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Get a job in Korea, with a real map.
Over a hundred thousand foreigners hold Korea's main skilled work visa, and the routes they took are mappable: two ways in, four industries doing most of the hiring, and a visa ladder built for graduates. Start with the complete playbook, or find your route below.
Two ways in
Applying from abroadHired before you fly, visa issued at your embassyTeaching programs, English-first tech employers, global recruitment tracks at the big manufacturers, and KOTRA's matching service: the doors that open without a Korean address.Read the guide Applying from inside KoreaThe student-to-career path, and the stronger positionStudying in Korea converts you into a local candidate: internships that turn into offers, campus recruiting, the annual KOTRA job fair, and a jobseeker visa waiting at graduation.Read the guide
The tracks compared
| From abroad | From inside Korea | |
|---|---|---|
| Who it suits | Teachers, experienced specialists, candidates in global recruitment tracks | Students and graduates of Korean universities, current residents |
| Main channels | Teaching programs, LinkedIn, Contact Korea, company global tracks | Campus recruiting, the KOTRA job fair, K-Work, internships that convert |
| Timeline | Plan around six months from start to flight | A final-year campaign, with proof built in earlier semesters |
| Hardest part | Getting interviews without being in the room | Korean-language competition beyond foreigner-friendly roles |
| First step | Order apostilled documents, then work the channels | Internships and Korean, then the campaign playbook |
The four industries that hire foreigners
Salary figures appear only where a published source exists, cited in the guide. Everything else: see the guide, or the official pages it links.
Tech, developers, and startupsKorean: Varies by employerA minority of employers work in English (Coupang posts engineering roles in English; LINE recruits internationally); the mainstream expects Korean.Entry pay: 37,700,000 - 44,500,000 KRW (annual; junior (0 to 3 years), varies by specialty)Source: Jumpit 2025 Developer Salary Report, junior averages by specialtyCoupang · LINE Plus · Samsung Electronics · Naver · KakaoRead the guide Teaching EnglishKorean: Rarely requiredThe classroom is English; Korean shapes your life outside it and your options after teaching.Entry pay: 2,100,000 - 2,800,000 KRW (monthly, public school scale by level and province, housing provided)Source: EPIK published pay scaleEPIK (public schools) · Private academies (hagwons) · International schoolsRead the guide Engineering and manufacturingKorean: Almost always requiredPlants and postings run in Korean; even international-student tracks state TOPIK requirements.Entry pay: varies widely; see the guideSamsung Electronics DS · SK hynix · Hyundai Motor Group · LG Energy SolutionRead the guide Business, finance, and tradeKorean: Almost always requiredForeign-national intakes state TOPIK levels outright; your other languages differentiate on top of Korean, not instead of it.Entry pay: varies widely; see the guideHyundai Corporation · Trading companies · Multinational Korea offices · Foreign banks in SeoulRead the guide
Job boards and channels, verified
Every row was checked against the live site on the date in the dataset. Boards die and platforms launch; if something looks off, trust the official page.
| Channel | Focus | Site language | From abroad? |
|---|---|---|---|
Korean-format applications expected. Its sister platform KoMate serves foreign candidates directly. | One of Korea's two biggest general job boards | Korean | Best once in Korea |
Built around visa and ID verification, so it works best once you are in Korea with an ARC. Around 30 interface languages. | Saramin's dedicated hiring platform for foreign residents, with visa-type filters | Multilingual | Best once in Korea |
Its foreigner spin-off KLiK closed in June 2026; use the main site with a Korean-format resume. | The other giant general board, strongest for large-company postings | Korean | Best once in Korea |
English job descriptions are common on developer postings, and listings are browsable from abroad. Wanted Global now redirects to the main site. | Tech, startup, and scale-up hiring; the board most usable by non-Korean-speaking developers | Korean | Yes |
| Developer-specific board owned by Saramin | Korean | Best once in Korea | |
| Startup networking plus jobs, a Korean LinkedIn analog | Korean | Best once in Korea | |
The most abroad-friendly channel, but it covers only a slice of the market: most Korean domestic hiring never appears here. | Multinationals, foreign-invested companies, and global-facing Korean startups | English | Yes |
Long-running niche board for multinational-company roles; listings skew toward candidates already in or near Korea. | Foreign-company and bilingual professional jobs in Korea | Korean + English | Yes |
A licensed private employment agency with visa guides built in. | Foreigner-focused platform with E-7 visa-sponsorship badges on postings | Korean + English | Yes |
Run by the Ministry of SMEs and Startups with KOSME since October 2024, including support for the change to an E-7-1 visa. For students already studying in Korea. | Government platform matching international students (D-2/D-10) with Korean SMEs | Multilingual | Best once in Korea |
Postings are not vetted; verify every school independently before sending documents. | The oldest English-teaching job board for Korea | English | Yes |
Recruiting since 2006, free for teachers, and an official EPIK partner. | Established E-2 teaching recruiter for public programs and academies | English | Yes |
Government and support programs
The programs that actually serve foreign jobseekers. (K-Move, often recommended in old articles, serves Korean nationals going abroad and is deliberately not listed.)
| Program | Who it serves | What it does |
|---|---|---|
KOTRA | Foreign professionals and graduates seeking Korean employers | Matches foreign talent with Korean companies through KOTRA's overseas network: a talent database, employment matching, visa recommendation, and settlement support. |
KOTRA (hosted with MOTIE and MOEL) | International students and graduates of Korean universities | An annual hiring fair connecting international students with Korean companies recruiting foreign talent, with on-site visa counseling.18th edition ran June 1 to 2, 2026 at COEX Hall B in Seoul, with around 100 companies; free with pre-registration. |
Seoul Metropolitan Government | Foreign residents of Seoul, including international students | Job listings, multilingual employment and labor counseling, and a Career-Up training program aimed at international students entering Korean companies. |
Korean Ministry of Education | Citizens of the seven designated English-speaking countries (plus Indian citizens with a teaching license under the Korea-India CEPA) | Places English teachers in public schools nationwide on one-year renewable contracts, with housing, allowances, and severance on top of base pay.Pay: 2,100,000 - 2,800,000 KRW (monthly base by qualification level and province; Seoul uses its own grade scale)Spring 2027 applications were announced to open around August 1, 2026; the Fall 2026 window closed July 10, 2026. |
KOTRA (government-delegated) | Senior overseas engineers and researchers in strategic industries | Certifies top-tier talent in fields like semiconductors, batteries, AI, and bio for a fast-track F-2-T resident visa with a path to permanent residence. |
The visa ladder
Every job plan in Korea eventually meets the visa system, and the system is friendlier than its reputation, especially for graduates of Korean universities. Each rung has a dedicated guide:
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