Job Discussion Forums

Kirkpatrick · Joined: 27 Feb 2008 Posts: 205 Location: China

Sounds good to me!!!! My brother is married to a Thai gal.. So I have family in the area... This China shit is getting old really fast... What kind of pay should I expect??? Sadly don't think I can get there anytime before mid July.. I am in debt up to my neck over here.. Also, what do you know about border crossings from China.. I know I can get a visa in Kunming... Do buses or trains run from the border to the capital??What about coming through Nam??? pm me please I would like to stay in touch and maybe have a beer when I arrive..

Mattyj1984 · Joined: 11 Dec 2008 Posts: 3 Location: Sydney, Australia

Hey every1,

Cheers to friendoken for some excellent info; I can't wait to be in Laos this time next year.

I just had a quick question, if any1 had some info it'd be great:

when are the school holidays usually? i ask because i'm planning to teach in Laos for at least a year, but i'm planning to be in south africa in june/july for the 2010 world cup.

RiverMystic · Joined: 13 Jan 2009 Posts: 1986

I've been hearing some pretty good things about Laos, and this thread seems to reinforce what I've heard. My situation is a little bit unsual though. I am negotiating a book contract, and if it comes through am looking for somewhere to live for 3-6 months to finish writing it up. Laos appeals because it is friendly, relaxed, and cheap.

My wife may divorce me for doing this, but that's another story. Laughing

For me the problem will be getting a visa. I suppose I'll have to do visa runs every month. The other option is to find a job with relatively few work hours, and get a business visa. I actually have the Dip. ed, many years of experience and a PhD to boot, so I should be able to find decent work if I go down that line. Are the universities there worth the effort? I know from experience that in a lot of coutries in Asia they can be rather poor places to work.

I am actually a qualified teacher and earning a ridiculous amount of money (in Oz exchange rate terms) in my current job, but the working environment is too draining and (quite frankly) depressing, so if I get the book contract, I will quit, and start a new 'career'.

friendoken · Joined: 20 Jan 2008 Posts: 41

No problem at all finding a job. M-F 3hrs a night, 5-8pm, $10hr are all over the place. That would give you all day to write, which could likely suit you quite well. There are plenty of language academies. You could live on that much money, if you have a little on the side, and it sounds like you probably do, life will be good.

Kirkpatrick · Joined: 27 Feb 2008 Posts: 205 Location: China

Yo, to all brothers and sisters,
Well I am finally out of China. What a hell hole.. Anyways, from the looks of it I will be in Laos around the 15th of August, 2009. I would like to make some friends so that my transition will be smooth.. Please feel free to PM me. I am really looking forward to getting over there. burned out on the rest of Asia.. However, looking back I enjoyed Eastern Thailand greatly and figure that Laos should be similar..

nomad22 · Joined: 14 May 2007 Posts: 71 Location: Auckland, NZ

laos isnt similar, it's better... oh yeah, a great little country!

Regis · Joined: 25 Aug 2005 Posts: 6

Hi,

Maybe someone in Laos can help me. I understand all apartment rentals need to be paid one (1) year in advance. That can be very difficult for an English teacher just landing in country.

Any help or ideas will be appreciated.

nomad22 · Joined: 14 May 2007 Posts: 71 Location: Auckland, NZ

that's bullshit. it will depend on your landlord, usually monthly.

Regis · Joined: 25 Aug 2005 Posts: 6

Ahhh...that is good news. I will be arriving in July or August from China to begin a job search. Any other advice will greatly be appreciated.

nomad22 · Joined: 14 May 2007 Posts: 71 Location: Auckland, NZ

a good time to arrive, esp. late july. there are many schools. the school year starts in early september. youll find a job within a few weeks, and should have enough to live reasonably shortly after. the longer you stay the better off youll be.

logansrun · Joined: 06 Nov 2008 Posts: 15 Location: Newmarket Canada

Heyall ,

So a little update about myself... well it looks like im going to be flying down to Laos this early April! Is it really true that you can get teaching jobs there all year round? I certainly hope so!

Friendoken, can you please list all the schools you know on here so that we can go knock on their doors? Would be much appreciated!

nomad22 · Joined: 14 May 2007 Posts: 71 Location: Auckland, NZ

try acl (phaongsavan english) first up, they hire many teachers and you can choose your kind of contract. great school to work at. i loved it there and still dream of going back.

logansrun · Joined: 06 Nov 2008 Posts: 15 Location: Newmarket Canada

^ do you know their exact location? and is it in Vientiane? thanks again!

nomad22 · Joined: 14 May 2007 Posts: 71 Location: Auckland, NZ

i forget the name of the road, but it's just a 10 min walk from the centre of downtown. it's on the luang prabang road i think. yes in vientiane. ask around, you wont have any probs finding it. just up the road from the xayoh cafe.

friendoken · Joined: 20 Jan 2008 Posts: 41

Apologies, haven't been back for awhile. I think you should be able to get a job pretty much at any time.

21st Century School of English (Alastair Maitland)
ACL - previously mentioned
Gold Institute
Glory School
LOGOS Academy (Vamshi Krishna)
There's a new school whose name escapes me but it is very close to Hospital 103
Panyathip Bilingual School (I teach there as well as LOGOS)
Kettisak School
Sengdara Business School (close to ACL)

There are more. All the above are in Vientiane and easy to get to. Cut and paste www.occlao.com into the address bar at the top. It is my and Vamshi's company. We can try to help. We ain't big enough to rate a top google page yet!

Good luck