The Plan, Part Two

I talked about what the plan was last week, but there are still some things I need to get out, so that, basically, when more people unintentionally, and unknowingly piss me off by asking "what's the plan?" and "What are you going to do?". A previous post, The Plan, was an attempt to answer this, but it seems I need to get into more detail for some people.

Teacher Registration

This is the main thing I need to sort out, so that I can work as a teacher in Victoria. I was already registered, and for the people who know me, I'm not a fan of paperwork. Luckily the Victorian Institute of Teaching (VIT) doesn't need me to fill in everything, since some of the sections will have the same paperwork/information as my previous registration.

But that isn't the main problem/delay. There is a section about living overseas, as follows:


So, Since I've lived in Korea for 3 years, I need a criminal record check thing from Korea. So, I emailed the Korean embassy, and this is what I got:

1) We, at the Embassy will send your application form back to you after certify them.

2)You forward them to National Police Agency in Seoul.

3) They will check your records and will return the result to you.

4) Finally, you can bring the result to DIAC to obtain your visa.

After explaining that I don't need it for a visa, and how the form is more suited to Koreans, rather than people who have lived overseas, I sorted out the process, which is:

1) I fill out the form, and attach certified copies of passport(s), and I also included print outs of my visa and alien rego card (which i took a photo of before I handed it over at immigration at Incheon), and then sent it to the Korean Embassy in Canberra.

2) They then send it back to me, with their special stamp.

3) I send all that stuff to the National Police Agency in Seoul, with a funky ass return envelope with funky International Coupon Response things, and the process it, then send it back to me.

That can take about a month-ish. Once I get that, I can then sort out my teacher registration. In Korea, they do tests to get a teacher license, but in Australia, you get Provisional Registration, and then after some time of teaching, you make a portfolio, showing that you're awesome, and then a group of people check it out, sign some papers, wave a magic wand and make you a fully registered teacher.

I'll just be getting provisional registration. Once sent in, that takes about 4 to 6 weeks to process, because it includes a criminal record check from Australia. So, in total, about 2 and a half months, which means, i should be registered by January. The school year starts at the end of Jan 2009. I miss out on jobs that are being advertised now, since I'm not registered, so I gotta wait until late Jan 2009, and hopefully get some substitute work, which will hopefully lead to a school liking me, and then them offering me a short-term contract, or applying for jobs at a later date.

This then ties into my plan to get back to Korea. I'd like to go back to Korea eventually, either for a holiday or studying Korean for a while. But, I'd need to save up a lot of cash. But, getting a decent job (an ongoing contract would be awesome, so that income is regular) is the priority.

If that means moving away from here, and getting another job in another area of the state, that's cool too. Just see how it goes.

That's the main thing I wanted to clarify. I'm also thinking of going to Melbourne to meet up with friends late Nov / early Dec, depending on the cash situation.

Other than that, things are pretty much what I said before in the The Plan post.