Make £6000 in a short time doing something unconventional, difficult or dangerous?

May 28, 2011 1:47 PM

How can I make £6000 in a fairly short time by doing something unconventional, difficult or dangerous?

I did write a long intro explaining my situation, but just thought it derailed the question. So it boils down to:

1) I really need the money in a shorter timescale than I earn by conventional means (which would be years and years), and pretty sure I have explored all my alternatives. Would like to make it in the next year.

2) I am a mature enough adult, not a kid doing something on a whim.

3) Please don't try to talk me out of it or console me about my situation however well meaning, answers only.

If I was a girl, I would definitely do sex work but I don't think the rates of pay are very high for broke straight guys.

The nuclear jumpers link was interesting on the blue, but can't find anything similar in the UK.

So looking for more ideas for unconventional things that can bring in cash quickly, and not scared of some risk, difficulty, stigma, dedicated thinking and planning etc etc.

Some specific information:

I don't have a trade or a lot of work skills. I did office admin and now teach in adult education. I don't have a lot of options in the career market.

Not to blow my own trumpet but I'm pretty bright and creative and can take a project by the balls and put a lot into it when I'm set on a goal.

I'm also physically fit and strong.

I live in the UK.

Not something that requires a lot of initial investment or training upfront. A short course should be ok.

posted by Not Supplied to work & money (54 answers total)

One more - not desk work, sitting down a lot or heavy computer use.
posted by Not Supplied at 1:51 PM on May 28, 2011 [1 favorite]

Off the top of my head:
1. Fishing/crabbing/catching lobster in Alaska/Northern Atlantic.
2. Find a contractor job in Iraq/Afghanistan. I'd say be a mercenary, but mercenaries actually have skill (or become dead quick).
3. Find job in mine/oil field/platform; most likely in Canada/Gulf of Mexico/Australia.

And of course, there is crime..
posted by curiousZ at 1:54 PM on May 28, 2011

Um ... straight men can do gay sex work. (not suggesting anything illegal, of course.)
posted by yarly at 1:56 PM on May 28, 2011 [10 favorites]

Men will pay you for sex.
posted by AlliKat75 at 1:56 PM on May 28, 2011 [2 favorites]

definitely look for contractor work in the middle east. probably a lot easier breaking into that work than alaska boats.
posted by rmd1023 at 1:57 PM on May 28, 2011

Your question reduces to: "I need a job that pays more than my standard of living."

E.g.: Get a job - any job - that pays, oh, £20,000? a year and live on (say) £10,000 a year (share a flat, eat mostly ramen...), and you've got your £6,000 in your pocket in well under a year. (Scale the income and expenditures up or down to fit your circumstances. It's a matter of keeping your expenditure under your income.)

"Keeping your expenses to a minimum" is a proven route to financial success. Most people tire of it before they manage to accumulate a significant bankroll, but I've seen it done.

One route for this is to take a job where's there's literally no place to spend your paycheck: the archetypical example is oil exploration.
posted by AsYouKnow Bob at 2:00 PM on May 28, 2011 [1 favorite]

A quick skim of clinical trials websites indicates some pay in the £150 a day range, although I remember idly pondering it while bored at work a year or so ago and I'm sure there were some two-week-ish live-in ones that offered a couple of grand. I could have gone temporarily insane from boredom and imagined that, though - I can't immediately see anything that high now. It sort of qualifies as 'sitting down a lot', but it's probably fairly dangerous, so you'd have that.

How good can you look in a dress? Any makeup experience? Really exceptional transvestite escorts can make decent money, and there are always ways to cash in on photos, let alone if you're up for porn. There's quite a setup cost and learning curve and I guess it's limited by your natural physique and shape a bit.
posted by emmtee at 2:06 PM on May 28, 2011

E.g.: Get a job - any job - that pays, oh, £20,000? a year and live on (say) £10,000 a year
There's the rub. I don't think I can get a job that pays £20,000. I live frugally anyway.

straight men can do gay sex work etc

I get the impression that a lot of fit young gay lads do casual sex work to pay the bills, so how lucrative really is it for a completely non bi guy that would hate touching a man and could hardly fake kissing etc? I mean I could I'm not homophobic, but will it really make money?

Maybe trials. Pointless leaving my current job unless it's going to bring in most of the amount though, otherwise I'd just eat through the money while I found a new job.
posted by Not Supplied at 2:12 PM on May 28, 2011

Actually, since you say you're in good shape, what about gay softcore modelling? Somewhere like here, although obviously there are millions more. Many will absolutely love a fit straight guy happy to get it out on camera, and no need to fake attraction if you were doing solo stuff. No clue as to the pay rates, but as a supplement to other income?
posted by emmtee at 2:14 PM on May 28, 2011 [1 favorite]

Medical testing?
posted by ian1977 at 2:17 PM on May 28, 2011

Donate your sperm.
posted by patronuscharms at 2:18 PM on May 28, 2011 [1 favorite]

Actually, the "Convert the straight guy" kink is more popular than you'd think--even with the straight dude as the top rather than the bottom, if you're more comfortable with that option. Fake it! You could also probably market yourself on webcam work. Or possibly dancing at male strip clubs if you're ripped.
posted by schroedinger at 2:25 PM on May 28, 2011

Is it feasible for you to go to a loan shark?
posted by AlliKat75 at 2:27 PM on May 28, 2011

Check out the Up Your Income board at www.moneysavingexpert.com. You could operate a phone sex line or something like that. Some people there seem to make money doing it. And it wouldn't eat into time you could spend doing something more lucrative.
posted by Solomon at 2:37 PM on May 28, 2011 [1 favorite]

Get a CELTA and Teach English in S. Korea, Japan, or the Gulf States.

Better yet, go to South Korea or the Gulf States and get your CELTA there. Probably cheaper, they'll help you get a job, and you'll be able to figure out if you can live there for a year.

here is a course in dubai

here lies a job board
posted by pynchonesque at 2:53 PM on May 28, 2011

The nuclear jumpers link was interesting on the blue, but can't find anything similar in the UK.

So it has to be in the UK? That rules out all the contract jobs in Iraq, et cetera, which is your best bet for quick legal income.
posted by mlis at 2:59 PM on May 28, 2011

I'm in the UK and for about 8 years, have been taking part as a "randomly-chosen" member of the public (fitting a certain criteria on which I'll do a bit of background reading so I can blag it) attending focus groups for all sorts of new products (household, financial, cars, tv, anything). I average about one a week, usually about £35 an hour cash-in-hand expenses paid, duration usually about 2 hours (but there've been occasions when it's been worth my while taking time off from my 9-5 office job to attend more lucrative jobs). I found out about it via word of mouth but if you're in a city, it's almost certain it goes on near you.
posted by splout at 2:59 PM on May 28, 2011 [1 favorite]

What about oil rigs on the North Sea?
posted by mlis at 3:09 PM on May 28, 2011

So it has to be in the UK?

Possibly not, but as I have no credit available would be hard to get the money upfront to get set up in another country, airfares, deposits etc stack up. which might rule out the otherwise great idea of teaching in Korea.

contract jobs in Iraq

Seriously? What kind of jobs are out there that I could do?
posted by Not Supplied at 3:09 PM on May 28, 2011

Truck driver? Driving trucks in Iraq used to be pretty lucrative. Because you got murdered a bunch. But I don't know what it is like anymore.
posted by Justinian at 3:10 PM on May 28, 2011

Are you people for real? Six grand is £500 a month for a year. You can make that doing bar work. Just look for a job in a pub 3 nights a week. They're out there. Sure, you'll be tired, but come on, there are alternatives to literally selling your arse or going to Iraq.
posted by Happy Dave at 3:21 PM on May 28, 2011 [4 favorites]

Yeh, but Happy Dave 'Just look for a job in a pub' or whatever is not so easy right now. Lot of competition for part-time work in London. I agree the gay sex thing is a bit unrealistic.
posted by Not Supplied at 3:33 PM on May 28, 2011

I mean I'm not trying to shoot down the idea of part time work, but it just seems like there's always a catch 22. Like fitting in around my current hours. If I could get a job that just let me work weekends and the evenings I don't work, fine but that's what everyone wants. And travelling often takes an hour each way in London and more money.

I've done a bit of freelance writing, but got the old rsi and would need to buy new stuff to make it feasible

etc etc. and that's why I just need to make the money so I can get out of the traps that are limiting what I do.
posted by Not Supplied at 3:45 PM on May 28, 2011

Seconded with Iraq - although you should be careful who you sign up with, some companies will take people with only two weeks of experience but there's a lot of America first in the allocation of jobs - i.e. if there's a dangerous convoy route the non-Americans get put on it. You'd be a level above Indians/Chinese (sad to say) but the risk is still higher for you.

Aside from that, have you considered the Territorial Army? You could do it just by signing up for a year, going on weekend courses as much as you can (same rate of pay per day as the regular Army) and then just quit after you make your money. This is safe (UK based), at least somewhat fun, and you can quit on a day's notice. Seriously, it's a good part time job if you are just after the money (and bonus points if you have a degree and can make officer).
posted by jaduncan at 3:49 PM on May 28, 2011 [2 favorites]

Grow weed.
posted by Kandarp Von Bontee at 4:08 PM on May 28, 2011

Not Supplied: "I just need to make the money so I can get out of the traps that are limiting what I do."

Seconding the TA as a great idea. You'll get paid for training and gain new job skills.
posted by DarlingBri at 4:10 PM on May 28, 2011 [1 favorite]

Get a job working in the oil patch in north Alberta or the arctic. I had a friend with few-no skills who went up to the NWT and made some crazy money doing construction. I've also heard that the support staff at antarctic research stations make good money, and there isn't much to spend it on down there, so you get to keep more of it.
posted by Canageek at 4:19 PM on May 28, 2011

Not Supplied: "I mean I'm not trying to shoot down the idea of part time work, but it just seems like there's always a catch 22. Like fitting in around my current hours. If I could get a job that just let me work weekends and the evenings I don't work, fine but that's what everyone wants. And travelling often takes an hour each way in London and more money. "

I have to say, finding a bar job in the largest city in the UK is almost certainly going to be easier than getting a job on an oil rig or going to Iraq. Without experience and the relevant survival/helicopter training that costs north of £500 if you're financing yourself, you're unlikely to get work on rigs for a start. Bar-jobs wise, here's a few on Gumtree.

Those recommending the TA may be on to something, but be aware that TA duty comes with a three year commitment. and, at the moment, a relatively high chance of being mobilised for full-time service in Afghanistan (although I believe from friends in the Regulars that this is lessening now there is hardly any British presence in Iraq).

It may honestly help if you can tell us why you need £6k within a year - are you paying off a debt? Moving to another country? What's the motivation? Because you seem to have convinced yourself that only 'unconventional, difficult or dangerous' jobs or activities can make you £500 a month, which is demonstrably false.
posted by Happy Dave at 4:40 PM on May 28, 2011

Writing freelance "research papers" for kids over the Internet.
posted by humanfont at 5:23 PM on May 28, 2011

If you;re fit, large construction projects/building sites (tunnel digging?) that build 7 days a week. The basic wage can be okay but you can make a killing on the overtime.
posted by carter at 5:29 PM on May 28, 2011

Need to know your skillset. If all you got is all you wrote...

How cute are you? "First time" ass-cherry boys can command at least a couple/few grand, depending on where you are and how hot you are. Hairless and buff helps. Craigslist in some areas are notorious for "casual encounters" ads where a nice young boy asks for "donations" to help with the rent. There are ads here in the "Gigs" section which were pretty explicitly "I'm an attractive woman who needs help to pay rent ($1400/month) and am willing to entertain 4 times a month. With a single dedicated big hearted individual."

Languages? That might get you warzone work. Otherwise, without military experiences you're likely out of luck.

Illegal stuff. Drug mule. Do a hit. But it doesn't sound like you'd know anyone who'd hire you for that, not would they trust you enough to hire you.

Go to a bar - get to be known as a regular - propose to do something entertaining/life-threatening and ask for bets that you survive.

Best of luck, dude.
posted by porpoise at 8:54 PM on May 28, 2011

In response to all the recommendations suggesting that one just goes gets a job on a fish-boat, or on an oil rig in Canada, I can assure that this won't work for a penniless Brit with zero experience, and no resources or connections.

The fishing industry has been devastated due to mismanagement and over-population. I've mentioned here before that boats are being given away for outstanding moorage fees up and down the coast, and the number of shore-bound deckhands is staggering.

The resource extraction frenzy in Canada revolves around the Athabasca tar sands (re-branded as the oil sands for scumbag marketing purposes). You can't just show up in Fort McMurray asking where all the cash is. There are long lines of people wanting on those positions, many with vast experience. It takes time and training to get on, and the cost of living while you get your foot in the door can easily double or quadruple your time investment, or not even pan out.
posted by PareidoliaticBoy at 9:20 PM on May 28, 2011

It may honestly help if you can tell us why you need £6k within a year - are you paying off a debt?

Yes, paying off a debt. It doesn't have to be in a year, but I can't take it for a long time. I'm in my early thirties and I can't take years and years not being able to do any projects I want to do when I should be using the insight I've got so far to actually do something. Also, the longer the debt goes on the longer it goes on because of interest.

I'm not saying it's impossible to do it with regular earnings, I'm just saying I've found it hard. I've been hanging out on the moneysaving expert board for a while and applying for part-time things. I do know about Gumtree jobs, but I think you underestimate the situation here. There's a lot of local people in those areas with bar experience. Ok say I do get a bar job in Wimbledon. I need a £27 a week travelcard. It will be 1hr 15 mins travel each way, so I need to finish work in time for the last tube and only work the eves I don't work now. Then £6hr *7hr shift=36 after tax for a weekend shift. So it would really have to be a flexible situation in my own area to start making decent money.

Not just naysaying if you have any more ideas for part-time stuff I will try them.

My current hours are also subject to change, being dropped etc so it's not like I can rely on that as well which could cause more problems later.

Thanks for all the suggestions. I will try the TA. Doesn't seem like it's much regular money the first year though, is that right? So it's more an investment in skills.

Need to know your skillset

FWIW if you're still reading:
2:2 degree music technology
Office admin experience which I don't want to do because of RSI
Pool lifeguarding
Good general strength and fitness
Don't want to sound arrogant, but I'm pretty decent at doing a lot of things when I get into them, practical, creative, whatever. It's just the experience thing.
Hell, virgin arsehole fwiw as people seem to think it's an asset, but I'm not sure what gay men will pay for a basic fuck in the land of semi legal prostitution, public cruising areas and gaydar.
posted by Not Supplied at 12:45 AM on May 29, 2011

What about cleaning offices at night? It won't pay well but I think it's less sought-after than bar work and you don't need any experience...
posted by indienial at 1:16 AM on May 29, 2011

Does your music technology degree mean you're a good musician? If so, what about giving music lessons, whether instrumental or theory? Or, if you have access to any equipment, helping with music recording e.g. first demo tapes for aspiring bands.

Tutoring kids for their music GCSEs is another possibility, although with a 2:2 you'd be at a disadvantage in the market.

Still on the musical side, you could try busking. But you'll need a good act and a god spot for that amount of money in very little time.

Find a job centre that takes day laborers, for intermittent low-skilled physical work.
posted by metaBugs at 1:18 AM on May 29, 2011

Not Supplied: "

Yes, paying off a debt. It doesn't have to be in a year, but I can't take it for a long time. I'm in my early thirties and I can't take years and years not being able to do any projects I want to do when I should be using the insight I've got so far to actually do something. Also, the longer the debt goes on the longer it goes on because of interest.

High-interest debt on a credit card I take it, or something similar. Probably the first thing you should do is balance transfer to a 0% card or speak to your bank about consolidating on a lower interest rate. Then cut up your cards.

You said upthread that you're living frugally, but have you thought about moving out of London? Seriously, I'm in a pretty well paid private sector job and living in London made it very, very difficult for us to save any money or make any headway on paying off debt. Rent is higher, everything has a 5%-25% premium on it just because you're in London. Maybe you could look for work somewhere like Manchester, Newcastle, Glasgow, York? Your quality of life will likely go up given what you're earning, even as your expenses drop. Put it this way, since moving out of London we've wiped out nearly £3k in debt just with the extra wiggle room not living in London gave us.

Also, this is clearly weighing on you in a big way, in that you're finding it very hard to save and get out from under, because on a low salary it seems insurmountable. But if you break it right down and gave yourself, say, 18 months to clear this, you'd have to put about £350 a month into it to clear it. Give yourself 24 months and it'd be clear at £250 a month.

So, start by saving, say, £100 as a very small emergency fund, purely so the tiny emergencies won't knock you off course. Move the debt onto a low or no interest credit card from another bank, cut up the cards (don't close them) and keep an eye on the rate. Once you've zeroed out one credit card by balance transferring, leave them to stew for six months then ask for an interest rate reduction or a balance transfer 0% rate and transfer the debt back. By repeating this, you should be able to keep your interest costs to a minimum.

Once you've got that squared away, it's really about setting a date and working towards it. It will suck, but frankly most of the suggestions in this thread are deeply unrealistic and a recipe for you ending up in Aberdeen or Alberta or somewhere (assuming you could scratch up airfare to get there, which is a big if it would seem) miserable and putting on more debt for jobs which don't exist or are going to people with more experience than you. I know how shitty and overwhelming debt can feel, but there aren't really any quick fixes or drastically quick ways of making money that haven't already been thought of by thousands of other people. If anyone could turn up in Aberdeen and get on the next helicopter to a rig with no experience or relevant skills, there would be queues all the way to Dyce.

Also, please remember you can do things even while you work to pay off debt - go find a nearby pub or club that does an open mic night and offer to help out with the sound. Find an indie band that need help figuring out how to make their demo not sound like shit. Do stuff for free, get as much experience as you can get your hands on and start keeping records of all the things you've done.


Your other option is bankruptcy. If you're making less than £20k a year, living in London and struggling, you're an obvious candidate. It will wreck your credit for about 7 years and you'll be in your forties before you can think about buying a house, but you'll be able to start fresh and start saving money.
posted by Happy Dave at 5:32 AM on May 29, 2011 [2 favorites]

I'm going to assume you already thought of this but will throw it out there nonetheless...

You have a debt with a rough due date of a year, but it is obviously a serious enough debt that you have seriously considered selling yourself for gay sex. That is not a good position to be in because it means you are desperate when you need to not be in order to think clearly on this.

Are you able to obtain a loan from friends/family (or multiple friends/family) that would let you pay off this existing debt, perhaps lower/eliminate your interest, and take the pressure off by letting you repay over a longer period? If you don't have the friends/family option, can you use something like Kiva.com? You'd have to make a pretty convincing argument for why you deserve the cash and how you can minimize their risk in terms of you repaying it, but could be a good route.
posted by Elminster24 at 9:10 AM on May 29, 2011

Thanks for all the suggestions. I will try the TA. Doesn't seem like it's much regular money the first year though, is that right? So it's more an investment in skills.

You get paid for each day that you work. If you go on lots of weekend courses, you will be paid more. Basic training is 6-8 weekends, then two weeks full time. That's like £2k right there, plus you get an annual bonus. If you really want to know about this, I can hook you up with both information and people (and no, I'm not a recruiter). Memail me.

One thing that you might consider is taking a posting that isn't Afghanistan. They like to free up regulars for Afghanistan, so TA people willing to do a 6 month tour in the Falklands are popular. Remember, no rent costs during that time either. You'd easily clear the whole £6k as long as you don't just get pissed every night.
posted by jaduncan at 11:15 AM on May 29, 2011

Oh, and if you do do it, try not to be just infantry. People with a trade get paid more, and have more valuable skills. Engineers or Signals are most employable when leaving.
posted by jaduncan at 11:16 AM on May 29, 2011

In fact, memail me before talking to the local troop. I'll give you unbiased advice.
posted by jaduncan at 11:18 AM on May 29, 2011

Sell your sperm? I'm not sure if sperm donors in the UK are paid as they are in the US, but I've known a few guys who did it in college, and they made a not-insubstantial amount of money at it.

Nthing the others who stressed that you could make the money easily by getting a casual side job and just putting the money away. I work Saturdays selling flowers at a farmer's market. It's 6-7 hours of very easy work, one day a week, and I get paid in cash. Assuming you have another job and don't need to spend that cash, it's basically money put aside. A gig like that plus saving a bit should get you your money in no time.
posted by Sara C. at 12:26 PM on May 29, 2011

Possibly not, but as I have no credit available would be hard to get the money upfront to get set up in another country, airfares, deposits etc stack up. which might rule out the otherwise great idea of teaching in Korea.

Korean schools, unlike Japanese or Chinese ones, pay for your airfare there and (if you complete your contract) home again. Also, because you don't get your first paycheck for a month or so, a lot of schools will give you an advance so you can eat, etc. Plus the housing is usually free or at a nominal cost. I easily saved the equivalent of 6000 pounds over the course of a year there without stinting myself on anything.
posted by martianna at 12:26 PM on May 29, 2011

"I get the impression that a lot of fit young gay lads do casual sex work to pay the bills, so how lucrative really is it for a completely non bi guy that would hate touching a man and could hardly fake kissing etc? I mean I could I'm not homophobic, but will it really make money?"

Squeamish strait guys having gay sex out of desperation is a common and lucrative fetish. Though keep in mind that you will be competing with genuinely gay providers who have more experience convincing people they are strait than you do. Your best bet in this area would be porn, a director will have good gaydar and will pay a premium for your not registering, you will genuinely not register right?
posted by Blasdelb at 1:07 PM on May 29, 2011

Happy Dave, thanks for the thoughts. I really have a low salary and a lot of debt so don't have a lot of wiggle room for the things you mention. I will think about them as things change though, appreciate it.

Your other option is bankruptcy. If you're making less than £20k a year, living in London and struggling, you're an obvious candidate

I looked into that. They will control my finances for 3 years, won't they? So it's not really a quick escape.
posted by Not Supplied at 2:29 PM on May 29, 2011

Korean schools, unlike Japanese or Chinese ones, pay for your airfare there and (if you complete your contract) home again.

You still have to get the airfare first though don't you? Then get reimbursed.
posted by Not Supplied at 2:30 PM on May 29, 2011

Flu Camp You take two weeks holiday from work, they give you the flu and pay you up to £3,000. Friends of friends I know have done this.
posted by Helga-woo at 4:27 PM on May 29, 2011 [1 favorite]

You still have to get the airfare first though don't you? Then get reimbursed.

For some, maybe, but when I went the recruiter just sent me an e-ticket after we'd agreed on the day. I didn't pay anything.
posted by martianna at 4:58 PM on May 29, 2011

If you go the gay sex route, try to get paid as much as possible for your first gig. This requires a lot of research up front on your part. Figure out where to sell your virginity -- specialized gay sites? Craigslist? Learn about how to, er, stretch yourself so that it is less painful than it could be.

Perhaps blog about the experience for additional ad revenue?

Other ideas:
- yard sales
- gay massage with a happy ending
- commission sales job (cell phones? vitamins? -- something you can do on evenings/weekends)
- gay phone sex
- Antarctica - nowhere to spend your money
posted by 3491again at 11:59 PM on May 29, 2011

Sounds like teaching in Korea could work for you.

Pros

• Most jobs pay over 2 million won (over £1100) per month and there are plenty of jobs paying between that and 2.5 million (£1400)
• You can keep your expenses very low, if you're prepared to live in employer-provided housing or student digs, eat Korean food, socialise economically etc. Saving a grand sterling per month, if you get a decent job and are hardcore on controlling expenses, is perfectly possible.
• It's not dangerous or even very difficult. (Doing it well is another matter.)
• There shouldn't be any up-front investment. You don't need a CELTA and many (most?) employers will pay up-front for the flight.
• It doesn't involve a lot of sitting down, apart from lesson preparation.

Cons

• Culture shock can be tough, especially if you're saving money by living Korean-style and not splurging on western food or beach holidays in Thailand. You will need to be prepared for some miserable weeks (or even months) and have a set of strategies in place to help you cope.
• Living cheaply will probably mean a grubby flat without much furniture, eating kimchi jjigae regularly, not having much of a social life, rarely buying new clothes etc. You will need to be disciplined and focussed to put up with this.
• The lengthy visa application process means you probably won't be able to start work until late July or August. Of course, you can continue with your current job until then.
• You are in a rush, so you'll probably have to take the first decent job offer you get. There's a good chance you will get a job someone else quit, so you may end up with unpleasant office politics, no professional support and feeling (probably rightly) that you aren't helping your students much. You can mitigate some of this by reading a few books on teaching EFL and Korean workplace culture.
• Your contract will be for a year minimum and you won't get the paid flight back if you break contract, so you won't be able to leave early without incurring extra costs.
• In general, I don't advise people to teach English in Korea unless they can afford to break contract if things turn sour. You won't have that escape route.
• There is a chance that your employer may try to rip you off. This risk can be managed by research and going through a reputable agency, but it exists.

You say you have a degree, which means you can almost certainly get a job fairly easily. Are you white? It's harder for non-white teachers to get jobs in Korea, especially at the bottom end of the market. According to your previous questions, you've already taught adult EFL, though you'll most likely end up teaching children in Korea.

Feel free to ask more questions in-thread if you're interested.
posted by Busy Old Fool at 6:06 AM on May 30, 2011

Thanks for the information. I am an EFL teacher, so have heard of the Korea thing, but assumed that all would reimburse the airfare like EPIK do. So I guess a private school is my route.

I would be happy enough teaching kiddies. I've done a bit of volunteering doing this.

The main question I have is if you can give me any advice or recommendations for finding a good school and/or agency as I have read horror stories about the private ones and like you said I don't have a lot of wiggle room so would want to minimise the gamble as much as possible.

Cheers.
posted by Not Supplied at 6:38 AM on May 30, 2011

Living cheaply will probably mean a grubby flat without much furniture, eating kimchi jjigae regularly, not having much of a social life, rarely buying new clothes etc.

Sound like my situation now, but with more "kimchi jjigae"
posted by Not Supplied at 6:41 AM on May 30, 2011

The main question I have is if you can give me any advice or recommendations for finding a good school and/or agency as I have read horror stories about the private ones and like you said I don't have a lot of wiggle room so would want to minimise the gamble as much as possible.

There have been past discussions that touched on this on AskMe; they're not hard to find via tags and site-specific google searches. Here's one. I suggest you read all the other AskMe threads that involve teaching there, as you'll learn a lot.

There are also lots of articles elsewhere on the web, again easy to search for. Mefite ChrisInSeoul has several posts on his blog. Here are some typical opinions, good and bad. Here's something on recruiters.

That should be enough to get you researching. I'm happy to answer any other questions you have, but unless they're desperately time-sensitive, it would probably be better for you to wait five days until you can ask your next question, so that you can put 'Korea' in the tags and title to get the attention of other answerers who know the country well.

My advice is to use a recruiter with a good reputation and to do as much research as possible before you choose a job, including extensive searches and speaking to existing teaching staff. Oh, and I don't know anyone who found a job with them, but I met the owners of Park English socially and they seemed to be decent people.

One more thing - you won't get a visa unless you have a clean criminal record, are HIV-negative and pass a drugs test on arrival.
posted by Busy Old Fool at 8:19 AM on May 30, 2011

Jesus. It sounds like you're just a bit pissed off and despondent with your life and don't want to keep living in your current mode. You know you'll eventually pay off the debt, but don't feel you can put the time in.

There are people who HAVE to get into horrific things like porn and Iraq because they have families who need to eat or drug addictions to feed. Even considering them when you don't have to is ridiculous.

Getting bar work is difficult, if you're unwilling to work at it. Start doing huge continuous laps of the bar and club on the weekends, asking for work. You will eventually get a job, I've done it many times in the UK. They will literally give you a job just to stop having you coming in and asking for one.

Get creative about it. If you have a computer and a camera, make a Kickstarter film about your life, asking people to donate. Don't lose hope.
posted by rudhraigh at 1:19 PM on May 30, 2011

Busy Old Fool, thanks. I will have a look into it this week and maybe post later if I need to.

rudhraigh, no it's not just that it will take a long time to pay off. I'm in a precarious situation with work and may lose my day job anyway. So even if I get that bar job there's a high likelihood that something will kick me back to subsistence living well before the debt is clear. The debt doesn't stay static, there's interest so anytime I'm not paying it off it's building back up.

I'm managing on a very low income for London and don't have spare money for anything.

I'm not trying to bring on the violins, but that's what I'm saying about no simplistic advice about debt. Yeh I could make a kickstarter film, but let's be honest it probably won't make me money will it. Positivity aside, everyone wants money what makes me any different?

So I need a solution that I actually can rely on to make money, get some money that I can actually invest in creative ways to make money or move to a new town or whatever.
posted by Not Supplied at 8:26 PM on May 30, 2011