So I got my transcripts from HU today. The recruiting companies say you need three sealed transcripts, but I ordered five just for insurance. So now...

Transcripts - check
Authenticated background check - check
Authenticated degree copies - check
Passport - not here yet
Resume - check

My passport should arrive in about 2-4 more weeks...hoping for the 2 weeks of course. If it does get here that early, I may be leaving in February instead of March. I purposely told the recruiter that I wanted to leave in March because I wanted to be home for my bday. So we'll see what happens.

So again to help any current or future readers thinking of teaching in South Korea, here is how I went about getting my background check and copies of my degree notarized and apostilled. Note that I live in Michigan and it could be different for your state.

So today I started off by going to the main police department downtown to get my background check. I got up kind of late so I didn't go until around 1.

So I get there and go to the floor where you get the checks done. Nobody is there so I'm right in line to get mine. Only thing is, they don't take debit cards :(

It costs 8 dollars and I only had 4 dollars of cash so I had to walk back outside into Greektown to find an ATM and take 20 dollars out. Mind you I'm parked at a meter with only 30 minutes left. So I head back to the Police Station and there's more people than before so I have to wait a little bit. All in all I get my check done in about 20 minutes which isn't bad and I was able to get back to my car with 6 minutes left on the parking meter. Take that meter maids!! HAHA.

So next is to get the check apostilled. I also had to get my degree copies apostilled as well. Take note that you can only get an apostille is you have gotten your document notarized first. I had my degree copies notarized already and I THOUGHT that my background check was as well.

So I head down to the Secretary of State to get the Apostilles and hey it wasn't crowded!! I'm helped right away and I get my degree copies apostilled and I try to get my background check apostilled but UH OH the lady tells me it's not notarized.

So darn. She tells me that the credit union down the hall does notarizing so I head down there. They tell me that they do notarizations but the lady who does them is out to lunch... grshhh. So I head to the Bank of America in the building. They don't notarize documents...only signatures. Grsshh. So then I head to the other credit union. They say the same thing.

So I had to suck it up and go back to where I got my degrees notarized (the UPS near my house). So after the 20 minutes to do that, I got back to the secretary of state and it's more crowded but it still only took me about 20 minutes.

So there you have it. Getting the background check is pretty simple and so is getting it notarized and apostilled. If you have any questions, I'll try to answer :)

So now I play the waiting game. It was snowing like crazy today but I went to the Post office to get my passport sent off and UPS to get copies of my degree notarized. For people interested in teaching, schools ask for your original degree.

People I have talked to say that they always received them upon arriving in South Korea. I opted to send copies which have to be notarized, then apostilled (fancy word for legalize). I didn't want to send my original degree because IT TOOK 5 YEARS TO GET IT lol...and I'm not risking it getting damaged even though you can order a reissue.

So I sent my passport off and at the post office, the lady I was talking with said that her friend had a daughter that was teaching over there as well and said she loves it. So that was comforting.

Usually the passport takes 4-6 weeks but they said they've been coming back in 3 weeks so I'm praying that it does. I've also got to get a background check on Tuesday.

So once my passport comes in, I can go ahead with the process of getting my E2 Visa and choosing a school and also get a definite date for leaving. If my passport takes longer to come in, I'll be leaving probably early to mid March. If faster, I could be gone by late February (hey my bday is the 27th of Feb..I'm gettin old)

Also, what is up with the Pistons? They've lost 5 straight...anyways I'm out :)

Praise God the interview went well and I've been accepted to the Footprints Recruiting. I got the email and phone call today confirming it.

NOW

Everything is still not a go yet and I won't be able to find a school to teach at until I get a range of documents within a month. Here is what I now need to get taken care of:

- Get a passport (my own fault...I should've had one a long time ago)
- Get a criminal background check
- Get transcripts (sealed) from Hampton University (they bet not mess up like they always do!!)
- Get second degree from Hampton (I'm not sending my original!!)

Once I get these I then have to get an E-2 Visa. We will cross that bridge when we get to it. SO...for anyone thinking of teaching in South Korea, make sure you get all this stuff done ahead of time. I'm going to have to expedite my passport process to get it here within a month so that sucks that I have to pay the extra money, but no biggie.

So yessir I'm excited. Lord willing I'll be on the other side of the world in a few months. God is good. See yall.

So, the agency I've chosen to go with - Footprints Recruiting - reviewed my application a couple of days ago and sent me an email telling me to setup an interview time. So I called today and I will have a phone interview tomorrow at 6:30 p.m. EST (they are PST which is why it's so late.) So pray for me that everything goes well...ultimately, Lord your will be done. Be back whenever with an update.

One of the main questions I've been getting lately prior to writing this, is why teach in South Korea?? Here are some reasons:

1. The job market in the U.S. is horrible. I've been looking for jobs in Detroit for graphic design because I cannot afford the relocation cost to look out of state even though I've wanted to. The design market in Detroit is not that great so I've been forced to look for other jobs which I don't mind because I do have school loans to pay. It is pretty easy to get hired (still waiting on a response to my application)

2. Standard of living. Even though the economy has been done and the exchange rate has gone down, you can save easily $500-$1000 USD (depending on how much of a big spender you are..I'm not one). This is possible because your housing is paid for, your flight over and back (when your contract ends) is paid for, and the taxes are low. With all this paid for this leaves a lot of money to save and send back home (for me, I want to pay off a good chunk of school laons) or use in South Korea. Also consider that since the subway system literally goes everywhere (except the airport HA!), you won't have any gas to pay for or unexpected repairs on your car. If I were working here in the states at a 8,9,10 dollar an hour job (assuming I couldn't find a design job) I would be making about the same per month, only I would have all the expenses to pay for listed above.

3. The culture. I've always been interested in Japanese culture, but since the cost of living is high there, I hear that South Korea was just as good. Seoul is the second largest (bounces back and forth between 1st and 2nd). I also find it interesting that South Korea is 50% christian so I would also be interested with worshipping with christians from another part of the world. There are quite a few reformed churches around so if I make it over there, I'll be sure to check those out. Also there's nothing like actually living in another country for a year rather than just doing a "drive by" in a hotel, seeing the sights and leave in a week.

4. Travel and Opportunity. When I was in college, I was on the golf team and we did A LOT of traveling. Florida, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Delaware, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and Maryland. Even though we didn't travel outside the country, I enjoyed seeing the country. Once I graduated I wondered how long it would be before I would be able to travel again. I didn't have a job, and when I did get one, I would have to pay school loans and other expenses. Sure there maybe would be a weekend trip here and there but it would be coming out of my pocket and I wouldn't enjoy it as much. This opportunity provides free travel and housing for a year.

5. God's direction. The scripture in Proverbs which says acknowledge God in all your ways and He will direct your paths has been my favorite scripture the past 8 months. I truly believe that if you are saved, sanctified, suffering for His name, seeking Him daily in prayer, and reading of the Word, He will direct your steps. Also He will put desires in your heart (not selfish ones) to guide you. I've also always questioned why people say that whatever you have a talent for or are good at, do the opposite, because God wants you to rely on Him. I could never understand why God would give you talents, then tell you to throw them away and do something else (see parable of the talents). I definitely don't agree with going after selfish desires, but if have a talent or desire, use it to God's glory.

I've never heard of teaching in South Korea until the past two months and I believe God's direction led me to it. I never say I know this is what God wants me to do, because I don't. I've said that to myself so many times in the past and it turned out to be wrong. I now chose to walk by faith and know that He is with me wherever I go and that if I make decisions with Him in mind, it's cool. I also like this scripture:

Colossians 3:17 "And whatever you do, whether by speech or action, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him."

Plus I wouldn't mind teaching kids. It actually runs in the fam.

6. Plain and simple, I need a job that is more than just paying the bills if you know what I mean. I figure if I'm going to sit here in Detroit and work a temp job I know I'm going to get tired of soon enough, and living paycheck to paycheck, I might as well go teach overseas in a pretty westernized country with paid housing and a paid ticket over there.

All in all, when I go over there (Lord willing), I will do a lot of planning for the future. I really think this opportunity creates a bridge to do that while at the same time having a time in life that I will remember. I also want to get off the North American continent for once!!

So yeah, again this blog follows the process from the very beginning to the end. I've sent in my application, and waiting on this first step. Be back soon with an update. God bless.

So it's been about 8 months since I graduated from Hampton University. It took me 5 YEARS, mainly because I could not chose a major in my first two years. I was an architect major freshman year...not for me...too technical. Soph year I was a Computer Information Systems Major....not for me...too boring and technical. So finally in junior year I chose graphic design (didn't even know they had this program until then).

So I finally graduated with a Bachelor in Fine Arts with an emphasis in graphic design and now I was on may way in the world!! yeah!! (end sarcasm)

People really need to stop acting like once you graduate from college, a job will just fall into your hands because you have a degree. Yes it can help you get a job over someone who doesn't but it's not guaranteed right away. Also most jobs are now requiring a Master's degree (not graphic design)

So this summer was a very trying time in trying to find work in which I really had to rely on God more than ever and although it was hard at times, I knew God would direct my steps. After 3 months of looking I finally found my first design job at Fathead (look em up). It was a contracted job for 3 months and it was the perfect entry level job. 20 dollars an hour although no benefits because it was contracted. I was able to save quite a bit of money for these 3 months.

So after my contract was up, I was hoping they would hire me full time, but they did not have any room on staff for full time. So it was back to job searching. Not only was I looking for design jobs, but other jobs like Verizon, Wal Mart, etc. I kid you not I couldn't even get hired for these jobs. I was like God what is going on? lol. But maybe the job market is THAT bad.

Anyways, in the midst of job searching I came across a friend on facebook (although it was one of those friends that I've never met in my life...you know those type of facebook freinds...everybody has em!!) and saw that she had some pictures up from Korea. So it peaked my interest and come to find out she was teaching over there so I messaged her and ashed her about it. This is when I started researching and unltimately came to the conclusion that it is actually a great opportunity to travel, see a new culture, and teach (I've thought about teaching before)

So I've applied and now the journey hopefully begins.

I've started this blog mainly to follow my progress from now until I hopefully finish on my next journey I am about to embark on. First I think it will be cool to look back a year or so from now and see the change and how much progress I've made. Second, I'll use this blog when I get to my destination to help others who may be thinking of going as well. I've been reading a lot of blogs of people who are over there now and their experience has really helped me get a picture of what to expect (good and bad).

So umm yeah...keep reading and bookmark lol.