'Working Holiday' best of two worlds

By Park Eun-sil, Sogang University

Korea Herald 2003.07.02

Traveling abroad, which was considered something reserved for a few wealthy people as recently as a decade ago, has become a common vacation for Korean university students.

Still, a number of students find themselves short of money and their visas failing to allow them to stay overseas for as long as they want. The best answer for these people is the "Working Holiday" program.

Initially launched by Australia in 1995, the reciprocal working holiday arrangement with Korea was adopted by three other countries - Canada, Japan and New Zealand. The Working Holiday visa is different from other ordinary visas in that it allows visa holders to take a job for three months during their 12-month stays.

"I gave swimming lessons at the Sydney Olympic Center and served as a waitress at a restaurant. To be frank, I learned a lot more at the workplace than through a language course I took for five months," said In Kyung-hee, a junior in Ewha Womans University.

In participated in the program in Sydney, Australia from July last year through February.

"By working side by side with the natives, I could get a more realistic sense of the language as well as the culture. Since Australia is a multicultural country, I came across a great variety of people from different cultures and from all walks of life," she said.

"But most of all, I gained a great deal of confidence. I was out there all by myself, earning my own income. I felt that there was nothing that I could not do."

In received 25 Australian dollars per hour working as a swimming coach and 10 Australian dollars an hour working at a restaurant. In total, she spent 4 million won (3,300 Australian dollars), including educational expenses, during her stay Down Under.

According to Jung Bong-soo at the MBC International Information Center, many young people are applying for the program these days as it helps them save costs and grants them legal rights to work abroad.

Once obtaining the visa, "working holidaymakers" are not restricted in the type of jobs they take. As long as the working period does not extend beyond three months, they can choose whatever job suits them.

Another working holidaymaker, Kim Min-hee, who has just returned from Auckland, New Zealand, says she worked for Korea Times, a Korean community newspaper there.

Kim, a 29-year-old English teacher, was offered the job through "Seek," an Internet site that runs wanted ads. There, she was in charge of making hotel reservations for Koreans in New Zealand.

"It was a hands-on experience for me to learn the way hotel business ran at different times of the year and get the hang of providing services and implementing marketing strategies. Since I am interested in the hospitality industry, it was a priceless experience," Kim said

The company guaranteed a work permit for Kim, allowing her to work for another nine months.

Kim said she started at 7 Australian dollars per hour, but the pay nearly doubled to 12 Australian dollars later on, enabling her to save up after five months into her stay.

Kim complained, however, that the period of stay permitted under the program is too short.

"A year was just too short for me, I hope the term could be extended to two or even three years," she said.

Australia is the only country without any restriction on time and the number of applicants, whereas the other three countries grant the visa to a limited number of people.

"We want to provide young people who have the will and power with as many opportunities as possible to set their foot outside of Korea and broaden their horizons," said Ha In-sook of the Australian Embassy in Seoul.

The New Zealand Embassy accepts applicants in May and the Canadian Embassy around the beginning of the year.

According to Kim Tae-woo of the Working Holiday Association, the average competition rate for the working holiday program is three to one. Selections are made through a draw.

All applicants should be aged between 18 and 30 and without dependent children.

"It really depends on how dedicated you are to delving into a new culture. Being respectful of another culture is important too. That way, you will get the most out of it. It is worth it because after all, it is a once in a lifetime chance," Kim said.