How can I change from a tourist visa to E-2 visa?

I am inside Korea now in Seoul.

I have been hired by EPIK.

Previously, a recruiter told me if hired by a public school, I could switch my visa to an E-2 visa without leaving the country. (But I suspected that may not be correct information.)
 
I called immigration to ask how to get an E-2 visa.

The woman who answered the phone told me she doesn't know, because she is used to dealing with E-2-1 visas (for 학원s) rather than E-2-2 visas (which are for public schools).

I was shocked that she just hung up the phone without telling me what I need to do.

On Dave's I saw this (but I have no idea if it is true or not):

"A visitor visa doesn't get turned into an E2 Visa particularly. You get hired by a school in Korea. They send their documents to immigration, you send your documents to immigration and if immigration likes you they put an E2 Visa in your passport. It doesn't matter where you are.
 
However you cannot get the E2 Visa stamped unless you are entering Korea. That means if you are presently in Korea you have to leave Korea. When you leave Korea, you are no longer in Korea on any type of visa. After that when you re-enter Korea, you re-enter on the E2 Visa in your passport, and immigration stamps it."

If that is correct information, it is great, because one would only have to leave the country after the visa process, and not have to go to a specific place with a Korean consulate overseas.

What do you guys know?

What should I do?

I am inside Korea now in Seoul.

I have been hired by EPIK.

Previously, a recruiter told me if hired by a public school, I could switch my visa to an E-2 visa without leaving the country. (But I suspected that may not be correct information.)
 

Your recruiter is right.  It is possible, but I don't know how to do it.  If you are invited to work at a public school then you can arrive as a tourist and change to E-2 in country.  But... I don't know how.  I do know someone who did this.  It may not apply to you because you weren't invited from outside of Korea (at least I assume that to be the case), but maybe it will.

I suggest you call the recruiter that told you this and ask how.  Otherwise you will have to get a visa issuance number and do a visa run.

Good luck.

I'm sorry to say that I can be of no help. But that I wanted to tknow the answer to this several years ago but never got to the bottom of it.  I called the Korean Embassey in London and got told that if i were to come on a tourist visa then i'd have to leave the country in order to change it to an E2(a long weekend in Japan was the womans recommendation). Although I suspected that she was just telling me that cause it meant she wouldnt have to find out how to do it from within Korea. I dont know why one wouldnt be able to go to the local immigration office with the relevent documents and get it sorted like that...

I did it and got shot down in flames for saying so on Dave's. I was invited by a Public school from outside Korea as the the poster says.

The abuse I got for daring to suggest that a visa run wasn't always necessary was akin to admitting that I rape cats in public.

Well, I know someone who did it (changed status, not raped a cat), so I believe you.

I was going to say no way to do in country but I do remember that people with public schools could do that.  Sort of.  I do not know the details.   I always put it as government scratching the back of government. 

Yet if a person is going to a hagwon and other non government then a Japan visa trip is needed.

Why not try calling immigration for help.  Why are you calling a recruiter?   I am not surprised that they hung up.   Time is money and why waste time answering a question the do not know.   The number for immigration is 1345.

Well 13th Earl aka the cat raper.  Dave is a harder place.   Did you actually tell people the detail of tourist to E2 ON a public school job.  Forgetting details like that will confuse things.