Instructions for the March (Spring) 2012 EPIK Application Form

Instructional Notes for Page 1 of the Spring 2012 Application Form

①-1 Legal Name

Enter legal name in Legal First, Middle Initial, Legal Last Name (Surname) format.

②-1 Date of Birth

Enter date of birth in YYYY/MM/DD format.

②-2 Age

Enter legal age.

③-1 Gender

Check the “Male” or “Female” box.

③-2 Marriage

Check the “Married” or “Unmarried” box.

③-3 Place of Birth

Enter your place of birth, including city, state/province (if applicable) and country.

④-1 Primary Citizenship

Citizenship used to teach in Korea.

→ Citizenship: By immigration law, EPIK teachers should have citizenship from one of the following countries: Australia, Canada, Ireland, New Zealand, United Kingdom, United States and South Africa. Some exceptions may apply for overseas Koreans with permanent residence in one of these seven designated English-speaking countries. Please check the EPIK website or with the EPIK office for more information regarding eligibility.

④-2 Secondary Citizenship

List any other citizenship(s) held.

④-3 Korean Heritage

If an applicant has dual/multiple citizenship, with one being Korean, please check the “yes” box. Applicants who fall into this category must complete additional steps to ensure the eligibility for the Spring 2012 term. Please refer to our website for additional information.

⑤ Interview Contact Information

Answer as many of the fields as possible.

→ Primary Phone: Include the country and area code with the number, and plan to use a reliable phone with consistent service.

→ Primary Email: If you currently are a university student, only use your university email if it is permanent and if you will be able to access the address after graduation.

⑥-1 Current Address

Enter current address.

⑥-2 Mailing Address

List the mailing address where you expect to receive mail after June 1^st. EPIK will be sending contracts to successful applicants starting in early June, so please inform your application agent or the EPIK office immediately if your mailing address changes after you submit your application.

Passport Photo

The photo should be of professional/passport quality and show only the face and shoulders. (for the electronic submission, attach a JPEG file)

Instructional Notes for Page 2 of the Spring 2012 Application Form

⑥-3 Current and Previous Residence(s)

List the dates, city, state/province and country where you have resided for at least the past 10 years. Add more rows if necessary. Provide at least 10 years of residential history.

⑦-1 Emergency Contact

List the contact information of your emergency contact. Your emergency contact should not be your joint applicant and must be a family member that is reliable and easy to contact in case of an emergency.

⑧-1 Educational Background

Fill out all of the requested fields including State/Province, Country, Graduation Date and Number of Years enrolled information.

→ Educational Background: List all schools attended for elementary, middle and high school. For post-secondary education, list all of the institutions where you have obtained credits toward your degree(s). If you started a degree but did not finish it, do not include the institution’s information (e.g., started a Master’s or Ph.D but did not complete the course or thesis). If you started a degree and transferred those credits toward another degree, include the institution’s information (e.g., started an Associate’s and transferred credit toward a Bachelor’s).

→ Degree Information: Post-secondary degrees include: Bachelors of Arts, Bachelors of Science, Bachelors of Education, Bachelors of Music, Masters of Arts, Masters of Fine Arts, etc. Abbreviations (B.A, B.Sc, B.Ed, MA, MFA, etc) are acceptable. Do not put your major in this blank. Do not put your department in this blank.

→ Major Information: Put your primary academic focus or concentration here. Do not list your courses.

→ Double Major: If you were a double major, list both majors on the same row and note that you were a double major. For example, under the “Major” blank, write “English and Law (double major).”

→ GPA or Percentage: Put your final or current cumulative GPA in this space. If you are still at university, put your latest cumulative GPA. Put the scale for reference (e.g., 3.4 / 4.0 or 4.3 / 5.0). If your school does not calculate GPA, put the percentage and scale (e.g., 65/80 or 90/100). If your school uses a different grading scale, give your best approximation.

→Post-Secondary Institutions: Post-secondary institutions must be accredited by that country’s respective Education Board or Department. EPIK does not recognize degrees obtained from post-secondary institutions outside of the seven (7) designated English-speaking countries.

Instructional Notes for Page 3 of the Spring 2012 Application Form

⑧-2 English Teaching Certificate / Teaching Certification

If applicable, enter the appropriate information.

→ Accrediting Institution: TEFL/TESOL courses must be accredited.

→ Issue Date: If you currently are taking the course, list expected completion date. Courses must be finished before the Orientation begins.

→ Hours: The minimum number of hours required to be potentially eligible for a higher pay level is 100 hours. If the number of hours is not stated on the certificate, it must be proved by sufficient documentation such as a letter from the course’s director. If there are multiple certificates, applicants should provide one letter from the course’s director stating the courses taken and total cumulative hours completed.

→ Original Certificate: Even if you submitted a copy to the EPIK office before arrival, the original certificate must be shown before the contract start date, preferably during the Orientation period. Therefore, the course should be completed with adequate time to receive a hard copy of the certificate.

For the Teaching Certificate:

List all applicable certifications including the title, issue date and expiration date.

→ Issue Date: If you have not yet received the certification, list the expected completion date. Even if you submitted a copy to the EPIK office before arrival, bring the original to Korea before the contract start date, preferably during the Orientation period.

⑧-3 Non-Teaching Work Experience

List from the most recent employment. Include a full work history. Add rows if necessary.

→Work Experience: Part-time or summer jobs are acceptable if you have no other applicable work history. Be sure to indicate the nature of the position under the “Job Title” column (e.g. Summer Administrative Assistant or Intern).

→ Part-time and full-time: If the job was part-time, indicate it by marking PT or P/T. If the job was full-time, write FT or F/T.

⑧-4 Full-Time / Part-Time Teaching Experience

→ Teaching Experience: For salary purposes, EPIK accepts only full-time experience occurring at the same institution for a minimum of “one full academic year.” In order to be eligible for a higher salary, successful applicants will have to provide an official Proof of Teaching Experience letter issued by the institution which must include: official letterhead and contact information for the institution/school; an original signature from a director, supervisor or principal; and specific start and finish dates including the month and year. The letter must clearly indicate “full-time,” and letters indicating a term of employment for less than 12 months must clearly indicate that applicant was employed for “one full academic year.” In private institutes, “one full academic year” must be a full one year (12 month) contract term.

For reference, EPIK has provided a proof of teaching experience template at the end of this document.

→ Other Teaching Experiences: Substitute teaching positions, volunteer experiences and other short-term or long-term educational or mentoring experiences can be written here.

⑧-5 Contact Information for Full-Time Teaching Experience in Korea

List the contact information for your primary co-teacher or direct supervisor who has worked with you in a close, supervisory role. Secondary Co-Teachers’ contact information is unacceptable, and managers/Principals with whom you have had little contact are not preferred.

⑨ Salary Level

In the row labeled “CURRENT QUALIFICATION”, please mark an “X” in the box which corresponds to the salary level you currently qualify for. In the row labeled “EXPECTED QUALIFICATION”, please mark an “X” in the box which corresponds to the salary level you expect to qualify for by the time you would begin the EPIK contract in late February 2012.

→Salary Level: Salary is standardized according to qualifications and/or teaching experience. Please note that only full-time teaching experience of a minimum of “one full academic year” makes an applicant eligible for a higher salary. Also, TEFL and TESOL training must consist of a minimum of 100 hours and be proved with documentation. It is the applicant’s responsibility to prove the course hours. The EPIK pay scale can be found on the EPIK website. All documents must be submitted before the Orientation begins.

Instructional Notes for Page 4 of the Spring 2012 Application Form

⑩-1 Joint Application / Dependants

List other EPIK applicants you would like to live within the same province or city. Joint applicants need to submit their application to the EPIK program at the same time.

→ Joint Application: EPIK views joint applicants as one administrative partnership in the application process and will not process one applicant’s application or documents without the joint applicant’s as well. If one joint applicant withdraws from the application process, remove his/her name from the application form and inform your agent/the EPIK office as soon as possible to avoid any processing delays.

List any dependants that will accompany you to Korea.

→Dependants: EPIK does not provide family or couples housing for applicants with a dependant. Additionally, applicants with a dependant should fill out the “Statement of Intent” form attached at the end of this document. EPIK stresses that applicants should have a clear and viable plan for their dependants (e.g., schooling options for children and alternative activities for spouses/other dependants).

⑪-1 Contact Information for Letters of Recommendation

Fill in all of the requested fields. The referee is the individual who wrote the letter of recommendation.

→ Letters of Recommendation: Referees’ name and institutions listed here should be the same as those on the letters of recommendation submitted with the application form before the interview. The content of the letters should not change from the initial submission to the final submission unless specifically requested by the EPIK office.

→ Change of References: Applicants cannot change their referees unless specifically requested to do so by the EPIK office.

→ Contact Information: The contact information in this box should be the same as the contact information on the letters of recommendation.

⑫-1 Provincial Placement Preferences

Please read the application form. This section gives information regarding our policy and placement options.

⑫-2 Preference for Province Location

Rank your placement preferences from 1-3.

→ Preferences: Note that applicants with a successful interview will only be recommended to a province upon successful submission and evaluation of all of the required documents on an impartial first-come, first-serve basis. Please also note that the final acceptance decision is made by the Provincial/Metropolitan Office of Education and not the National EPIK office.

⑫-3 Preference for Province Type

If your top 3 choices are full, please check the appropriate box.

⑫-4 Preference for Later Starting Date

For the Spring 2012 term, the majority of the positions start at the end of February. There are some, however, that are available either at the end of March or the end of April.

If you think that a March or April position is something that you might be interested in, please mark the appropriate box:

-“Late-March”: Mark this box if you would like to start around March 25^th.

-“Late-April”: Mark this box if you would like to start around April. 25^th.

-“Either”: Mark this box if you are open to starting in Feb, Mar, Apr.

-“Neither”: Mark this box if you are only interested in February.

⑫-5 Preference for type of Educational Setting

In numerical order (1 being the most preferred), list which type of school best matches your strengths.

→ Educational Setting: Note that Provincial/Metropolitan Offices of Education try to place successful applicants according to their suitability and strengths; however, there is much variation of availability between provinces and the type of educational setting cannot be guaranteed in advance. Applicants must be flexible.

→ Educational Settings: For reference, primary school includes grades 1-6; middle school includes grades 7-9; and high school includes grades 10-12.

→ Placement: Please note that the final acceptance and placement decision is made by the Provincial/Metropolitan Offices of Education and not the National EPIK office.

If you have no particular preference, please check the “Flexible” box.

Instructional Notes for Page 5 of the Spring 2012 Application Form

⑬-1 Self Medical Assessment

Please answer all the questions. If you answered “yes” for any, please make sure to explain in detail in the right column.

For question 15, please be as specific as possible when answering this question. Include both when and reason for last visit to any doctor.

Enter the average number of standard servings of alcohol consumed weekly.

→Servings of Alcohol: If you tend to drink a serving of alcohol daily (e.g., a glass of wine with dinner), please note this. For example, an appropriate answer would be, “1 glass of wine each night =7~10 servings a week.”

Enter the average number of cigarettes consumed daily.

Indicate your gender in the box provided with an “M” or “F”. Put your height and weight in cm and kg. For reference, 2.20 lbs = 1 kilogram and 2.54 cm = 1 inch.

For the initial submission, a digital signature is acceptable. An ink signature is necessary for final document submission.

Instructional Notes for Page 6 of the Spring 2012 Application Form

⑭- Additional Personal Information

Please answer all the questions. If you answered “yes” for any, please make sure to explain in detail in the right column.

→Tattoos or Piercings: If “Yes”, in the space provided, please indicate where the tattoo or piercing is located on your body. Also, for tattoos, please give a short description of the image and size of all tattoos.

→ Commuting: Depending upon housing availability and school location, applicants may need to commute up to 60 minutes. Housing is secured by the individual’s school, and EPIK cannot provide housing or school details before arrival.

→ Public Transportation: Regardless of placement, public transportation is excellent in Korea, and applicants should not have difficulty using public or private transportation.

→Criminal Record: Applicants with any criminal record should contact their agent or the EPIK office to verify that they are eligible to apply.

→ Pets: Please be aware that EPIK does not allow applicants to bring pets to Korea, and most apartment buildings in Korea also do not allow pets

→ Vegetarian or Vegans: Often, even meatless soups have a meat based broth as well. EPIK recommends that vegetarians and vegans research life in Korea and available food products before arrival.

→ Housing in Korea: Check “Yes” and provide a brief explanation only if you have your own housing in Korea that was not provided through your employer. If you have housing that was secured by your employer, check “No”. If you have your own housing, and would like to request a monthly 400,000 Korean won Housing Allowance in lieu of the provided accommodations, please inquire with your application agent and during your interview.

⑮ Pledge

Please read the following rules and regulations. This section provides important information that potential applicants need to know.

For the initial submission, a digital signature is acceptable. An ink signature is necessary for final document submission.

Instructional Notes for Page 7 of the Spring 2012 Application Form

Consent for Verification

Completely fill out all blanks. List your current address.

Signature

For the initial submission, a digital signature is acceptable. An ink signature is necessary for final document submission.

Instructional Notes for Page 8 of the Spring 2012 Application Form

⑯-Personal Essay

The essay must be a minimum of 500 words and no longer than 2 pages. Use size 11 font. The statement must address: (1) your reasons for wanting to teach EFL; (2) your educational philosophy; and (3) your thoughts on encountering cultural difference.

→Personal Essay: The personal essay must address the prompt and will be assessed on content, form, grammar and style. Off-topic essays are unacceptable (e.g., resumes, biographies, excerpts from papers or theses are unacceptable). Applicants with essays that are less than 500 words will not be given an interview.