Korea Teacher Exchange Program

Living in Korea

We want to provide you with the information that will be useful to your adventures in Korea, and help make your time there more enjoyable.

Korea in General

In the past 20 years, Korea has experienced some of the most rapid economic and industrial growth in the world. It is now considered a newly developed nation. The US marketplace is familiar with the names: Hyundai, Samsung, Daewoo, and Gold Star/LG, which are all well-known Korean companies that are very successful in the international marketplace. The prominence of Korea in the world market and politics has also caused changes in the social realm. While still holding to basic core beliefs such as honoring and dedicating oneself to family and country, Western individualism and thoughts are making inroads.

Korea Time Zone

Korean time is 14 hours ahead of American EST.

Korea Climate

The Korean peninsula is located mid-latitude in the Northern Hemisphere and lies in the transitional zone between continental and subtropical maritime climates. It has four distinct seasons, like much of the U.S. , and the climate varies a bit between the northern and southern regions. In the south, spring and summer are normally longer, and in the north, fall and winter are longer. The climate in Seoul is similar to New York City and Washington , D.C. Clothes should be suitable for the winter weather.

Spring is from late March through early May when temperate weather prevails with occasional periods of cold.

Summer, June to early September, is often very hot and humid. Half the annual rainfall occurs during the monsoon months of late June to July.

Fall lasts from September through November when warm days and clear weather make this the most pleasant time of the year. The temperature varies greatly between day and night.

Korea People

It is important that you take the time to understand the complexities of Korean’s daily living and attitudes. You will always be able to receive help when you need it, and Koreans are always eager to speak with and share the company of Westerners. More likely than not, they will assist you in discovering their great land and its traditions and customs. Their sincerity and concern for foreigners in their country is surprising and even heartwarming.

Korea Geography

It is important that you take the time to understand the complexities of Korean’s daily living and attitudes,. You will always be able to receive help when you need it, and Koreans are always eager to speak with and share the company of Westerners. More likely than not, they will assist you in discovering their great land and its traditions and customs. Their sincerity and concern for foreigners in their country is surprising and even heartwarming.

The Korean peninsula lies directly between China and Japan , extending in a southeasterly direction from the continent. A relatively small land, Korea is roughly 1,000 kilometers in length and only 216 kilometers wide at its narrowest point.

The peninsula is separated from China in the northwest by the Yalu River , from the Soviet Union in the northeast by the Tuman River , and from Japan by the East Sea . China 's Shantung peninsula lies just 190 kilometers to the west across the Yellow Sea.

The Korean peninsula is in fact a "chain of hills" stretching from the mainland. Mountains cover 70% of Korea 's land area, making it one of the most mountainous regions in the world and a great place for hikers and nature lovers.

On the peninsula, coexisting uneasily side by side, separated only by the De-militarized Zone roughly approximating the 38th parallel, lie the Republic of Korea in the South and North Korea . The Republic of Korea is somewhat smaller in land area, 99,091 square kilometers compared to 122,370 in the North, but its population of just over 45 million is about twice as large as the North's.

The History of Korea

Korea is an independent country with a history going back millennia. Because of the country's strategic location on the Asian continent, it has been invaded over and over by powerful neighboring countries.

Nevertheless, the Koreans have somehow always managed to maintain or regain their independence. Korea was under the Japanese colonial rule for 36 years. Korea was finally liberated from Japanese rule at the end of World War II - but only to become entangled in the fierce ideological conflict that led to the formation of two separate states in the north and the south, divided along the 38th parallel.

In 1950, North Korea launched an all-out attack on the Republic of Korea , triggering the Korean War, which raged until 1953. The devastating conflict was ended by an armistice agreement that established the De-militarized Zone (DMZ) that now divides the Peninsula .