World Tae Kwon Do Academy

My son and I have continued training with Master Kim are we now both black belts. We train together at times. Master Kim continues to amaze with the depth of his knowledge as a teacher and life coach.
It is normal for a kid to lose interest in TKD from time to time. If your child avails himself or herself of the opportunity to speak to Master Kim about boredom, over-​commitment or frustration, your child will find a compassionate ear and maybe a practical suggestion of how to continue training without the negative moods. My son has learned how to speak his concerns rather than just silently quitting. This is a valuable life lesson.

I have never Unilocaled before today! I just felt so compelled to share my horrible experience of this place. We have recently moved in to the neighborhood and I was looking for a TWD for my son to continue. He has been taking it for few years now and he loves it so it was important for me to find another good place for him to continue. I was also looking for something closer to our new home.
I’ve also have taken TWD (on and off) all my life and I have the most respect for this sport/​way of life. So it caught me really off guard when this Master Kim treated me like shit! He was condescending and talked down to me. I was so embarrassed and mortified by this but I thought it could have been my imagination. I thought there is no way a Master can speak to me/​people like this so I thought I was being over sensitive.
I wanted this place to work out so badly, I put my instincts aside and gave it another visit. I thought maybe he could have been having a bad day. So I gave it another shot. But this visit was even worse than the first time. I HATE this place. I am embarrassed he affiliated with the TWD. I will never send my kids there. I don’t feel like my son will learn discipline, integrity, honesty, humility from this «Master Kim».
Shame Shame Shame
I wish there was something less than 1 star.

My son started Tae Kwon Do at age 4 with Master Kim. There are not high enough praises for his techniques and rapport with the children. Master Kim makes discipline fun and encourages great values. He demands respect of family, friends and teachers but in a healthy, positive manner. The classes build confidence, produce leaders and even teach some Korean, which is always handy. Most of all it teaches focus and committment, which helps students excel in and out of the classroom and studio.
I can not say enough good things about his classes and Master Kim is someone you can trust with your kids, mind and body and spirit.

Review by Marianne G is right on. Master Kim will get your money up front and if there is a problem, you will not get any money back. Some students have never received their Black Belt certificates from Korea and it has been over two years. There are other of martial arts studios in the area

Wow. Master Kim should be called «Master Master Kim,» as one title of Master is not enough. This is one top-​notch studio. Everything, from his incredible kindness to his ability to pull out even the tiniest shy kids and make them feel confident, made us want to sign up. His ability to learn every child’s name, greet the parents as if he has known you for years and treat each student with personal, individualized instruction to meet their level is beyond impressive.
We were drawn to his studio after several friends gave him rave reviews.
He is terrific.
This is certainly not the least expensive game in town, but classes are not over-​crowded and the level of individual attention given is awesome. Master Kim also offers a two-​week trial, which was really helpful.

I would love to write something nice about this new business near my home as I try to be supportive of small businesses especially new ones; however, it is out of frustration I write this so this may not be relevant to all that read this.
Master Kim advertised a 2 week special for TaeKwondo lessons which drew me into his place of business at the Torrey Hills shopping center back in December. When I went in to inquire about my autistic son taking his class, he offered a 2-​month trial special. He explained I could cancel it and be fully refunded if it didn’t work out.
Unfortunately, after a month of my son refusing to go, I talked with Master Kim and he said he understood and would refund me.
Every couple of weeks when I would talk to him, he said things like he will talk to his accountant or get a check cut or look into it. It has been a couple of months now and today he said he will get back to me (again).
He seems like a nice guy and I’d like to believe it’s just a series of mishaps and/​or scheduling issues but after a couple of months of him promising my refund, it’s starting to raise an eyebrow.
For now, I’ll remain hopeful and will update this review when this matter has been resolved.