Job Discussion Forums

[dialogal]

Hello all--

After reading what seems like thousands of posts, I can't seem to make heads or tails of my prospects in Thailand (or elsewhere for that matter).

I have decided to pursue ESL teaching as a long-term career move... Currently I have a BA, no experience, and no credential...

I intend to pursue a CELTA as my first step, and am looking to get as good a job as possible with the CELTA and no experience...

With regard to salary, I have seen many posts that say it is best to just arrive in Thailand and look for work locally...

And I have seen many posts which say 30-35 is the range I could expect with a CELTA and no experience...

But, I have seen jobs posted for positions paying 40k requiring degree, CELTA, with experience preferred but not required...

Also, I have read many places that 40,000 is barely sufficient to live reasonably happily in BKK... If this is true, what is the realistic viability of living and teaching in BKK on 35,000?? My most recent source is an article on the cost of living in BKK found on ajarn.com...

As someone who is just starting out, but has decided after much careful consideration, on pursuing this long-term, I am still at a loss for the best first move...

It seems logical to me to pursue CELTA training in the country I would seek work, and this appears to mean IH or ECC...

Assuming for a moment that this post is being written after having successfully completed my CELTA, and I am writing from an apartment somewhere in or around BKK...

What salary can I reasonably expect to find for a job as a recent CELTA grad??

Can I expect to be offered a contract with a work permit and return flight?

If I could only expect a salary in range with what IH and ECC offer, why wouldn't I just do my training and 1st year with one outfit and thus lock myself into a guaranteed job and bonus, etc before I take the great expense of a flight to Asia in the first place?

For context, I am also considering Ecuador and Colombia as a first move, which has the benefit of being much closer to my home (NYC)...

The downside of Latin America in my mind is the (what seems to be) much greater difficulty procuring a work visa...

**********

Long story short, I want to start down this new path, but am not in a position to make a giant blunder right from the start... I have a small amount of savings which would be sufficient for getting settled up front, but it is not much more than that, and I don't want to carelessly roll the dice...

I'm hoping that someone will take pity on a poor honest soul and offer some 1 on 1 communication (PM or Email) with me so that I may be able to pick your brain a little 'in series'... I say this as a single post is only a snapshot, and I doubt a single response, however informed and well-meaning, can answer my question in full...

Thanks for any and all help... Any ancillary info or advise will also be appreciated...

[saroq]

On 35,000 you can live happily enough but don't expect a high standard of living or any savings.

If you're serious about a long term career do yourself a favor and get a real teaching qualification from a university so that you can work in the international schools. You'll make more money, be able to teach in any country and avoid ending up straded in a foreign country making rubbish money and no skills that enable you to return home to a real life when you wake up and realize that the adventure has become a grind.

[dialogal]

Thanks for the advice on the teaching certificate... I would like to pursue a MA in TESOL or Applied Linguistics and teach ESL here in NYC in the public school system...

However, my undergraduate GPA was quite a bit below the 3.0 required by most graduate programs...

I recently applied for the NYC Teaching Fellows program and was invited to come to one of their interview events... Ultimately, I did not make the cut...

It was a bit disappointing to get no feedback after a 6 hour interview process as I can only guess about which area or areas where I was unsatisfactory...

Given the poor economy in NYC right now, and the combined effect of a subsequent slowdown in teacher retirement and increase in Fellowship applications, my best guess is that my sub-par grades held me back...

So with an eye toward reapplying for the Fellowship or applying for a graduate program down the road, I am thinking that a couple of years of experience working as an ESL teacher can only help my prospects...

[PattyFlipper]