The Renewal Process

Hi, everyone!

Some already know, but I should probably announce here that I have decided to renew my contract. The road to renewal is not as simple as you might think, so I thought that I would share some of the basic information with prospective ESL teachers.

There is a process that you have to go through, one of which I wasn't aware of until renewal time came around. I received a guide just last week with the details, which is where I'm getting my information for this post. I can't guarantee that it will be the same for you if you applied to a different area or program, but maybe it will help in some way.

First, timeline:

(The dates listed reflect my intake, not all)

GET Evaluation by Principal, VP and co-teachers (10.31~11.12)

Renewal Packet Submission to DMOE   (by 11.12)
 - Includes evaluation, renewal application
   and self health check report

Renewal Eligibility Screening and Evaluation  (11.13~11.21)

Official Notification for Approved Renewing GETs  (11.25)

Medical Check (11.26~12.09)

Signing New Contract and Document Submission (12.12)

Official Notification of Renewing & Non-renewing GETs (12.16)

Final Placement Notification of Transferring GETs (2.12)

So far, I've filled out and signed the renewal packet. This simply indicates whether you intend to stay, leave or transfer. You can back out before signing the contract since you're only expressing an interest in staying, and therefore doesn't hold the same consequences of breaking a contract.

November 25th can't come any faster for me at this point. I feel confident that my co-teachers have given me good scores, and I would like to think that the principal and VP have a decent enough impression of me despite our lack of interaction.  There is also the chance of budget cuts leaving me with no position to hold, but... happy thoughts, right?

More info on this later. Deep breaths, keep distracted. I can get through this until November 25th.....

Thank you for reading!

The longest month of my life

Hey Emily, when are you heading to Korea?

Well... here's the thing. I don't really know. If the pattern continues, I might hear that my documents (contract, NOA, Info, etc.) are on their way by Tuesday. Unfortunately, EPIK keeps giving us different time estimates. Mid-January, late January, the end of January. After looking through some posts on Facebook, I figure that all of these dates are correct.

Some EPIK applicants have just BARELY received notification that they were accepted to the province or city of their choice. If you've already taken a look at my past posts, I've known which city I'll be going to for almost a month now. That puts me ahead of some applicants in the paperwork process. It's likely that they will try to send out documents at the same time for every accepted teacher, but I'm going to be closer to the top of that pile than to the bottom.

So, let's hope I get my documents (or at least notification that they are on their way) by next week.

That would be an awesome week. I've got some other terrific stuff going on in that week, so why not make it even better?

So, what step are you on and what's next?

- Pass EPIK interview
- Notification of city/province placement
- Wait for EPIK documents <------
- Apply for E-2 visa
- Buy plane ticket
- Fly to Korea
- Orientation
- Start Teaching

Wish me luck!