Education

Overview

**Public Schools**: Korea's public schools are excellent — free and open to foreign children registered in the district. Instruction is primarily Korean; teachers have varying English proficiency. English is taught 2–3 times weekly from Grade 3. Children 8 and under adapt quickly. **International Schools**: Seoul has multiple English-medium international schools: - **Korea International School (KIS)**: US curriculum, IB; $25,000–$30,000/year - **Seoul Foreign School**: British curriculum; $20,000–$27,000/year - **Seoul International School (SIS)**: US/IB curriculum; $18,000–$25,000/year - **Chadwick International (Songdo)**: US curriculum; $22,000–$28,000/year **Hagwon Culture**: Korea's private academy system (학원) is world-famous. After-school, nearly all Korean children attend English hagwon, math hagwon, piano/art/sports academies. This creates strong demand for foreign English teachers (E-2 visa). **Korean Language Learning**: Learning Hangul takes 3–5 days (phonetic alphabet). TTMIK (Talk To Me In Korean) online program is highly recommended; Yonsei University KLI is the premium institutional option.