Girlfriend’s daughter needs study advice

[rudi49jr]

My girlfriend’s daughter (17 years old, graduates from highschool next year October) is very intelligent, also competitive, always wants to be the best in her class, but she has no idea what she would like to study after highschool. 

 

Does anyone know if there are student counselors at Thai highschools? Or anywhere that she could take an aptitude test or something? 

 

She is quite shy and introverted and my girlfriend doesn’t want to push her too hard in that respect, but I think it’s time for her to try and find out what it is that she wants to do. Also because I’m going to be the one paying for her college/university education .....

 

Any advice would be very much appriciated. 

 

PS: they live in the Cha’am - Hua Hin area, by the way.

[Kwasaki]

11 minutes ago, rudi49jr said:

she has no idea what she would like to study after highschool. 

Well she needs decide, can't the current highschool teachers help.?

[BritManToo]

30 minutes ago, rudi49jr said:

My girlfriend’s daughter (17 years old, graduates from highschool next year October)

Is she following 'arts' or 'sciences', they had to choose which direction at age 15.

If sciences, then doctor, dentist, pharmacist might be a suggestion.

If arts, then Politics (job in police/government), or International Business studies (learn Chinese and English) 

 

If you're paying, why not point her at the Rajabhat Universities, fees are around 16,000bht/year.

Why pay more?

(Haven't the entry exams for the 'posher universities' already passed?)

Edited July 19, 2018 by BritManToo

[FritsSikkink]

"Does anyone know if there are student counselors at Thai highschools? "

Ask the girl, she should know. I understand that she is shy but you and your girlfriends should try to help her to get passed this.

Will help her a lot in later life.

[My Thai Life]

Of the high schools I know about, none have career advisers.

 

But a good place to start would be to get one of her teachers to explain the various routes into uni – there are several, and it can be pretty confusing.

 

The GAT/PAT tests (General Aptitude Test / Professional and Academic Aptitude Test) are taken by many M6 students for university entrance, and there are other direct admissions tests, quota entry, scholarships, ONET…

 

But to the broader and even more difficult question of what does she want to do. It’s common for M6 to segregate themselves into medicine/nursing (girls) and engineering (boys). I would avoid these or any other kind of vocational degrees unless there is a clear preference based on a realistic understanding of what the career involves: an emergency ward is not for the faint-hearted! There’s also a large oversupply of graduate qualified teachers. Despite what I said about vocational degrees, Law is a useful option, and the legal profession is surprisingly open here - Thailand is a much more meritocratic society than many on this forum seem to believe.

 

Government employment is based on how well the student does at university, plus government exams.

 

Then there are the general humanities / tourism / languages / business degrees, plus maths and sciences...

 

Many courses at uni have a Thai-language-only option, an English-only option, and a mixed option. A high level of English will help her a lot in the future, regardless of her degree or career. A year studying English before uni would be an excellent investment in my opinion, though I admit I might be biased!

[rudi49jr]

49 minutes ago, My Thai Life said:

Of the high schools I know about, none have career advisers.

 

But a good place to start would be to get one of her teachers to explain the various routes into uni – there are several, and it can be pretty confusing.

 

The GAT/PAT tests (General Aptitude Test / Professional and Academic Aptitude Test) are taken by many M6 students for university entrance, and there are other direct admissions tests, quota entry, scholarships, ONET…

 

But to the broader and even more difficult question of what does she want to do. It’s common for M6 to segregate themselves into medicine/nursing (girls) and engineering (boys). I would avoid these or any other kind of vocational degrees unless there is a clear preference based on a realistic understanding of what the career involves: an emergency ward is not for the faint-hearted! There’s also a large oversupply of graduate qualified teachers. Despite what I said about vocational degrees, Law is a useful option, and the legal profession is surprisingly open here - Thailand is a much more meritocratic society than many on this forum seem to believe.

 

Government employment is based on how well the student does at university, plus government exams.

 

Then there are the general humanities / tourism / languages / business degrees, plus maths and sciences...

 

Many courses at uni have a Thai-language-only option, an English-only option, and a mixed option. A high level of English will help her a lot in the future, regardless of her degree or career. A year studying English before uni would be an excellent investment in my opinion, though I admit I might be biased!

Thanks!

[Rhys]

One of the best ways... let her get her hands dirty.. send out her out in the world of work... she will figure something out quick...

Edited July 26, 2018 by Rhys

[manchega]

yes business experience  I mean "business experience" anything that makes money and sees her interning in a place that produces value

 

as a phd, mba ...... I can advise that study should be chosen wisely as a means of interest or as a means of making lots of money.

the majority of students I see and lecture now adays would be better off actually doing something useful,

 

not in a carrying on with the same drivel you find on internet but on if I was in university to waste time I would be doing the rock and roll thing as opposed to hanging around university wasting time being hazed, learning from lecturers who are only now realising they are unemployable outside of academia.

[Number 6]

Well, she can't be on Math Science track because those kids already are pushed into their careers if they've not sorted it out already.

 

There are a few bespoke consultants but I doubt worth the money. Int'l school teachers will know nothing of the local scene.

 

We have counselors at my school, I don't really know how much good they do, Im routinely told I help more.

 

The tricky thing in Asia is you ate accepted into a program, it's not easy to change faculties and many students make mistakes along the way.

 

Interesting comment above on the glut of qualified teachers. Maybe they should flush the oldies out and let the fresh blood have a go.

 

Business? It's one size fits all? She like numbers? Actuarial science.

 

Edited October 21, 2018 by Number 6

[jackdd]

I'm one of the younger people here and i totally know how it is when finishing school and you don't know what you want to do in life. Myself and most of my friends were in exactly the same situation. From what i've heard of my parents generation (this is the age of most people who are on Thaivisa) back then they often didn't choose what they wanted to do, but their parents just told them what to do and they just did it.

Actually i think what happened back then was not so bad at all. I thank you should not force somebody to study something for 4 years, but when somebody doesn't know what he/she wants it's a good idea to just tell them something reasoable and not let them do "something".

 

Here one of the, in my opinion, best choices for people in Thailand who don't know what to do:

Tell her to study practical nurse. This takes one year studying at school and then she will be a certified practical nurse and can start to work.

If her grades are good she can choose what kind of work she would like to do and if she chooses something specialized, for example work in operating room, she can make good money.

This is what my GF did, at 20 years old, after one year in the job, she made about 30k per month working as practical nurse in the operating room in a private hospital, this is serious money for a Thai at this age.

 

- If she figures out that she likes this kind of work she has many options to further her carrer (registered nurse, doctor, work as nurse/doctor in the army ...)

- If she doesn't like this kind of work she "lost" just one year, but actually she doesn't really lose this. Even if she doesn't like this kind of work much, she can work part time as practical nurse while she studies something else, working part time as practical nurse pays way more than the "typical" stundent jobs.

Edited January 15, 2019 by jackdd

[SheungWan]

Which subjects is she best at?

Does she have any interests outside of school study?

Are her particular strengths maths? languages? 

What does she enjoy most?

No friends?

[neeray]

On ‎10‎/‎16‎/‎2018 at 5:54 AM, manchega said:

yes business experience  I mean "business experience" anything that makes money and sees her interning in a place that produces value

 

as a phd, mba ...... I can advise that study should be chosen wisely as a means of interest or as a means of making lots of money.

the majority of students I see and lecture now adays would be better off actually doing something useful,

 

not in a carrying on with the same drivel you find on internet but on if I was in university to waste time I would be doing the rock and roll thing as opposed to hanging around university wasting time being hazed, learning from lecturers who are only now realising they are unemployable outside of academia.

Education does not always make the man/woman. Take for example, you claim to be a lecturer with a phd and mba (PhD and MBA). Yet your sentence composition, spelling (nowadays) and proof reading (on if) does not reflect your academic studies. Perhaps this is just age-related laziness, or a defective keyboard.

Just an observation of something that stood out like a sore thumb.

 

But wait, it just occurred to me that English may not be your first language, thus, errors understandable. That being the case, I give you an E for effort.

 

Edited January 16, 2019 by neeray
addendum

[neeray]

On ‎10‎/‎20‎/‎2018 at 8:38 PM, Number 6 said:

We have counselors at my school, I don't really know how much good they do, Im routinely told I help more.

I recall entering high school, grade 9, and being given an aptitude test by a counselor, The aptitude questions were many, but seemingly because I liked automotive things and bananas, the results showed that I should be a fruit truck driver.

Mr Counselor, I'm sorry to disappoint but I did not follow your advice, my self-chosen career path differed quite substantially, a decision that did not turn out too bad.

 

I like the advice given by several posters here. Perhaps the young lady should have some work-related experience before choosing her path.

[manchega]

On 1/16/2019 at 8:05 AM, neeray said:

Education does not always make the man/woman. Take for example, you claim to be a lecturer with a phd and mba (PhD and MBA). Yet your sentence composition, spelling (nowadays) and proof reading (on if) does not reflect your academic studies. Perhaps this is just age-related laziness, or a defective keyboard.

Just an observation of something that stood out like a sore thumb.

 

But wait, it just occurred to me that English may not be your first language, thus, errors understandable. That being the case, I give you an E for effort.

 

yeah, I've seen english teachers try to proof read academic and industrial texts before. they tend to do really well at it.

 

honestly, you need to learn spelling, composition and that uver stuff just is not so important for anyone as long as the messge is understood

from your post I see my massage, I mean message was understood, so job done.....