coulson

Sorry but again I have to disagree with you, for a 1st World country, Taxis in Singapore are cheap.

The OP journey from the airport will be about s$25, it would be 4 times that for the 15 miles from Manchester Airport to my house & probably 8 times that if dealing with London cabbies.

Ok comparing to the UK, taxis are cheap.........I'm just doing a quick calculation, seems the SGD is down and the last time I took a cad from Changi (February) was 35 SGD, no bags, going to Tanjong Pagar. Thats about 875 baht! I've almost spent as much on occasion from Don Mueng, so take it back.

I can't seem to edit the original post I made so I'll continue to take a bashing about the SG taxi drivers. Lovely folk most of the time, always a story to boot.

Getting from Changi to Tanglin (Orchard) where the embassy is may be tricky on the MRT as there would be two changeovers, your best option is a cab, I havent been in morning traffic in SG for a while but around 10am should be ok. Expect to be robbed by the taxi driver, even though the meter IS running!

That's an expensive visa run!

Huh? Have lived in Singapore for 15 years and no idea what you're talking about. Frequency-wise, they're the most honest cabbies I've come across in my travels. Yeah, there's the occasional rip-off, but it's very rare - the government goes hard on any driver caught doing funny business, and all the taxi companies are government linked. The Singapore government is also very sensitive about it's image re efficiency and honesty. So no, the OP will not get 'robbed' in any sense of the term.

Apologies. I didn't mean the taxi driver would literally rob. Just a reference to it being expensive there even by meter.

Nice to see some posters here get excited and jump in defence of singaporeans. A thai taxi driver however has a long way to go before that happens.

Getting from Changi to Tanglin (Orchard) where the embassy is may be tricky on the MRT as there would be two changeovers, your best option is a cab, I havent been in morning traffic in SG for a while but around 10am should be ok. Expect to be robbed by the taxi driver, even though the meter IS running!

That's an expensive visa run!

I never made it to Koh Kud, it was on my hit list this year, unfortunately it's very hard to get to as you need to first get to Koh Chang by ferry, then do another trip, it was p1ssing rain during my stint and spoiled the opportunity. Maybe there's a speedboat option or VIP service from one of the Hotels there.........but I have heard it is like going back 20 years, not much to do etc...

My favourite beach I have been to is Koh Mook/ Trang. Sivalai resort is perched right on the tip of a beautiful beach that points into the sea with 270 degree panoramic view. There are some caves on the island and its great for cycling around, would be good for a family.

However, the island is closed as far as I know June-July each year

Check some of the links you've already been furnished with, you'll find most of your answers.

The J1 has some small print, unless it's changed in 10 years.......I had to sign a waiver on application confirming I would not extend my stay further. Im not sure if similar applies to a Thai citizen.

Can't see eye to eye with this, I have never had to do a visa run that I considered painful, if anything it doubles up as a sanity check with a couple days away from LoS, I never stayed longer than 60 days at a time........

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/828736-six-former-pad-leaders-jailed-two-years-for-occupying-government-house/

Googling American embassy Bangkok would have been a good start

Depending how many stamps you will need before returning to the USA one page may be enough to cover your visa run.

How did you apply for your new passport without surrendering your existing passport?

Have a look here. It is all explained in fairly simple language ,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

https://www.gov.uk/overseas-passports/y/thailand/renewing_new/adult

Fair enough, hadn't seen your post, also was not aware different rules applied to UK citizens.

How did you apply for your new passport without surrendering your existing passport?

My teelak says tee ban dai ka, tee beach mai loo ah...

To answer properly, I don't believe if she knew whether it was permitted or not anyway.

I have rarely seen fires on accessible beaches, especially not on densely populated ones even at those times of year, only fires I've seen in the open are related to Agricultural activities

My teelak says tee ban dai ka, tee beach mai loo ah...

Thanks, run to the border it is!

Thanks, apologies for the lack of info.

Im currently on a 90 day single entry ED visa and it is my first time in Thailand this year. My visa runs out soon and I wanted to know if I can just go to a border on the expiry date and re-enter with an additional 15 days of permitted stay (I NO LONGER NEED THE ED VISA), but I think a trip to immigration may be the way to go.

Is it possible to get the 15 day tourist extension at any border if currently on a 90-day ED visa?

I live in Ireland and I am interested in doing a TEFL course (Teaching English as a Foreign Language). I can do the course either in Bangkok or Phuket. The cost of the course is 1400USD and lasts for 4 to 6 weeks. I was just enquiring if anyone has completed one of these courses and if so what are the chances in securing a teaching job in Thailand. Any information re: this subject would be most helpful.

Hi, thought I'd throw in my two cents worth.

I would strongly advise you do the TEFL in Phuket, it would be a more enjoyable experience, however be cautious as to which outfit you go through.

Before paying any deposit etc, ask for a written email confirmation that, if you are doing a 120 hour TEFL course, you will in fact receive a '120 hour TEFL certificate MOE approved and Internationally recognized'

Also be aware that doing a TEFL in thailand requires you to do a 20 hour thai culture course and this is not necessary if you intend to eventually move to another Country to teach so be sure these additional hours are extra-over the 120.

Best of luck

I had a friend in Australia who had a similar requirement before he became a site supervisor for the re-furbishment of Sydney International airport. It does not matter what your visa status is, if you stay in any Country for a specified amount of time as a tourist or otherwise, you'll need clearance.

He secured all required documentation through the thai consulate in Sydney at the time of application for clearance, with a bit of a headache!

My experiences job searching in Asian Countries and on other forums is that non-native speakers are discriminated against generally. I cannot speak for Thailand specifically.

However, if somebody is fluent enough to understand and explain a gerund, you would think that there should be no reaosn why they should not in fact be more qualified to teach English as a bi-lingual person.

Well the school has offered me the position, as a volunteer, obviously someone along the way realized the opportunity to exploit the desires of a potential job candidate to work in a government high school. I was offered a work permit to work in a resort and do the volunteering on the side, which I discovered would actually be shady anyway so I declined the offer to be a puppet constantly looking over my shoulder.

On the outset, it also transpired that applying for the teachers cert a second time around in such a short time, with a 'life' degree which seemed to appear out of nowhere, would have been too fishy anyway and most likely rejected in any case so if anybody is considering this option at least it should be included in the initial application where it may pass their criteria with the correct supporting documentation and help from the school. ( Having said that, Im not neccessarily advising anyone to pay for one of these degree's )

Thanks to all who offered advice, I think this board is very useful and look forward to contributing more in the future on the basis of what I experience in the coming months.

This is just the sort of response I'm after, the would you or would you not factor, much appreciated Rionoir.

I don't necessarily want any job that is currently unfilled, I just really want THIS job, and they really want me working there too. Im just trying hard not to be led down dark paths or indeed be misled by 'life' degrees and their supposed accreditations, let it be clear that I no way accept the legitimacy of these documents in the real world and their supposed assertions that you should only pay for this piece of paper, as far as Im concerned I would never even consider putting it on my professional resume if I were going to return to my old line of work.

I'm just posing the question - should I neglect the opportunity to pay for this piece of paper for the job I want which nobody else is fishing for, and does anyone know of any instances where precisely 'this' type of document has led them to trouble in Thailand?

I'm not denouncing your claims Rionoir, but it's been brought to my attention that within certain parameters, in this case, the 'life' degree paperwork is ligitimate 'enough' to get over that final hurdle.....unless someone can tell me otherwise?

I really hope this thread doesn't die, I would like to share what information I learn as it unfolds, or maybe Im sharing too much in an open forum!?

Yes of course, I agree. But that isnt the point, Im not trying to get a phd, or a masters, I want a piece of paper that will permit me legally to do a job I am more than capable of doing and that is currently left unfilled.

And believe me having discussed options with potential employers, this online 'life' degree is by far the least shady compared to other suggested options which have been put forward to me

The questions isnt about whether or not it is an acceptable accredited body, but rather is it acceptable by the ministry of Education in this instance, as a compounded degree on the basis of other legit qualifications I already posses and moreover does anybody know of any instance where it has been considered a 'fake', thats the real worry. Im not interested in buying something which may later be deemed to be bought on the Khao Sarn or anything like that, I want to get this job legit and just get on with it.

Many thanks for all the comments.

I will refer to the other thread, dont mean to cause clutter.

Yeah in this instance the accreditation is backed up by a series of documents which are not be deemed to be bogus because they are effectively just compounding all of my other quali's/ certs which I have documented evidence of. Again, only in this instance Im wondering is it ok, but as you suggested AjarnChan, I in no way am suggesting that I want to slip in behind the red tape and certainly dont mean to suggest that one can just buy their way into a job when there may be other equally suitable candidates, but the job remains unfilled by a suitable candidate.

Certainly dont want to rustle any feathers as I am an educated person with 5 years post high school full time study in building surveying and Architectural Technology, and at the time of studying it wasnt even possible for me to get a degree in my field! Yet with all of this Im not permitted to teach a maths class which I could do with my eyes closed?

Again, appreciate the comments, the more you learn about Thailand, the less you seem to know!

Hi,

New to the board and been browsing many similar topics but wanted to post a specific query about teh requirements of the Thai Ministry when requested to issue a teachers certificate.

I have been approached about a job and having just completed the 120 TEFL and included thai culture, the Ministry has rejected a waiver applied by for the school on the basis of my educational background - 2 weeks after I have signed the job contract.

I have no Bachelors degree, although I have spent a total of 5 years in University post high school and posess a 2 year certificate and a 3 year higher diploma.

Ive read online about these so called 'life' degrees which evaluate you on your education history and work/ life experiences, and for a fee will furnish you with a degree on the basis of your combined credentials along with the accreditation details and other supporting documents.

I am wondering if anybody is in or has been in a similar situation and if this type of degree is acceptable under the circumstances. I appreciate that such degrees could not be acceptable in their respective fields or even at all in Western Countries but does the piece of paper hold any weight in this situation? It seems to be just red tape.

I have the full support of the school administration to persevere and continue to try and find a way around this, all the while, the job remains unfilled in an area where there is a shortage of native english speaking/ qualified teachers.

Any comments/ suggestions greatly appreciated.