Here in Korea, we call the 남자 밤 일자리 top spot on our list of part-time jobs that are foreigner-friendly Honey jobs. For those who are unable to pursue a full-time career because of personal or legal constraints, Korea does indeed offer an array of part-time jobs. While nearly all jobs are dependent on the individuals skills and the nature of the job, Korea does have standard hourly wages for part-time jobs.
Finding part-time jobs in Korea is a popular option for most international students when they come to live and study here, in order to help pay some of the cost of living. When looking for jobs in Korea, you may even want to go offline to apply if you are looking for part-time jobs like maid/waiter or teller. Finding a non-teaching job and an internship in South Korea can be challenging task for a foreigner.
One of the most common jobs that foreigners hold in South Korea is to teach language, particularly English, because there is high demand. This takes away a lot of jobs opportunities for non-Korean speakers, since teaching English is one of the most common jobs among backpackers and travelers.
It is possible to find jobs in languages that do not require Korean, but employers will be more favourable towards applicants who are proficient in Korean (and/or interested in learning), since this will help them more fully integrate with their colleagues and the workplace culture. While being fluent in Korean is not an absolute requirement to get a job in Korea, knowing a little bit of it will certainly expand your options for companies and jobs. There are plenty of opportunities for working at restaurants, even with limited Korean language skills.
The best way to land better jobs outside teaching is to pick up conversational level Korean (you do not have to be fluent) and make connections around Korea. One of the easiest ways to find work in Korea is by learning dialects, particularly if you live outside the major cities and districts, many part-time jobs available require you to communicate with or have oral exchanges with the locals, and employers are looking for individuals who have above-average proficiency of the Korean language.
If you are a moderate or high-level Korean speaker, or have a degree in English from your home country, you can find plenty of jobs that are open for you in South Korea, like translation jobs (Korean-to-English translation jobs are in demand) or language-related positions in startups or even in global companies since those companies actively look out for bilingual candidates. Fortunately, nowadays, Korean has an increasing number of international talents, and many Korean companies or young startups are eager to hire English-speaking talents. Many Korean students are eager to work in Korea, and the number of foreigners employed by Korean companies is increasing each year.
As one would suspect, a large majority of the foreigners working in Asian countries such as South Korea are actually working as English teachers. The foreign labor market might be dominated by English teachers, but do not let this deter you if teaching English is not your thing. English teachers in a private academy (hagweon or hagwon) are the most sought-after jobs for non-Koreans who do not want to work in factories.
Although most of the Korea universities are slightly more expensive than the other Korean private schools, the Korea universities may give you student visas, and most allow students to take on part-time jobs after their second semester. Foreign students are allowed to work part-time in Korea, they do not necessarily need to have work permits, their student visas, which are good for over one year, may be enough.
Unlike some other work-leave programs, it is not possible to teach English on a H-1 visa in South Korea. Best of all, you do not need to have a formal offer to work in order to enter Korea with a working holiday visa.
By doing this, not only do you get to show you are already somewhat familiar with Korean culture and language, immigration is more relaxed about the kinds of jobs you are eligible for. You will also have to have several years worth of job experience in your fields before you are eligible to get a work visa. Many graduates looking for their first jobs in Korea are going to face problems getting a proper visa.
Although JobKorea and Saramin both feature a lot of job opportunities, they are designed for Koreans or people with a native language in South Korea, and they do not require a visa sponsorship, which makes it hard for an overseas person to find these websites and receive assistance. Although, they are good resources to find various opportunities, or part-time jobs that will help you to cover the cost of studying in Korea or your housing expenses, as you look for professional jobs.
Since jobs such as cleaning or farm work typically require no Korean language skills or other specialist skills, these are probably the easiest ways foreigners can find work. The level of earnings from such jobs vary, depending on a number of factors, such as hours worked, Korean language proficiency, but more importantly, enthusiasm, hard work, passion, and skill each individual brings.
Also, because part-time employees generally do not have legal contracts or employment protections, many employers falsely terminate part-time workers in order to avoid paying them. Part-time jobs are also a good fit for parents who have young children and who want to work, but who do not want to put their children into day care centers or with nannies. If you are able to take jobs in schools where you are studying, you can limit issues like scheduling your work hours with your school schedule, getting transportation, etc. Not only does working part-time at schools help you become accustomed to your surroundings, you can also make a lot of new relationships in your school with friends and teachers.