The vast majority of language institutes in Korea belong to a chain or franchise system. Most of these schools are individually owned, and some are owned directly by the chain or franchise head office. Individual franchised schools are typically established by a Korean (or a Korean couple) who decide to open a language school and then look at the various franchise options that are available in Korea. The franchise head office provides the curricula, marketing materials, and often a trained Academic Supervisor. The school owners pay a monthly franchise fee to the franchise head office, but retain control over the day to day operations of the school. These schools, as well as any others that offer courses in any subject to paying young learners, are what Koreans and foreign teachers call "hakwons" or "hogwons."

Because the individual schools have control over most aspects of their operations, conditions can vary widely from school to school within the same franchise system. Judging the quality of a school based on its franchise affiliation (on grounds other than curricula) is pointless. The experience and dedication of the managers and school owners are, by far, the most important factors in the quality of the work environment and the overall working conditions. The quality of foreign and Korean staff also is also a big factor. APC does not choose which schools to deal with based upon franchise association; good management and happy teachers are the best assurance of a good year in Korea for you.

Rejecting or accepting a job based solely upon what one has read on the internet regarding a particular chain or franchise is risky; you may end up rejecting a great job and taking one at a badly managed school. Many teachers who post blanket complaints about a particular chain are unaware that each school is individually owned and/or do not understand how the franchise system works.

Good and Bad Schools

Hakwons get lots of bad press on the internet. One thing to bear in mind when reading postings by people who have had a bad experience in Korea is that the vast majority of them have never taught anywhere else and often have no teaching qualifications. This combination, along with a Korean hakwon owner who knows nothing about English-language teaching and little more about Western cultures, can quickly and easily lead to frustrating experiences for all concerned. Also, someone who has had a negative experience is much more likely to talk about it than someone who has had a positive experience.

In general, Northeast Asian cultures are given to exaggerating the positive and downplaying the negative. This is expected by people who are part of the culture, or who know it well. A Korean housewife knows that very very fresh seafood might be two or three days old and doesn't feel cheated if she finds out that this is indeed the case. In fact, when Westerners try to sell products or services to Northeast Asians, they often run into the problem of not exaggerating the virtues of their products to the point that consumers think they might be of acceptable quality. Choosing to view this as "dishonesty" or "trickery" is pointless. It will only result in hurt feelings and anger on the part of the Koreans involved. They may also view you as a complainer who is not suited to working in Korea.

For foreigners without Northeast Asia experience, it can be difficult to gauge whether absolutely excellent working conditions and almost brand new apartments!!! means a great job and a nice apartment, or a job slightly better than the worst the school director has ever heard of, with apartments that are falling apart but have new wallpaper. The degree to which a Korean school director (or recruiter) talks up what s/he has to offer is a good measure of how well s/he understands how Westerners think and perceive things and, thus, how smoothly things will go in your workplace.