Job Discussion Forums

[Andy123]

Patterflipper your post is spot on. Can't add anything to it.

Good luck to the people that come here. The many, many people I know who have lived here, married and so on have all left.

Why?

[haller_79]

[plumpy nut]

If you must teach in Thailand you should hit Oriental English or Apec. I think they are the same. I've gotten pretty fast and decent treatment from them along with an acceptable job. But you have to come during the peak hiring seasons or risk having to stay untill the positions open up.

[exu156]

[MrWright]

I am wondering about the intl school gig. Some have mentioned the top-tier intl schools as a good paying option. I am a certified teacher in the states, but honestly don't think I have what it takes to survive/suceed at those schools. I hear it can be brutal and only the best teachers can cut it. I am a pretty good teacher, but not that high-speed, so was wondering what life was like in a more middle-tier intl school. I know the pay is lower, obviously, but in general how low? And what is the quality of life like? Any thoughts?

[tttompatz]

[stumptowny]

bleakness! damn.. thank you all for your frankness..

I am the goon making the bank in Japan but rather miserable, surrounded by tokyo robots and coldness... in personalities and now the approaching winter. day dreaming of the move and lifestyle of thailand. have vacationed there for 3 months and after reading your posts, I truly believe it is not the same after teaching there.. so thanks.

problem with japan is they kill you on the flights and as with everything in japan, the populace does the same thing, including vacationing at the same time. companies follow suit accordingly... so the week or two you have off is essentially negated by the steep airfare for such a short trip, making it a questionable endeavor. even witha cheap flight a week or two is not the thai fix needed to offset tokyo zombie land..

for those of us in korea or japan... there has got to be a middle ground strategy to get more play time in thailand and still live/work in a high paying country. looking at a month to 3 month stay... Something in the lines of getting a multi entry thai visa, quitting your job, going over to thailand, then coming back to korea or japan to resume the cash cow.

do any of you do this approach or have done it? seems the perfect scenario and even sweeter if you could return to the same job.. perhaps not quitting but taking leave and being forward and honest about the need for a long break and your desire to return.. my company is chill and they respond well to honesty but this is a huge ask. its risky and they would not guarantee your spot nor should they..

any other approaches for this middle ground strategy?

Thanks for all your thoughts..

[JezSand]

I have read through all the posts and am just as confused (if not more) than when I first started. So the general consensus is that Thai isn't a good place to go teach in? I really need some constructive feedback. Thanks! Jez

[tttompatz]

[david_hawk]

thanks for all of the information.

[plumpy nut]

Actually for all those individuals thinking of going to Thailand to work. You are getting replies from the experienced teachers that go abroad to do work, like myself and don't see anything special about Thailand because of all the experience overseas. For somebody that is new to Thailand, teaching in Thailand may be a good experience. The wages are sufficient to live off of, and experience Bangkok or the rest of Thailand, although you don't make too much above just enough to live and buy some nice food and see a few things here and there. So for somebody who is new to SE Asia, the answer is it might be worth teaching here. You can experience Bangkok and Chiang Mai and make some money at the same time and not deplete your savings on a vacation.

When you come you need to make sure that you have sufficient money to sustain yourself without money from a job always coming in. The reason for this is, Thais are superficial people and a lot of schools though not all schools care for superficial aspects of the person and not whether or not you can teach. If you get fired from a teaching job (a lot of teachers tend to last anywhere from 2 weeks to 2 months on thier first job) another teaching job will eventually come up for you, but it may take a little time. You might have to use a different recruiter or wait for a job advertisement to decide to hire you.

It's best that you obtain a 120 hour TEFL certificate from a place in Bangkok that is reputable and understands what teaching in Thailand is like. In a few weeks is the time to arrive for a job in Bangkok or Central Thailand. This is because the water is subsiding and many schools are going to reopen without thier old english teachers (many have run out of money and fled to other countries). Another thing is the students are going to be going to school overtime. So there is probably going to be a strong demand for teachers in Thailand.

If you come, come with ample money!

[oldfatfarang]

[boondoggle]

I've taught for years in Thailand and 4 other countries so I thought i'd reply to this and give you a realistic expectation of working there and why so many expats complain about it.

First off Thailand's education system is complete shit. From the top down it's run by incompetent bureaucrat cronies who aren't really qualified to run any kind of ministry. Second the middle and low-tier schools have been thoroughly privatized by "for profit" ventures who offer substandard education and are basically diploma mills. These are allowed to operate because they have deep pockets.

The government schools are poorly funded and managed by incompetent administrators and overworked teachers. It's not unusual to see 45-60 kids in one classroom. In Bangkok I think they mandated lower classroom sizes but everywhere else it's like this.

Thai teachers are usually recruited from the applicant pool who didn't know what else to do with their education and defaulted towards teaching. Most Thai teachers did NOT want to be teachers to begin with. So you end up with a lot of teachers who aren't motivated, have bad attitudes, and are poorly trained. Thai staff can also be extremely traditionalist/conservative in their views. They tend to dislike farang staff and see no use for them especially when the salary and working hour disparity is brought up to management. Most of the friction between Thai and foreign staff is usually over base envy or other childishness.

Most Thai schools are like this. Having worked at over 6 schools (government and private) they were all very similar. Thai curriculum is usually very traditionalist with a heavy emphasis on religious/cultural studies, mechanical rote learning and useless busy work type activities.

You may have students that are great and enthusiastic when they are younger but by the time they get to college they have been thoroughly broken down by Thai academic and cultural indoctrination. The best and brightest in Thailand usually go abroad or are poached off by Singapore or other developed asian nations who sponsor them with scholarships/residency. The kids from wealthy families run the whole show generation after generation. Corruption and nepotism is #1 in Thailand.

That's the reality. This situation is irreversible and I still have some friends who teach in Thailand who all tell me it's actually been getting worse.

[boondoggle]

edit: sorry, repeat.

[plumpy nut]