In the 5 years I’ve been here, a number of people from back home have asked me about the starting English teacher salary in Korea. Unfortunately, in 5 years, it hasn’t really changed a lot.

With the US and UK economies performing the way they are, more and more people are looking for teaching positions, and that means that English teacher salaries have pretty much stagnated. As a new teacher, coming here for the first time, you are probably looking at earning around 2.0-2.1 million won for a starting position job.

There is one way to get an extra $100 or so each month if you work in the public school position, and that is to take a 100 hour TEFL course. As long as the course is from an approved provider, you get a bump up the pay scale!

Even if you work in the private school system, you can get the higher paying jobs if you have certification. Something worth considering, if you want to get the best salary in Korea!

Filed under: TEFL