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Island TEFL?

 
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jenreb



Joined: 04 May 2013
Posts: 1

PostPosted: Mon May 13, 2013 6:55 pm    Post subject: Island TEFL? Reply with quote

(I hope no one has posted about this yet. I searched and couldn't find anything on it but with I could have missed it.)
Hi! I am a Canadian female who has recently graduated with a four year degree. I have a 100 hour TESL certificate and I am looking for a job in Thailand. I am in contact with one placement agency called Island TEFL (http://islandtefl.com/), which has a program that pretty much meets my exact needs, but I am worried that it might be a scam.
It claims that for approximately $500 American dollars it will give a four day seminar on teaching at a Thai school and general Thai culture. This will take place in a four-star hotel and on the beach. I will choose a placement before I go to Thailand and after the seminar will be provided accommodation and a job. Island TEFL also states that this cost covers the visa and work permit, and that they will provide assistance in the application process. They estimate the salary of a teaching job to be 30,000 Thai Baht. The manager of the program states that he has English schools around Thailand, and several contacts, and that I should be able to choose where I teach.
I was wondering what people thought, and if this seems like a scam/ too good to be true. I have been doing some research on the company and schools in Thailand, and I can find only positive testimonials of this company, but I am very wary.
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tttompatz



Joined: 06 Mar 2010
Posts: 1951
Location: Talibon, Bohol, Philippines

PostPosted: Mon May 13, 2013 10:14 pm    Post subject: Re: Island TEFL? Reply with quote

jenreb wrote:
(I hope no one has posted about this yet. I searched and couldn't find anything on it but with I could have missed it.)
Hi! I am a Canadian female who has recently graduated with a four year degree. I have a 100 hour TESL certificate and I am looking for a job in Thailand. I am in contact with one placement agency called Island TEFL (http://islandtefl.com/), which has a program that pretty much meets my exact needs, but I am worried that it might be a scam.
It claims that for approximately $500 American dollars it will give a four day seminar on teaching at a Thai school and general Thai culture. This will take place in a four-star hotel and on the beach. I will choose a placement before I go to Thailand and after the seminar will be provided accommodation and a job. Island TEFL also states that this cost covers the visa and work permit, and that they will provide assistance in the application process. They estimate the salary of a teaching job to be 30,000 Thai Baht. The manager of the program states that he has English schools around Thailand, and several contacts, and that I should be able to choose where I teach.
I was wondering what people thought, and if this seems like a scam/ too good to be true. I have been doing some research on the company and schools in Thailand, and I can find only positive testimonials of this company, but I am very wary.


Why do for free what you can pay $500 for?

If you want a job in Thailand just get on a plane and get here.
Canadian passport, degree and TEFL cert means that you should be working within a couple weeks of landing (couple days if you are not too fussy about the employer).

The best time to be job hunting is from March to May (school starts mid May - end of this week for most).

Next best time would be at the mid year break (Oct.).

The slowest time to be looking for work is from Dec - Feb.

This is NOT Korea. You won't find anything decent on the internet while you are sitting in your living room in Canada. It is a boots on the ground thing.

.
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jprimm



Joined: 03 Aug 2007
Posts: 91

PostPosted: Tue May 14, 2013 12:39 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

BEWARE!!!
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SiThep



Joined: 30 May 2013
Posts: 39
Location: Thailand

PostPosted: Sat Jun 08, 2013 1:22 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

$500 is more than a big enough incentive for people to run some kind of scam in Thailand. My honest response is this sounds suspicious.
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MaiPenRai



Joined: 17 Jan 2006
Posts: 390
Location: BKK

PostPosted: Tue Jun 11, 2013 5:17 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Its not a scam, but it is definitely not for everyone. A scam is when you pay money and get nothing in return. The question here is just are you getting your moneys worth.

Quote:
$500 American dollars it will give a four day seminar on teaching at a Thai school and general Thai culture. This will take place in a four-star hotel and on the beach.


So thats $125/day. Pretty much anything you could learn in 4 days, you could learn on your own by doing a little internet research. I suppose its a nice way to meet other people in the same boat as you though. Nice accommodations can be found for a third to half that cost and if you are studying all day, going to the beach and then presumably going out at night, who cares if you are in a 4 star resort. You will only be in your room to shower and sleep. Its really up to you I guess. I am assuming that accommodations at this 4 star hotel are included in this cost. If they are, then its not that bad a deal. If not, then its not a good deal.

Quote:
Island TEFL also states that this cost covers the visa and work permit, and that they will provide assistance in the application process.


Most of these TEFL course providers in Thailand are just one of the middlemen in the process. Most either have contracts with placement agencies while a few act as a placement agency themselves. It is the agencies that usually take care of the paperwork for you (via the school), so its a little misleading to say that it covers the costs.

Quote:
The manager of the program states that he has English schools around Thailand, and several contacts, and that I should be able to choose where I teach.


As stated above, most likely a middleman and has contracts with agencies who in turn have contracts with schools. Doubtful that you will be able to chose where you want to teach. Given a choice between 2 or 3 options maybe. Dont expect these options to be in downtown Bangkok, Chiang Mai, Phuket, any island/beach, etc., etc. I would be surprised if he has English schools around the country.

Its not a scam, its just that you need to ask the right questions and understand that in most cases

Salary is pretty standard for most Thai government schools and new teachers with little to no experience.
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Hermosillo



Joined: 17 Jun 2014
Posts: 176
Location: Chiang Mai, Thailand

PostPosted: Thu Feb 16, 2017 2:33 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Were you dealing with Mr. Crabb or Mr. Dunne? It doesn't matter, because it is the same person. Avoid!
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plumpy nut



Joined: 12 Mar 2011
Posts: 1652

PostPosted: Thu Feb 16, 2017 1:51 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

There is nothing to prepare you for working in a Thai school. Within a few days of being on the job, the depression sets in and you have to adjust to the conditions and that's that, unless you're a backpacker with a hooker girlfriend, in which case nothing will depress you about Thai schools.

500 US dollars is two weeks worth of wages at a Thai school, for those that have a college degree. That's a lot of money. I would look elsewhere. Most employment agencies provide employment for free; the schools pay the agency.

Some people actually don't get overly depressed, they focus their good intentions on the few Thai students that are salvageable, made up of mostly girls and some boys here and there. A lot of just how depressed you will be, or for that matter if you get depressed at all, depends on how happy you are to be in Thailand, and how that offsets all the dregs found in the Thai educational system.
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