Program Reviews

This was the best decision that I have made in my life! Korea is amazing, I love my job and my apartment is right on the beach. I am so glad that AT were able to place me in Busan and I would recommend it to anyone.

I made the decision to go to Korea in August 2013 and AT were able to get me employed and in Korea by November, which was perfect. They were really honest and upfront about the issues that I might face, both at work and with my living arrangements, so I was pleasantly surprised with how easy it is to live and work here.

AT have been really helpful and supportive from the moment I contacted them. I would definitely use their services again in the future!

I applied through their program because of the great reviews on here. Their information packets were very detailed and informative. However, my placement coordinator had very poor communication with me and always seemed rushed. She never returned my calls and wanted all of our documents with them before we could interview with schools. They also said that there was a hiring freeze so I never heard from them about possible interviews. One of my friends also went through them and only had 3 interviews in 2 months with schools that were not what she was looking for. I decided to look for schools and interview on my own. I was able to secure a teaching job without them in less than 2 weeks.
Too bad they were not more helpful, their website is great and looks promising. Work on your professionalism and follow up with your candidates.

I found the Adventure Teaching staff to be very insightful and willing to take the time to have long conversations with you, giving full attention to your questions. I never felt as though I was being brushed aside by Adventure Teaching.

AT has always been quick to follow up to my emails, and I found the staff to be very easy to reach by phone. The info packets they sent to help me get through the visa process were re assuring and easy to navigate, so I was able to get through a very long visa process very smoothly.

When AT was unable to find a placement for me in South Korea as quickly as I had hoped, they were able to connect me with another teaching opportunity to help me practice teaching while I was waiting to e placed in South Korea. I was very happy that Adventure Teaching went out of their way to help me find yet another valuable teaching experience before I arrived in Korea.

My suggestion: Read the info packs sent to you by Adventure Teaching. They are really useful and enjoyable to read.

Working in my hagwan was undoubtedly overwhelming in the first so months. The school provided an orientation and gave us multiple materials to help prepare, however the orientation happened so quickly that all of my learning began when I actually started teaching. I felt the hagwan could have provided a much more thorough orientation, but the actual resources they provided were helpful. Other foreign English teachers in my school were incredibly supportive and we immediately began planning trips around Seoul together. These immediate social connections were key in helping me work through the initial culture shock. In the beginning, I think it's ok to find other fluent English speakers to explore Korea with, even if your goal is to learn more about the Korean language. Initially, a solid friend group with whom you can easily communicate is immensely helpful. Even if you feel extremely tired after a long day of teaching, it's worth making time to spend time with another person or a crowd to help keep you grounded. A co worker a really admire told me...."Learning how to adjust in Korea means that sometimes you have to let people in." She was speaking about confiding in others.

Working in my hagwan has often felt exhausting because of the number of hours spent teaching and the amount of administrative tasks the teachers are required to finish, but the students are always happy to see their teachers, and watching them grow in their learning and confidence has helped me feel as though working in the hagwan has truly been an accomplishment.

I am so extremely grateful for Adventure Teaching. The process, although long and tedious, was very smooth and easy. The employees are friendly, and answered every question I had. My recruiter, Kelly, went above and beyond to help me with whatever she could. I'm glad I went through an agency, because now, if I have any concerns here, I have people to go to.

My experience in Korea have been pretty good, so far. I have only been here for a little over a month, but I can already tell that this was the right decision for me.

The school isn't exactly how I had imagined it to be, however. They are very unorganized, and leave things until the last minute. I feel very stressed with the amount of work, and the little planning time that they give us. My co-teachers, however, have been a life-saver. If it weren't for them, I would of probably left during the first week. I love the students and the teaching part so much though, that I am pushing through all the extra hard parts with the administration.

Outside of school has been amazing. There are always things to do, and places to go. I recently went on an Adventure Korea trip to Gyeongju for the Cherry Blossom Festival and to hike up MT Namsan. It was fantastic!

Overall, I am having a wonderful experience in South Korea. I can't wait to see what the rest of the year brings :)

I was very satisfied after using Adventure Teaching. Kelly my recruiter was so incredibly helpful, in getting me over to Korea. She gave me great advice, and she listed to what I wanted. While I was very flexible in my preferences, Kelly helped place me in a good school in a great part of South Korea!

My first full day in Korea (a Sunday) was awful, I just wanted to go back home. I walked around my city where I was going to stay and was completely overwhelmed by the Korean billboards and neon lights everywhere. I went back to my hotel and hid until work Monday. Thankfully I brought dried fruit and granola bars so I had that to eat.

Since my first day, every day has gotten much better. I have met friends by getting plugged in to a small group at a church. Some people chose social groups but I really like my church small group. They have really helped me with my transition. Every weekend they take me someplace new. I have been here 2 months now and I am considering another year.

If you are not a morning person this is the job for you. I usually wake up at 10 am go for a jog, come home by 11:30, get ready for work, then I'm out the door by 12:40 to be at work by 1pm. I work an 8 hour day with at least 3-4 hours of planning and 4-5 hours of teaching, depending on the day. I get home by 9:30 pm. Sometimes I wake up earlier to run errands but this is pretty much my day.

One SUPER IMPORTANT thing, if you think the whole world runs like the country you are from, and you are not a flexible person, then don't bother signing up. You will end up having a miserable time and make everyone else miserable. I have a coworker who makes everyone's life miserable at work because he is not flexible, and thinks Korean work should cater to his country's work ethic. You will work hard in Korea, even when you are sick. Sometimes you will be asked to work extra (this rarely happens but it happens). All the negative reviews you read online especially about Avalon are more than likely from people like this.

I have taught in Sanbon for three months and got to know amazing people and adorable kids. I was really glad AT had placed me there.
After three months, the school had me let go and I had to find a new job if I wanted to remain in Korea. I kept in touch with AT the whole time and in 2 weeks they found me a new place with similar working conditions in a very nice place.

I highly value the work of all the AT advisors, who are both really friendly and good at what they are doing.

Keep up the good work, we need people like you!

The fact that all the staff has lived and taught in South Korea and have gone through the same experiences and emotions makes it such a personable program. Hearing your recruiter say, " This was really helpful when I was living there..." really ensured me that I was in good hands. After my very first phone conversation with Kelly I immediately knew that I had made the right decision. She was there every single step of the way, encouraging me on and getting me pumped to leave as I worked my way through the visa process. Having experienced nothing but headaches going through a visa process in another country, I must say it doesn't get any easier than having AT's checklist with each step written out for you in full detail. Kelly even went out of her way looking for job opportunities to help me get ahead of schedule and had job leads and interviews lined up and waiting immediately after I had returned home from a vacation. I cannot say enough nice things about my experience working with my recruiter and truly would recommend this life changing opportunity to anyone. Life here is good, as I am within a 5 min. walk to school and have everything I could possibly need within walking distance. I am even still receiving emails from both AT and The Arrival Store checking in to see how things are going so far. A very personable and enjoyable experience the entire way. There is hope for companies who deliver what they say!

So far Korea has been amazing! The city is beautiful and the kids are adorable! The people at adventure teaching were super helpful and made this transition a lot easier then I had thought. From the first email to the last, through numerous phone calls, stories and pep talks Kelly has been awesome at helping me and encouraging me to take on this experience. The arrival store was a great plus and it was nice to have stuff here when we arrived. Korea has been challenging, mostly just the language, but for the most part the people are extremely nice and when all else fails, just smile. I'm thankful for this opportunity and would recommend adventure teaching to all my friends!