Questions About Qualifications

[Ijustwannateach]

^Good point- he is probably qualified enough on paper for the "bestest most specialist" kinds of places, but it's a sad fact (for better or worse) that most of those schools will go to great lengths NOT to hire from within Thailand, no matter how good your qualifications are. Furthermore, they aren't always looking for teachers in any particular subject- so, I wouldn't bank on these kinds of jobs, even with Sawatdee7's qualifications, until I'd made some significant connections in the town of his choice.

"Steven"

[insideleft]

hello, i am just about to finish a celta tefl course in london...my plan is to remain in london to save a few more lovely british pounds and go to thailand in early 2006...

i have a bachelor degree in social work and a master's degree in ethics and legal studies...in addition now, i will have my celta paperwork...

i do not have any experience in teaching English as a second language, although i may have it before i go to thailand...

as stated, i was planning on arriving at the end of january...is there work available in bkk at this time? When do employers begin interviewing, and hiring?

even though my two degrees are unrelated to tefl, will they influence the kind of jobs, and salaries i can reasonabley apply for?

My master's degree was aquired with distinction, is there much work available to do research, or consultancy in areas such as aged care, drug and alcohol, hiv/aids, mental health as i have social work experience in those areas...

i have experience, from social work, in adult education, but in relation to behavioural/relationship dynamics...is this relevant to tefl?

I understand that the job must come first and an apartment second...any suggestions of cheap, reasonable conditioned accommodation until a job is aquired?

edward der grosse

[Ijustwannateach]

There is a small but growing niche for English-speaking health experts, including psychologists, health teachers, career counsellors, curriculum consultants, etc., etc. in Bangkok. The salaries (as usual) are pretty small compared to back home, but usually better than the 30K TEFL gig- more towards 50K+. If you could round this off with an actual education degree, I'd be tempted to say you were perfectly positioned for a school counsellor's job in one of the BIG BIG International Schools here... you might want to contact them anyway.

In terms of TEFL, you're way overqualified (or will be once you get the TEFL cert.), but that doesn't improve your salary prospects very much- it just increases the chance that you'll get the highest-paying jobs (40-45K typically) to nearly 100%. If you think you could swing English language arts teaching (literature, composition, grammar) then you could get into the 50-60K semi-international school jobs.

Outside of school-related jobs, not much I can tell you- post over on the Jobs forum for more general information...

Good luck!

"Steven"

[hansoman]

Hi everyone, my first post here so many apologies if it has been covered a million times before- there are way too many threads on this forum to look at them all!!

I get the impression that just because I have a UK bachelor's degree I will be able to get some sort of teaching English job in Thailand, even without a TEFL certificate, even if not one of the higher paid ones. My question is, how easy is it to do the job? I am a native English speaker and could chat away to Thai students for hours in English but that is a long way from teaching the subject. Would I be a nervous wreck everyday not knowing what I was doing as far as actually teaching the subject is concerned, or have I got it wrong and that I just wouldn't get a job in the first place?

My degree is as a dentist, which is a protected job in Thailand and therefore out of consideration, but I would want to get away from that anyway.

Thanks in advance!

[Ijustwannateach]

If you're asking questions like these, you probably should take some sort of TEFL course. I would presume as a reasonably educated person (and from your post) that you are well-spoken and articulate, which are about 25% of the battle for being a good TEFL teacher- the other parts, I'd say, are:

25% Classroom Management Skills

25% Repetoire of Enjoyable, Easy Age-appropriate Activities

25% Being Able To Tolerate The Thai Office BS

You really *should* take a look at the other threads; many of them address your concerns, and this one is really for questions about qualifications.

"Steven"

[hansoman]

Thanks for the reply. Sounds like I should hunt out a TEFL course.

In the meantime are there any other threads in particular that you could suggest that I read? There must be hundreds of innappropriate ones to trawl through!

[Ijustwannateach]

That's true! Sadly, at the moment, while we have a number of interesting teaching-related threads on the front page, not one of them addresses any of the four skill areas I mention for TEFL teaching. We do have a number in the past, however.

For being "well-spoken and articulate," we don't have that many threads (though we do kinda abuse the newbies sometimes when they appear barely literate). If you stick around you'll see what I mean sooner or later.

For the "classroom repertoire" side of things, we have a few threads (though you might want to look at more specifically TEFL-orietned websites for more of this kind of thing):

"How Do You Learn To Teach"

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=34434

"A Few Helpful Links"

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=34425

"Becoming a Teacher"

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=24447

"Time Spent Teaching Grammar?"

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=24328

"Games Games Games"

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=22909

"Articles- When and How to Teach?"

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=18265

"Kindergarten Games"

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=17322

"Grammar Question [count./uncount.]"

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=16847

"Icebreakers"

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=15689

"Activity Games"

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=15263

"'What Use Is This?'"

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=15276

For the "Classroom Management" skills we have a few threads, including:

"How Much Thai Language Do You Need (to do TEFL)?"

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=37247

"Teaching In a Government School"

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=35326

"Is It Possible To Teach 50 Students To Speak?"

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=31684

"Corporal Punishment"

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=19937

"Class Rules and Order [the Riot Act]"

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=16149

"Classroom Management"

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=15691

"How To Remember Student Names"

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=15780

"Teaching, Basic Points"

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=15421

Not to blow my own horn, but I've written a number of threads on surviving Thai management BS (and a few other people have, too! ) They are:

"Teaching Job Interview Checklist"

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=16941

"School Contract - Legal Information Please"

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=34802

"Acceptable Or Normal Workload?"

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=34483

"How To Keep a TEFL Job"

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=17049

"What I Would Tell My Administration (If I Could)"

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=17206

"Red Tape For Teachers"

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=16943

"Does A Contract Mean Anything?"

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=29425

"Do You Have a Teaching License and Work Permit?"

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=28280

"Teaching License, What Documents Do I Need to Provide"

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=25118

The listed threads present what I believe is the best of this room of the forum on the four topics I mentioned above. A great majority of the other threads fit into the categories:

1. Questions about Qualifications (which is why I tried to get people to post in this section, 'cause these threads die out fast and kill other threads in the process!)

2. Questions or comments about schools or announcements of positions

3. TEFL certification threads; which, I'm sorry to say, have a lot of hearsay and misinformation; lots of trolls with axes to grind on the topic. Best to investigate these independently by contacting the individual companies.

4. "Dodgy" threads by sincere individuals (some of the time, anyway) who obsess about working with less than sterling qualifications, visa, nationalities, or other little things.

"Steven"

P.S. What a trip down memory lane! I've even posted some of the Harry Palmer teaching threads, one from Nemesis, and one thread which was started by HP but continued as a heated debate between me and my very own personal forum troll (you know who!) Fun to look at all these again!

[hansoman]

Great thanks!

That lot should keep me occupied for a while!

[andyst]

Hi, I'm a graduate in Chemical Engineering, I've got a years experience of teaching English in South Korea, but no TEFL. I've thought that my degree qualification would probably make it easier for me to teach Science or Maths, but so far have been unable to find any jobs like that on the net. Are these the type of jobs I should be looking to get when I arrive in Thailand or on the 'net? Anybody have any ideas about where to look or what type of salary I should be requesting? Thanks.

[Ijustwannateach]

From another thread recently started:

lets presume that I have undergraduate degrees in engineering and history and a teaching qualification and that I have a fair grasp of Thai language. Lets also presume that I have no teaching experience (other than that associated with TOEFL training) and am pushing 60 and am looking for my first teaching job.

What are my prospects...good, average, bad???

If you mean TEFL qualification, then ditto what Ken said. However, if you had a real TEACHING qualification (still valid license from another country, with your qualifying year/internship/practicum/whatever they call it in your area) you'd be set here- eligible for teaching at just about any level of school. But since you say you have no actual classroom experience, I'd guess you never finished that if that's the kind of qual you meant, right?

"Steven"

[Ijustwannateach]

Hi, I'm a graduate in Chemical Engineering, I've got a years experience of teaching English in South Korea, but no TEFL. I've thought that my degree qualification would probably make it easier for me to teach Science or Maths, but so far have been unable to find any jobs like that on the net. Are these the type of jobs I should be looking to get when I arrive in Thailand or on the 'net? Anybody have any ideas about where to look or what type of salary I should be requesting? Thanks.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

A lot of the better schools fill most of their math/science EP jobs by word of mouth, because there aren't that many of them and they want good candidates. This is one reason why it might actually be a better strategy to do TEFL for a year or so here BEFORE going for the more serious jobs- just so you can get the right connections.

Any school that's still advertising for science or maths guys (especially with your kind of qualifications) and offering under 50K doesn't know what it's doing, and I can almost guarantee you're not going to want to stay there very long.

This is also not exactly prime hiring time for this part of the year, yet- try the end of September when people have given notice at their schools or been fired, and the beginning of October when people haven't returned from their break.

Good luck!

"Steven"

[andyst]

Thanks for the feedback. I'm not actually going to be in Thailand early November anyway. My current plan is to take some sort of TEFL qual and as you've suggested, stick with the English teaching for a while and wait until the other jobs come up. Thanks again.

[Ijustwannateach]

Mayacan posted:

Hi,

I'm been reading a little bit from the different posts here on this site. Can I get a clear description of the different types schools and levels in Thailand for foreign teachers.

I've read about government, private, university, and international schools.In terms of quality, how do they differ? In terms of qualifications, how do they differ? .....and in terms of pay scale, how do they differ? Are there any other types of schools that I'm leaving out?

I understand that to teach at the university level, one must need a master degree. I'm an experience high schoo teacherl in California, been teaching for 14 years (Social Sciences), have a teaching credential, and I also have been a high school varsity basketball coach for 20 years. I taught English conversation in Korea back in the 90's too, so I have experience teaching in a foreign country as well.

With my qualifications, where can I maximize my expereince with pay? Is it possible to at least make 60,000 to 70,000 baht a month with my qualifications? I've read that it might be possible to teach english courses as well as subjects in my field (World History, Sociology, U.S. History, Government). Would it be possible to also coach basketball in Thailand too? Does Thailand have an organized high school or university level basketball program?...and finally, w at what types of schools would I be able to teach these subjects?

I would appreciate any information in regard to my many questions, thank you.

Mayacan from Los Angeles

With your qualifications you should be looking at real international school recruitment (which has its own processes- perhaps someone here on the board can point you to the U.S. office you'd need to contact). In those schools you should be looking at salaries twice what you're quoting, plus possible additions for experience.

If for some reason you are not considered qualified for the international school circuit, or your particular field has no vacancies at the moment and you don't want to wait, you'd still be looking at the top salaries for the middle-tier schools, which are in the ballpark you're talking about- however, recruiting is done mainly locally, and you'd need connections. You might have to flounder around for a year or so here and network before you found the right level for you.

There *are* farang PE teachers here- and basketball is popular. Don't know about interschool competition.

"Steven"

[steveoh]

teaching english its not about thais learning its to show the mother and father that their little jonny is being taught by a westerner so they must be learning good english but this is thailand and you find out yourself dont get stressed

[Ijustwannateach]

Damian 1981 posted:

have been teaching in the UK now for three years. I have a degree in Chemistry and also a teaching qualification called a (Postgraduate certificate in Education) PGCE. I have qualified teacher status (QTS) and am a associate member of the royal society of Chemistry.

I want to teach in a different culture and not the ungrateful children who grace my classroom now and then.

What is next? I don't have a TEFL qualification but I could teach English. I would prefer however to teach my subject. I currently teach up to A level (up to 18years which is equivalent to 1st year undergrad in USA)

Many thanks for your help

Damian 

I would assume any school in Thailand would be happy to have you, at least in theory (and if they had a chemistry opening).

You'd basically have two choices:

1. Look for positions at "real" international schools here from abroad, and wait for a suitable opening- this option gives you the best deal but may take some time, depending on who needs chem. teachers

2. Come here and get what work you can (TEFL or otherwise) until you make enough connections to get into one of the few decent Thai schools as a chemistry teacher

Have a look at all of this thread to get a better idea.

"Steven"

[damian1981]

Damian 1981 posted:

have been teaching in the UK now for three years. I have a degree in Chemistry and also a teaching qualification called a (Postgraduate certificate in Education) PGCE. I have qualified teacher status (QTS) and am a associate member of the royal society of Chemistry.

I want to teach in a different culture and not the ungrateful children who grace my classroom now and then.

What is next? I don't have a TEFL qualification but I could teach English. I would prefer however to teach my subject. I currently teach up to A level (up to 18years which is equivalent to 1st year undergrad in USA)

Many thanks for your help

Damian 

I would assume any school in Thailand would be happy to have you, at least in theory (and if they had a chemistry opening).

You'd basically have two choices:

1. Look for positions at "real" international schools here from abroad, and wait for a suitable opening- this option gives you the best deal but may take some time, depending on who needs chem. teachers

2. Come here and get what work you can (TEFL or otherwise) until you make enough connections to get into one of the few decent Thai schools as a chemistry teacher

Have a look at all of this thread to get a better idea.

"Steven"

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

[scubaik]

Another question on degree subject, but with a small difference.

I’ve been working in Samui as a scuba instructor for the last two years, I have sent up my own company and have work permit. I would like to attend a TELF course and am keen on working in Hatyai and Songkhla area despite the problems in that region.

The downside is that I do not have a degree; my highest qualification was a UK HND in computer science which is not a lot of good in this situation.

Will having my own company / work permit + TELF help me find work without a degree in my back pocket?

Thanks in advance for any help,

Ian.

[m155g0ld]

Hi,

My boyfriend and I are moving to Bangkok on the 19th October this year and though we have our own business which we will be running from there, I would also like to get a teaching job. I have a degree and some EFL teaching experience in the UK but no TEFL qualification. Would there be any opportunities to teach children, rather than university students, either conversational english or something more related to my degree and experience; art, drama, music, film?

I'm not too concerned about salary as it will be mostly for beer/food money. I love teaching and have taught in primary schools in the UK and would love to get to know Thailand from this perspective.

Any advice very much appreciated!

Thanks! x

[Belfastboy]

Hi ...i have a few questions that i hope u guys can help with....

I Have a BA(Hons) in graphic design and have 5 years experience working as a Graphic Designer in the BBC as a broadcast designer ie..titles, news graphics, sport graphics etc...

i would love to teach graphic design in this field.

1. Would i need a TEFL? or some kind of teacher training?

2. Are there any english speaking art colleges in Bangkok?

3. What would the salary be monthly?

i have contacted raffles design institute they seemed interested due to my experience...they stated that they preferred teaching qualification but it wasnt essential...

does anyone have any feedback about raffles on silom road??

any help at all appreciated...

[Ijustwannateach]

Another question on degree subject, but with a small difference.

I’ve been working in Samui as a scuba instructor for the last two years, I have sent up my own company and have work permit. I would like to attend a TELF course and am keen on working in Hatyai and Songkhla area despite the problems in that region.

The downside is that I do not have a degree; my highest qualification was a UK HND in computer science which is not a lot of good in this situation.

Will having my own company / work permit + TELF help me find work without a degree in my back pocket?

Thanks in advance for any help,

Ian.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Usually referred to hereabouts as TEFL, but TELF is cute, too!

What's a HND? There are some computer science opportunities around, if you know a bit of what you're doing.

Technically, the work permit you have for your company does nothing for you legally as a teacher here because you need a separate work permit entry for each and every job. Practically speaking, you're unlikely to be investigated for a bit of teaching on the side, or even a full job- it's a risk you're running, though.

Not having a degree is not an impossible obstacle to having a job, even being fully legal with a work permit- but you probably will need to get that TEFL cert if you want that kind of job.

Good luck!

"Steven"

[Ijustwannateach]

Hi,

My boyfriend and I are moving to Bangkok on the 19th October this year and though we have our own business which we will be running from there, I would also like to get a teaching job. I have a degree and some EFL teaching experience in the UK but no TEFL qualification. Would there be any opportunities to teach children, rather than university students, either conversational english or something more related to my degree and experience; art, drama, music, film?

I'm not too concerned about salary as it will be mostly for beer/food money. I love teaching and have taught in primary schools in the UK and would love to get to know Thailand from this perspective.

Any advice very much appreciated!

Thanks! x 

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

If you have taught in primary schools in the UK with full certification, you could get any job you wanted here- if you were just a sub or something, you'd still look good to a lot of places.

There're lots of jobs teaching children- opportunity will not be your problem- and since you're happy with low pay, you won't be disappointed, 'cause that's what you'll get!

Other advice as above- it'd be worth looking into some short-term TEFL training, and you probably won't be legal so technically you'll be running a risk. Up to you, as they say!

"Steven"

[Ijustwannateach]

Hi ...i have a few questions that i hope u guys can help with....

I Have a BA(Hons) in graphic design and have 5 years experience working as a Graphic Designer in the BBC as a broadcast designer ie..titles, news graphics, sport graphics etc...

i would love to teach graphic design in this field.

1. Would i need a TEFL? or some kind of teacher training?

2. Are there any english speaking art colleges in Bangkok?

3. What would the salary be monthly?

i have contacted raffles design institute they seemed interested due to my experience...they stated that they preferred teaching qualification but it wasnt essential...

does anyone have any feedback about raffles on silom road??

any help at all appreciated...

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

To answer your questions in order:

1. If you have to ask, then the answer is probably yes. If you've never taught anything, even if it's your subject, it can be pretty rough going in blind.

2. Many of the big universities have some or all subjects in English- I'm not sure exactly which ones have arts. But to teach there you're probably going to need either a Master's or some kind of teaching qual or experience.

3. Depends on the place, how would we know? But if it's a uni, likely to be fairly low in general compared to high schools (for some reason) with lots of part time stuff available.

You should probably check to make sure graphic arts aren't one of the "prescribed job types" for foreigners working in Thailand- I'd imagine they have quite enough Thais who are competent at this kind of work.

Don't know much about Raffles- anybody else?

[whalers7]

hello. I've been living in bangkok for 3 years, and have noticed that mnay jobs in thailand require a BA degree. I am an American and recieved an associates degree in travel tourism mangment from Johnson & wales Universaty.. Johnson & Wales is one of top hospitality schools in the world and even a associates degree is well regarded in the travel/tourism industry,, unfortunaly in thailand it's all about having the letter B.A in your resume as opposed to the quality of the sckool .

fist off im going too re-learn my grammar for a couple of months. then take a tefl class.

well my question is do I really need a BA or will a associates do to get a teaching job?

---------

on teacher job posts, does "have a degree" automaticly imply BA or better.

---

I've read hundreds of post on this forum, Am I the only person with a associates degree

thanks

[ray23]

hello. I've been living in bangkok for 3 years, and have noticed that mnay jobs in thailand require a BA degree.  I am an American and recieved an associates degree in travel tourism mangment from Johnson & wales Universaty.. Johnson & Wales is one of top hospitality schools in the world and even a associates degree is well regarded in the  travel/tourism industry,, unfortunaly in thailand it's all about  having the letter B.A in your resume as opposed to the quality of the sckool .

fist off im  going too  re-learn  my grammar for a couple of months. then take a tefl class.

well my question is do I really need a BA or will a associates do to get a teaching job?

---------

on teacher job posts, does "have a degree" automaticly imply BA or better.

---

I've read hundreds of post on this forum, Am I the only person with a associates degree

thanks

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

No you not the only person with an AA Degree, but I don't teach. However I know guys here with nothing more then a high school diploma teaching. Here is Issan, and the pay is low.

[PeaceBlondie]

I think it's no lie for you to say, "I have a degree." Of course, it's an associate degree. They might not notice, might not care. OTOH, you probably can't fool the Ministry of Education with that, so you won't get a teacher's license. But in a govt. school, you don't need a TL. If your employer really likes your work, after you've had an extended probation, they just might get you a WP. Then again, even if they like you, you might not get a WP even if you have an MA or an MS.

[Ijustwannateach]

TEFL certification is all (or even more than) that is needed in many places, degree or not. But you're probably going to be working in a village for 20K=25K with no paperwork. A few lucky chaps make it into real jobs for 30=40K and a visa, but they're the ones who can read and write. Up to you, as they say.

[elkangorito]

I've been in Thailand now for about 10 months & have had 2 teaching jobs. The 1st job was at an awful school in the east where there was a lot of animosity toward farangs. As a result, I quit the job & moved to Bangkok where I now teach at a government school, Matayoms 1 through to 6. The school is good & the Thai teachers are great.

The only written qualification that I have is an Australian tradesmans certificate (4 years practice & 4 years theory). I also have about 15 years experience as an electrical/facilities engineer, mid to senior levels.

I teach English & Maths & soon, the school wants me to teach physics, which I may do. I am paid 35 000.00 baht per month, which will be increased to 40 000.00 baht upon the completion of one years work. I am directly employed by the school.

Maybe this can give some hope to some people.

[Ijustwannateach]

It's a mini-hiring season right now (or will be soon when teachers fail to return from their trips abroad), so I'm going to rebump my advice threads to the top for the benefit of our readers.

[Storekeeper]

Hey IJWT,

We always talk about Assumption and their M. Ed program but nobody ever talks about their Masters in Teaching English. Ever heard of it ? If this were done then a certificate need to be a TEFler is void, right ?

[kenkannif]

I think it's no lie for you to say, "I have a degree."  Of course, it's an associate degree.  They might not notice, might not care.  OTOH, you probably can't fool the Ministry of Education with that, so you won't get a teacher's license.  But in a govt. school, you don't need a TL.  If your employer really likes your work, after you've had an extended probation, they just might get you a WP.  Then again, even if they like you, you might not get a WP even if you have an MA or an MS.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Regardless of needing a TL or not, you still have to go through the MoE.