The Differences between Private Language Institutes (Hagwons) & Public Schools (EPIK, GEPIK, & Etc.)

	PRIVATE LANGUAGE INSTITUTION (HAGWON)	PUBLIC SCHOOL
Employer	Private Individual or Corporation	Korean Ministry of Education, Provincial Office of Education etc.
Ability to choose location	Yes. Seoul, Busan, Daegu…almost any city that you want to go live and work in is available through the private school system.	No specific placement requests. You can choose between Metropolitan City, Provincial Province, or “Flexible.” Where you end up is very much dependent upon when you can get your documents to Korea as well as your qualifications.
Qualifications	Bachelor degree in any subject.  No experience necessary (most cases)  TEFL not necessary (most cases) Although teaching experience, TEFL/ TESOL certificates, and a BA in English may get you an even higher salary.	Higher qualifications are required. GPA: Preferred to have at least 3.0/4.0 Bachelor: BA in English, English Literature, English Writing, Linguistics and Education preferred.  If your degree is not one of the above, then you need to get a TESOL/TEFL certificate (minimum 100 hours) or have 1 year of teaching experience.  Even then, some provincial offices of education do not accept online TEFL/TESOL certifications.
Procedure complexity	Relatively simple. Requires: Interview Apostilled/Korean Consulate certified CRC Apostilled/Korean Consulate certified Bachelor’s degree	Complex and time intensive. Requires: 10 Page application form 2 Page lesson plan 500-800 word Personal essay 2 Letters of Reference Interview Apostilled/Korean Consulate certified CRC Apostilled/Korean Consulate certified Bachelor’s degree
Process Length	Takes approximately 3-4 months. You are almost virtually guaranteed the job and location after a successful interview with your prospective employer.	Takes approximately 6-8 months.  * Success is not guaranteed. After going through the entire process, you may still not get the job.
Positions Available	Over 10,000 per year all over Korea.	Approximately 1,500 per year. Competition for these jobs is fierce.
Reliability	Your contract will be created in accordance to the labor laws set by the Korean government. There is a slight risk of being let go if the institution faces financial difficulties (it happens but not very often).	Will not close or reduce staff unexpectedly during the contract.
Class size	Approximately 8-16	Approximately 28-45
Student levels	Students tend to be at the same level and usually possess more advanced English (for their age group)	A mix of high and low level students, with some students being at the top of their class and some students not knowing their ABCs.
Salary	2.0~2.7 Million Korean Won (KRW) No settlement allowance. Airfare to Korea paid for Return airfare to your home country paid for No rural allowance because the schools will not be located in a rural area.  No multiple school teaching allowance You will be staying at your school and do not need to bus from one school to another.	1.8~2.7 Million Korean Won (KRW) Settlement allowance:  300,000 KRW Entrance Allowance (airfare) 1,300,000 Rural allowance (rural areas)  100,000 KRW/month Multiple school teaching allowance: You may be asked to teach at multiple schools if your main school does not have enough hours to satisfy the 22 teaching hours stated in your contract. This tends to happen if your school is very small.  100,000 KRW/month for first 2 schools 50,000 KRW/month for each additional school Exit Allowance (return airfare) 1,300,000
Severance	Severance pay equalling approximately 1 month's salary will be given upon completion of the one-year contract.	Severance pay equalling approximately 1 month's salary will be given upon completion of the one-year contract.
Working Hours	9:30am - 6:30pm / 10:30am - 7:30pm 2:00pm - 9:00pm / 3:00pm - 10:00pm Split shifts for example: 7:00 am – 10 am; then 6:00 pm to 9:00 pm	Regular day-time hours 8:30am - 4:30pm (or 9:00am - 5:00pm)
Teaching Hours	About 30 classes per week 1 class is about 40-50 minutes in length	22 classes per week 1 class is 40 minutes for elementary school, 45 minutes for middle school and 50 minutes for high school
Lesson Planning	Minimal. You are normally required to follow a set curriculum so you do not really need to make your own lessons. This will save you a lot of preparation time outside of the classroom hours however.	Moderate to Maximum. You are responsible for the lesson material and what you teach your students is in most cases, entirely up to you. This means that depending on your abilities, you might have to work outside of the school hours to make a lesson for your students.
Paid Vacation	Approximately 10 working days in addition to all national holidays	Approximately 18 working days in addition to all national holidays
# of Foreign Teacher	2 - 7 foreign teachers. This makes it easier to make friends and settle in to your new role initially.	1 foreign English teacher per school
Overtime	Not usually available	Most areas have overtime available
Overtime Pay	18,000-22,000 Won per hour	18,000-30,000 KRW/hour. In many provinces, special overtime rates apply for summer camp and winter camp.
Airfare	Prepaid ticket/reimbursed upon arrival	Reimbursed within 30 days
Housing	Single studio type housing provided	Single studio type housing provided
Medical Insurance	Korean government health plan or private health plan (50% paid by the employer)	Korean government Medical plan (50% paid by the employer)
Tax Exemption	No tax exemption	All nationalities (excluding Canadians and Irish) are exempt from paying taxes in Korea during their first 2 years of work in the public school sector.
Tax and Other Deductions	3.3%-7% personal income tax deduction and other deductions such as residential taxes	3.3% - 7% personal income tax deduction and other deductions such as residential taxes
Paid Sick Days	3-5 days are common	11-15 days, 3 month maternity leave and other paid emergency leaves (refer to your contract)
Korean National pension plan	The majority of schools will contribute 4.5% to the KNPP. Teachers with American, Canadian or Australian citizenship are eligible for a lump-sum pension refund upon successfully completing their contract and departing Korea.	Your school will contribute 4.5% of your salary to the KNPP. Teachers with American, Canadian or Australian citizenship are eligible for a lump-sum pension refund upon successfully completing their contract and departing Korea.
Overall	If you need to find a job in a specific location, then teaching at a hagwon may be your best option.	If you are more concerned about the nature of the job, the benefits and the job security, it is better to work for a public school.

 Summary of Pros and Cons

	Pros	Cons
Private School	Ability to pick a specific location (Seoul, Busan, Daegu etc.) Easier to make friends initially as private schools tend to have between 2-7 foreign teachers. Some larger private schools will employ more than seven teachers.  Easier to adapt and learn the ropes as you have peers to smooth the transition Smaller language barrier between you and your co-workers as the Korean teachers tend to speak good English as well.  Some employers, especially if they are a smaller private school, will treat you like family (take you to dinner, take you on trips, etc.)	Heavier workload (30 classes vs 22 classes) More difficult to experience the full breadth of Korean culture if most of your friends are foreigners Stability of the school may become an issue Minimal training programs Not a 9-5 job
Public School	Stability and prestige Authentic Korean experience Well established training programs (10 days of mandatory EPIK orientation for example) Korean co-teacher to help you adapt to the school Connected with a large number of public school teachers when you are outside of your school. 9-5 job Do not have to worry about the financial situation of the school.	A small level of control over where you will end up teaching (if you apply very early on). Sometimes you may be placed in a rural setting. With the recent updates to EPIK’s policy, you can no longer list specific metropolitan cities or provinces that you are interested in.  Being alone (you are the only foreign staff at your school) Language barrier with other Korean staffs at your school. More difficult process to get a job. Complex paper work, higher qualifications required, and longer time frames. After all of this, there is NO guarantee that you will get a job.

* Mainly applicable to the EPIK program but other offices of education based their contract and system on EPIK.