Your First Month in Korea: A Week-by-Week Living Checklist for New Teachers

Nobody hands you a schedule when you land. Your school tells you where the apartment is and when to show up Monday. Everything else — the phone, the bank, the hospital you'll eventually need, the group chat where other foreign teachers actually hang out — you piece together on your own, usually slower than you'd like.

Here's roughly how it goes, and why the order matters more than people admit.

Week 1: you're a tourist with a job

Until your Alien Registration Card (ARC) comes through, you can't open a Korean bank account or get a postpaid phone plan in your own name. So week one runs on cash and a prepaid SIM — pick one up at Incheon or Gimpo airport, or at a phone shop near your apartment, for somewhere around 30,000–50,000 won a month. Your school has usually already submitted your ARC application; processing time depends entirely on which immigration office covers your district, and we've seen it clear in ten days or drag past three weeks with no warning either way. Budget your prepaid month accordingly.

Week 2: the ARC changes everything

Once the card arrives, go straight to a bank — KB Kookmin, Shinhan, and Woori all deal with foreign teachers constantly, and Kakaobank now lets some E-2 holders open an account through the app itself, though branch staff will tell you this varies by branch and by how recently your ARC was issued. Get your bank account first, then walk into a phone shop for a real plan. Most mid-range plans with data land around 40,000–60,000 won a month. Your National Health Insurance card should also arrive by mail around this point — keep the envelope, you'll want the number for any hospital visit later.

Week 3: apps and errands

With a Korean phone number, the delivery apps actually work. Coupang Eats, Baemin, and Yogiyo all need a Korean address entered in Korean characters, not English — ask a coworker to type it once and save it. This is also when most teachers finally register at the local 주민센터 (community center) if their school hasn't handled it, and find the nearest 내과 (general clinic) for anything short of an emergency. For anything serious, most cities have a 24-hour emergency room; for anything else, walk-in clinics are fast, cheap, and don't require an appointment the way home might.

Week 4: finding people

This is the slowest part and nobody can speed it up for you. Facebook groups named after your city plus "foreigners" or "expats" are still where most hiring news and meetups get posted. Districts like Itaewon and Haebangchon in Seoul, or Gwangalli in Busan, have a visible foreign-teacher presence on weekends, but plenty of teachers find their people through their own school's other native teachers, a gym, or a language exchange app instead.

None of this is exact. Immigration office speed, your bank's branch policy, even which delivery app works in your building — all of it varies enough that "ask someone who lives near you" beats any list, including this one.