Last Updated on September 18, 2024 by Christine Kaaloa
I just got my Korea E-2 Visa for my job as an English Teacher in Korea. Time to celebrate!
The fruit of my efforts and travel goals begin sinking in. I feel nervous, weird, most definitely excited and I even begin to feel like I might be a bit Korean! This visa stands for the achievement of a new career goal.
Having an E-2 work visa is a rite of passage knowing that I can legally live and work in Korea.
Initially when I applied for my English as a Second Language Teacher position five months ago, I thought it was going to be a breeze. I thought I would just fill out a long questionnaire, write an essay and flash my U.S. passport.
But what I realized was that this process required so much more of just having a dream of working abroad in another country. It entailed
What is a Korea E-2 Visa (Work Visa for English Teachers)?
Table of Contents: I Got my Korea E-2 Visa for Teaching in Korea (My Step-by-Step Application Process)
- 1 A Step-by-Step Korea E-2 Visa Application Process for English Teachers
- 1.1 Step 2: You, Korea and why you want to work in Korea?
- 1.2 Step 3: Interview with the Job Recruiter
- 1.3 Step 4: Get and Submit the Official Documents for your Korea E-2 Work Visa
- 1.4 Step 5: Interview w/ your Korean Employer : Ministry of Education (EPIK)
- 1.5 Step 6: Application for your Korea E-2 Visa
- 1.6 Making the Decision to Work Abroad
The E-2 work visa in Korea is a long-term work visa for foreign language instructors to legally work in educational institutions in Korea.
In short, the E-2 work visa is for English teachers, which is the main foreign language that Korea wants its students to learn. To get the E-2 work visa, you must have a notice of appointment and employment contract. This means, you need to be sponsored by a company who can give you one. Obviously, not any type of employer can extend this. The employer is responsible for your time in Korea and
A Step-by-Step Korea E-2 Visa Application Process for English Teachers
Step 1: The Teach Away Application to your Recruiter (if you’re doing it this way)
You do not need to go through a recruiter to get a job as an English teacher in Korea. However, this was the route I took and I do not regret it. My recruiter facilitated the process up to getting me to Korea. They walked me through the steps like a baby and I did not pay any extra fees. I went with Teach Away.
I especially appreciated them after-the-fact when meeting other English teachers who worked at hagwons who felt in-the-dark about their procedure. I always felt like I was given clear information of what I was getting into. It reduced my anxieties and it helped having a cheerleader/mom giving me step-by-step instructions to make sure I met deadlines.
There are a handful of recruiting agencies other than Teach Away and they all handle more countries than just Korea. These work abroad recruiting agencies are being paid by the work programs and employers that they are recruiting for, so you should not be paying any processing fees or what not.
The Teach Away application for Korea was to express interest to work in a teach abroad program. For me, it was a Korean public school program by the government, EPIK. There are other programs like GEPIK or one of the various private hagwons in Korea. I wanted a government program, with government accountability.
Thus, the first round is a basic job application procedure for your recruiter to judge if you have basic work qualifications that make you fit and hard-working candidate for recruitment.
Do you have work experience that shows you are a responsible adult for this job and for living on your own?
- Job Application Form
- Work Resume
- Cover Letter
Step 2: You, Korea and why you want to work in Korea?
Congratulations, you made it through the first round of being a candidate for a teaching position in the country you’re hoping for! Your recruiter has sent you the followup application packet.
This second application packet is an eight page form with a written essay with questions that are more specific to your job, re-location preferences, your specific program and a little of what your Korean program/employer wants to know.
This helps them know a little more about your personality, your preferences and where you will best apply yourself. Working in Korea, not all teaching assignments are in large and ideal cities. Rural and lesser known areas need teachers too and they want to make sure you will be able to meet those challenges with a wonderful attitude.
Step 3: Interview with the Job Recruiter
If you made it this far, then you’re getting your first Interview with the Recruiter.
The recruiters are nice and friendly. Your recruiters likely have not lived in the destination you’re applying for. They may not even done a teach abroad program or worked outside their home country. They won’t know how to deal with your co-teachers or what cellphone carrier to take. But they are your connection to Korea and the program, while you are in your home country. As there’s some fear around making a big life change like living in another country, my recruiter was like a surrogate mother or friend who was there to answer my questions and to make sure I was on track getting the essential documents I needed to get myself into Korea, when my employer needed me.
Once I was in Korea, my recruiter’s job was done. You are handed to your employer. My recruiter occasionally followed up with me to see if I was okay. But I think she was exceptional.
But they are sussing you out and if your personality matches what you wrote. Everyone looks good on paper but they show more of their experience, attitude and work ethic in interviews. They also want to get a feel of your personality because teaching in Korea, you need to have a bit of a personality and some confidence if you expect to teach in front of a classroom of students.
Step 4: Get and Submit the Official Documents for your Korea E-2 Work Visa
In this third application process, two copies are required of each document mentioned below. It deals with your work reputation, your legal reputation to ensure you are okay to work with Korean youth and your education credibility. Korea and its school system wants to know you are trained by an accredited college in the way you say you are. This application process requires official copies of:
-
College Transcripts from an Accredited College (Bachelor’s Degree ).
- They must be from an accredited college- Bachelor’s Degree at least. They must be sealed by the university and unopened. This means you must ask your university to send your transcripts in an officially sealed envelope. DO NOT OPEN IT when it arrives! You’ll need to submit this to your employer.
-
FBI Criminal background check (not state or local)
- Background checks must be less than six months old and can take up to three months to get. You must write a note requesting it to be authenticated with an official seal as you are using it for working abroad. It must have a seal on it.
- After getting your FBI criminal background check in the mail, you must send it to get an apostille, so plan ahead for that deadline!
- See my post on How to Apostille Documents for Teaching in Korea. I just walked all my documents into a city government building that apostille documents and was out in ten minutes.
-
Copy of your Bachelor’s Degree College diploma
- This needs to be mailed to you certified or authenticated.
- After getting your FBI criminal background check in the mail, you must send it to get an apostille, so plan ahead for that deadline!
- See my post on How to Apostille Documents for Teaching in Korea. I just walked all my documents into a city government building that apostille documents and was out in ten minutes..
-
-
(2) Letters of Recommendations from Professional References
- Make photo copies of these as you may need to provide them for your E-2 Visa packet.
Pro Tip: Get additional copies of official documents and transcripts You may want to extend your teaching term in Korea, either by continuing on with your school program, switch school/programs or teach at a university in Korea. You may even decide to teach in another country. In any case, you will repeat this process.
Step 5: Interview w/ your Korean Employer : Ministry of Education (EPIK)
Your Teach Away recruiter will set you up with an interview with your Korean employer and it lasts around 10-15 minutes.
Step 6: Application for your Korea E-2 Visa
Finally, you will apply for your Korea E-2 Work Visa.
-
Signed Employment Contract
-
Employer’s Notice of Appointment,
-
Copy of your Passport Bio page
- Make sure you have at least six months before expiration.
-
Passport photo
- Have at least four photos of standard passport size.
- Pro Tip: You want a set of passport photos as you will need them down the line for more things. And eventually for when you travel neighboring countries that require visa photos.
How long did it take to get my job and visa for Korea?
To request and gather my documents and apostille them, it took around three months. I started in late fall and by December, I knew I had a job and was emptying my Manhattan apartment to move home in December. My start date was in February.
This all happened so quickly for me, it almost felt like I was really aligned with the universe. Having a recruiter, accelerated the process as I flew through steps fearlessly, with no guess work or vagueness. My recruiter would email me a list of documents I needed, how I needed them, some addresses and deadlines I needed to get things back to her. If I had questions, she’d answer them.
I also lived in New York City at the time, so I was closer to official government agencies and Washington DC.
How much did this process cost?
I’m often surprised at how little I paid in retrospect. Going through things, I was sure costs were adding up with all the official document requests, and the fact I had transferred schools and took summer school at different colleges. But it all totaled to approximately $200.
Again, I repeat, I paid nothing to my recruitment agency.
Making the Decision to Work Abroad
In gaining an E-2 work visa abroad, the most vital ingredient was faith and self-belief. There is always a fear of the unknown, and questions like: Can I really do this thing of living abroad in another country? How will I live in a country where I don’t know the language? Will I like my location assignment, co-teachers and job? How will I continue to grow my U.S. income from a country with a lower minimum wage? …
Finding the will and courage to believe in your own abilities to accomplish your goal is 75% of the up-hill battle.
The choices and decisions we make towards creating a satisfactory life is like playing at our own personal stock market. Although you won’t know what’s on the other side of the coin toss, the main thing is to follow your joy and do right by yourself. Questions to ask yourself:
- Do you really want to live abroad for a year?
- Do you see this as an opportunity or a sacrifice?
- Is it a dream of yours to live in a different country in this lifetime?
- What do you hope to gain from your experience- learn a new language, experience a new culture, experience a life greater than you know?..
Some travelers take a gap year to travel and expand their horizons. Others want to teach in impoverished areas to help others. Yet others I’ve met want were seduced by Korean dramas, K-pop or just wanted to dive into Korean culture more.
Life is only a gamble, when:
a) you don’t know the paths available to you and there are dangerous risks, and
b) you base your decision upon a coin toss.
Instead, I like to gamble on my life from the point of what I know about myself (and what is probable) versus a step towards a wise opportunity but one that is a little unknown.
Behind Door #1: Continue upon a known road, which is feeling lifeless and stagnant (a 50% gamble but you know the odds of its answer)
Behind Door #2: Following one’s heart into the unknown and trust it to move us forward. Hmmm… vague, right?
Nevertheless, with door #2 I will be gaining something in a step forward away from stagnant. A step forward may hold a better outlook on life and opportunity, that I had not considered.
Personally, this choice would be a well-needed career break and gap year, a new opportunity to experience greater things in life beyond my home country and all the lessons of courage and confidence that come with it.
My 6 Month Goal: How Quickly the Universe is Forging this Path
Can large dreams be achieved in a short amount of time? I have no doubt there are people who might be able to manage this goal in lesser. For me, six is my turn-around number. It’s about the number of months that activated my last life altering decision: Get into an MFA program and move to NYC… (Ready, set, go!) Whenever you discover a goal to define your life by (even if temporarily), life immediately becomes clear…crystal, in fact! In order to win the odds, your stakes and GRRR energies must be focused 100% on moving forward. I mean *physical* steps (reading the book, The Secret, and visualizing your goal coming to you is not enough). If you’re on a short timeline, you may need to raise your energies to 110%… 120% or 140%.
Back in August, when I launched my goal to move my life abroad by February 2010 (Ready, set, go!), I didn’t have a clue if it was possible. I researched “work options in my field” and “secondary jobs abroad”… my eyes nearly imploded from internet research and I hardly saw the light of day from my cave. My only concrete plan in my schedule was move home to Hawaii by December (to spend the holidays with my family) , then launch from there. Where? Who knew. Doing what? Something that would give me a work visa! There was no backup plan- just ultimate career suicide. But, I committed 110% of my efforts to bridging my trust in myself and my desire and had faith I’d eventually arrive at a solution.
Tick-Tock…
By actively pursuing my goal each day, I increased the probability of my achievement. I’m nearing the end of my 5th month and I have a Korean work visa and flight ticket in hand. In mid February, I will be launching my new life in Korea. My 6 month trajectory is right on target,… and with several days to spare.