Am I applyinig to be Govenor or to teach in Korea??

I am slowly discovering the meticulous, multi-faceted process of applying for a work visa. woooww. With the number of times I've been fingerprinted and the amount of official documents I've obtained, I feel like this is more than trying to teach small children the difference between a verb and an adverb in Korea. When all is said and done, it will be a great learning experience but in the midst of it all, in the eye of the tornado, in the axis of the hurricane, in the heart of the chaos...it's just a tad bit overwhelming. Ok so maybe my analogies where a bit of a hyperbole as this process has not been completely destructive but rather just confusing, frustrating, and nerve-racking. I've never suffered from anxiety until this point in my life. My heart has yet to reach its normal rate of pulse and my hands have not experience the relief of dryness in three days. As painful as it is right now to reflect back on my not-so-distant memory of how I have been working to obtain my work visa, I know that I will be happy that I recorded the process later in my life. Plus Justin needs me as a resource so this is partially for him too. (Rrreeed... ^.^)

Alrighty then. In order for me to get my work visa, I must have the following documents to send to my recruiter in Korea: GEPIK application form, (GEPIK is the program that I am working through, Korvia is the recruiter that got me signed on with GEIK.) Resume, Copy of my passport, 2 passport photos, apostilled copy of notarized University degree (this will be explained further down), 2 sealed transcripts, 1 apostilled record check, 2 reference letters, 3 copies of the signed contract, 1 health statement for immigration. All of these documents need to be sent in the mail to Korvia. Once they have all of these documents in hand, THEY then do the necessary work for me to get work visa. I will then get my work visa once I arrive in Korea.

You're probably asking, what the heck is apostilled??? I was asking the same thing about 2 weeks ago. Microsoft Word doesn’t even recognize it as being an official word in spell check for God’s sake! After some deep Google searches and some general Q&A with different people, I found out that getting a document notarized (signed, stamped, approved with an official person that works through the government like a bank) is at the state level; getting something apostilled is getting it signed, stamped, approved at the Federal level. This can be done a couple of different ways, it really depends on what you're trying to get apostilled. Background checks must get apostilled in your State Capitol city at the Secretary of State office. Diplomas...well...I'm not sure yet but I will be sure to let you know when I do! I'm sure you can call your University Registrar and ask them, that's what I'm going to do.

Words of wisdom/advise/insight for those that are trying to get a work visa.

If you're going to Korea:
As of September 1, 2010 it is a new law that you must get an FBI background check to get your visa instead of just getting a state background check. My ETA for my documents in Korea is right on the borderline of August and September so for me, this meant getting both the FBI and the state background check. The FBI background check can take up to 12 weeks to get back so get that sent off IMMEDIATELY when you are applying to teach in Korea. As long as it's 3 months recent, it's good. This is a fairly easy process. Go to this link, which is the FBI page for getting background checks. Fill out the form, print it out and take it with you to your local police station. Once at the station, request a fingerprint card. These are free and are relatively easy to obtain. You just have to fill out the card with some information. MAKE SURE TO WRITE ON THE CARD WHY YOU ARE GETTING THESE DONE! My reads, "FBI background check for work visa to teach in South Korea" This information is important. Then they take you to the little station and roll each finger in ink and yadda yadda BAM! you have your fingerprint card. Mail the fingerprint card, a check for $18 and the form you printed to

FBI CJIS Division – Record Request
1000 Custer Hollow Road
Clarksburg, WV 26306

then wait for them to send back the results in the mail.

I had to get a state background check as well. I got that in the same day but assuming that anyone who reads this for advice will be going to Korea post September 1, I'll just skip that story.

Apostilled documents:
Getting something apostilled is not too terribly complicated but does take a little bit of time. Once I got my state background check, in Jefferson City at the State High Way Patrol, they notarized it for me. I then went to the Secretary of State Office to get it apostilled. I was directed where to go and walked up into the office, filled out a form, paid $10, waited 20 minutes, and walked out with an apostilled state background check. Getting something apostilled is going to vary depending on what document you are working with. It should make sense accordingly.

Ah yes, the diploma.
So here's the deal. I don't officially graduate until August, after my summer class has been completed. This is a problem because my recruiter needs my diploma by September 1 at THE ABSOLUTE LATEST in order to apply for my work visa...but...my diploma won't come until mid October...I'm supposed to be starting my job on October 1. Yikes. For me, August 16 is THE magical date. That is when my degree will be posted online, which means that is when I can get my official transcripts, which means that's when I can go to the CAPS office and get something official that will be treated like my diploma until I can get my real diploma. The challenge comes in getting "that something official" notarized and apostilled, as I would my diploma. As soon as I get those things on August 16, I will send them off to Korea immediately so my recruiter can start processing my stuff to get my visa.

This is a really great blog that I follow as well. She posted the changes that Korea is making pertaing to E2s (work visas). Check it out.