Location
  • South Korea
    • Seoul
    • Gwangju
    • Busan
Length
52+ weeks

Program Details

Job Type
Government
Housing
Apartment

Pricing

Salary / Benefits
• $1,800 to $2,400 USD per month
• Free housing
• Medical insurance and pension
• Airfare Reimbursement
• Paid vacation
• Severance Pay
• Settlement allowance (EPIK & SMOE)

Aug 13, 2018
Aug 14, 2017
45 travelers are looking at this program

About Program

Reach To Teach has over 40 years of ESL teaching and recruitment experience with offices in the South Korea, USA, and Taiwan. We understand the business and care about our teachers. The schools and programs we represent are among the best in the business. We provide our teachers with an upfront and honest perspective, because were all teachers at one time as well. We will prepare you to live and work abroad for a year, while always offering support as well.

Reach To Teach the only American official recruiter for the EPIK & SMOE program. The EPIK & SMOE programs in Korea offer a unique experience to gain valuable ESL teaching experience in public schools with start dates in August and February.

We also work with a number of private schools from Seoul to Busan and everywhere in between. We have private schools openings every month, so it's always a good time to apply!

Program Reviews

4.81 Rating
based on 58 reviews
  • 5 rating 82.76%
  • 4 rating 15.52%
  • 3 rating 1.72%
  • 2 rating 0%
  • 1 rating 0%
  • Benefits 4.75
  • Support 4.85
  • Fun 4.65
  • Facilities 4.8
  • Safety 4.85
Showing 41 - 48 of 58 reviews
Default avatar
AunupB
5/5
Yes, I recommend this program

Going on 3 months in Korea with no complaints

While placements and work experiences vary from individual to individual, I can say that I personally could not be happier with how my situation turned out here in Korea. I have a nice apartment, friendly co-teachers and Korean co-workers, and have found a great group of friends here. Reach to Teach does a great job of preparing their recruits for coming to Korea, as well as keeping in contact with them should they need any sort of assistance. I have no complaints about the organization, nor do I have any complaints about the position I obtained through applying with them.

39 people found this review helpful.
Photo of Whitney Zahar
Whitney
4/5
Yes, I recommend this program

Life in Korea Through Reach to Teach

I found Reach to Teach to be a very professional and honest company staffed with people who really did care about their teachers and their experiences. At the time, most of their focus was on Taiwan, so their information on their website about Korea was very light, but I'm glad to see that has changed over the last couple of years. Likewise, there weren't as many get-togethers, but I didn't mind. Reach to Teach was able to set things up so nicely that it gave me the confidence to branch out and enjoy my Korean experience on my own. What I really loved was that before I came to Korea, I felt like I could really talk to my recruiter if I needed anything. I had a tragedy in my family shortly before I was to leave the United States, and I requested to delay my departure. My recruiter was so understanding, and let me have a couple of months to settle things. "Your job is waiting for you," he said. "Let us know when you are ready." I knew I was involved with truly good people when I got involved with Reach to Teach, and they seem to be growing, which is always a good thing!

42 people found this review helpful.
Default avatar
Incheonite
5/5
Yes, I recommend this program

They're good people

In the past I never thought of myself as a particularly adventurous spirit, and the thought of moving to another country seemed unfathomably huge. But somehow I got the bug to teach English in Korea, and working with Reach to Teach I always felt like I was well cared for. Everyone there has been or is currently a teacher in a foreign country, and not only do they know what you're going through, but I just had the feeling all along that they really care, and I felt informed and supported and reassured about all my concerns. And complicated paperwork is usually completely overwhelming for me, but they laid out the process and patiently worked with me step by step till it was all done. I just wish they would help me with my taxes. When my friends back home find out that somebody they know is interested in teaching overseas, they pass on my email address, and I consistently recommend Reach to Teach Recruiting because of my 100% positive experience with them.

40 people found this review helpful.
Default avatar
mseitz2389
4/5
Yes, I recommend this program

My experience with Reach to Teach

Reach to Teach has been very helpful in my experience with them. They were very professional as a recruiting agency when it came to answering me questions and keeping me informed throughout my application process. However, I beleive that some things could have been done faster as it sometimes took up to three days for me to receive a response via email. Reach to Teach did successfully get me a job in South Korea and I currently love where I am located. I originally wanted a city positon but my location is only a 25 minute train ride to Daegu so I have the best of both worlds. I can vist Korea's third biggest city any day of the week and I have the luxory of living in the country when I just want to relax and maybe visit the local wine tunnel in Cheongdo. Overall, I am very happy with my life in Korea and I have Reach to Teach to thank for that.

34 people found this review helpful.
Default avatar
RTTsupport
5/5
Yes, I recommend this program

Go with RTT!

Having come to Korea by myself and applying by myself, having RTT there for help and support was really great. Applying directly through EPIK may be faster, but you will not get the kind of support the RTT provides!

40 people found this review helpful.
Default avatar
Elle-S
4/5
Yes, I recommend this program

Thanks to Reach to Teach

So far, I am enjoying living and teaching in Korea. Although I live in a small city (by Korean standards), transportation is cheap and convenient here, so there are lots of opportunities to explore the country. The EPIK orientation was very helpful, both in helping us (especially first time teachers like me) learn about teaching English in Korea, as well as forming friendships with other EPIK teachers. So when difficulty strikes, I have a large network of people I can commiserate with.

My students at my elementary school (although occasionally a bit crazy) are adorable, and their enthusiasm always brightens my day. And most of the other teachers in the school, even though they cannot speak much English, have been extremely welcoming and friendly.

I think, though, my experience would have been drastically different if I had not gone through Reach to Teach. They guided me through the application process, providing helpful information at every step, and assisted me in getting my application in on time, despite the fact that I had a difficult time with the FBI background check (my first background check got lost in the mail).

On top of that, Reach to Teach has been a great resource for me while in Korea. There were some miscommunications and misunderstandings with my school regarding the clause in the EPIK contract that states that the school is supposed to provide certain furniture to the guest English teachers, and I spent a little over my first month without a bed. I tried to handle the matter myself, talking to the school and contacting an EPIK coordinator, but I could not get anywhere. However, I asked John at Reach to Teach for help, and within a few days, the matter was all sorted out and I finally got my bed.

In short, EPIK so far has been a great experience for me, and is a good way to experience a foreign country with a solid support network behind you. And if you are considering applying to EPIK, consider applying with Reach to Teach. They not only assist during the application process, but can be of assistance in Korea if things go wrong (which hopefully they won't, and for most people I know, they didn't, but there is always a chance of misunderstandings).

39 people found this review helpful.
Default avatar
britishatheart22
5/5
Yes, I recommend this program

A Great Way to Start a Career

I graduated with my undergraduate degree in Elementary Education, so I really enjoy teaching.And the EPIK program has been great in providing me with a wonderful school and place to stay. I love the staff and the students at my school. The school system here is so very different from home, but I now understand it better, and hope to understand it even more. I love the classes that I teach and the sometimes craziness of a general day at school. The schools are set up well, and since I am in a smaller school, I am able to send some individual students. The school has been so helpful, and the staff has been great. I love where I am placed. The most difficult thing for me is the communication. There are days that I feel great about the communication between me and my students. There are days that I feel like the lesson or interaction could have gone better. I now know that it is vitally important to understand some Korean. It is hard to settle problems with the students, when you do not know what they are saying. That is really the only problem. The highlights are the students. They are always happy to see me, even though they do not study all the time. They are a great pick me up, on a bad day. The students make effort to talk to me and communicate with me. I really enjoy getting to know my students and being able to teach them. I have a bit of advice though, students know when the teacher really cares about them. You may not think that you can teach, but you might be able to if you try. You just need to let the students know that you care for them, not just when they are in your classroom. Say hello to them in the halls and try to communicate with them outside the classroom. They enjoy getting to know you, as much as you enjoy getting to know them.

42 people found this review helpful.
Default avatar
Kostyoem
5/5
Yes, I recommend this program

Being abroad for the first time

This has been my first experience abroad and I have to admit, that it has gone rather smoothly from arriving at the airport and getting to where I needed to be at orientation, to arriving at my apt and meeting the teachers at my school. It is also nice knowing that I have support of reach to teach and they are concerned with my well being while I am over here. And since this is my first time abroad, I have felt homesick, but even getting that article about culture shock and how it manifests itself has really helped. I didn't really think about going through this:"culture shock" I just knew I felt homesick and kind of alone in the world. But just like the article said, the more you explore and the more you do, the less you should feel homesick.

40 people found this review helpful.

Questions & Answers

Regarding the dog, I think that this would be specific to the countries immigration and visa laws. I would imagine there is some paperwork that needs to be done to bring any pet to a new country. However, I am sure it is possible. South Korea has tons of dogs for sale. I had a friend who adopted a dog during her time there and then returned home to the US with her South Korean dog.

It depends on the apartment you end up in, I have many friends with small cats and dogs so generally yes, but not all apartments will allow it.

Hi Kayla, It looks like EPIK requires a 20-hour in-class TEFL component along with a 100-hour TEFL certification.