train. In terms of the job you'll most likely be a city hall JET which means you'll probably have to work at a bunch of different schools - in JET terms this is called a "one-shot". That's another one of the differences between the urban and non-urban placements, the countryside JETs often just have a few schools and see the same kids every day, the urban JETs have to work a lot more schools and can feel a bit distanced from the school communities; but hey, it's what you want to make of it. Here's the google map of your city if you want to scroll around - the train station is the bit in pink, in the middle maps.google.com/maps?f=q&hl=en&geocode=&q=fukushima&ie=UTF8&ll=37.398451,140.386745&spn=0.029047,0.040383&t=h&z=15
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