Do I need an ED visa if married?

[SteveK]

Hi guys,

 

I'm thinking about going to Bangkok to enroll in a Thai language course for a month or two, whatever they can offer.

 

I am on a non-O based on marriage. Can I study on that or do I need to get a new visa?

[jackdd]

You can study on any kind of visa, including your non-o based on marriage

[SteveK]

The problem I have now is that I can already speak quite a bit and read Thai also, I don't want to be lumped in with people who don't know their kaw kai from their gaw gai. If I travel down, get myself an apartment and turn up to this kind of class it will be a huge waste of money for me. Does anyone have any suggestions? How much would private tuition cost? I want to learn as much as possible but have heard a lot of negativity from people on ED visas trying to learn Thai (i.e. usually someone in the class who holds back everyone else by being thick).

Edited August 7, 2019 by SteveK

[ubonjoe]

You pick and choose any course of study and class schedule you want to since you will not need to meet the requirements for a ED visa.

Check a few school websites to find your best option. There are several in Bangkok. 

You might even be able to arrange online studies.

[marc651]

15 hours ago, SteveK said:

The problem I have now is that I can already speak quite a bit and read Thai also, I don't want to be lumped in with people who don't know their kaw kai from their gaw gai. If I travel down, get myself an apartment and turn up to this kind of class it will be a huge waste of money for me. Does anyone have any suggestions?

 

Just telling you my personal experience: I studied Thai at UTL language school, and was really satisfied. Tried a few other schools first, before I got to this one. They have many levels, and assess you when you enroll, put you in the level that is right for you.  Monday to Friday courses, you could pick morning or afternoon and per module (=level) it would take 1 month (20 lessons). When I went there many Koreans and Japanese students were enrolled, which was cool, got me some friends from that part of the world as well.  I studied there for 6 months, that got me fluid in Thai, including reading and writing.

 

I had tried private tuition before that - but that did not work for me. In a class is much better, you get challenged by your peers, it is not boring either unlike private tuition.

 

My five cents is that you should go try a free lesson in a handfull of language schools, and you will quickly see which one is best for you. Definetely worth taking courses, you learn so much in a short period when in the right class/school...

 

[KKr]

as mentioned already, Non-O Visa does not prohibit learning activities and I never had a problem studying on a retirement or marriage extension. 
On the contrary, the learning facility should give you a discount for not having to arrange the ED visa.

Personally I liked the Language Institute at ChiangMai University but that is a three semester course, so in your case it would depend on where you are based whether this a convenient option or not.
three years of attending three semesters will give you a proper command of grammar, reading and writing skills of a third / fourth grader, a decent vocabulary ( surely over a thousand words, I did not count exactly ) and proper pronunciation.
(Other schools (see earlier post) may give a perception of fluency in three months, but I did not experience that and may have missed an opportunity.)

( P.S. some on TV might argue that one should get an ED visa before getting married ????
but I did not ???? )

Edited August 8, 2019 by KKr

[wes360]

You talk about people being thick and holding you back but you can't Google schools in Bangkok and call them and ask about advance courses I mean your Thai is so good it shouldn't be hard to explain that you want a advance course not beginner 

[SteveK]

5 minutes ago, wes360 said:

You talk about people being thick and holding you back but you can't Google schools in Bangkok and call them and ask about advance courses I mean your Thai is so good it shouldn't be hard to explain that you want a advance course not beginner 

My Thai is not good, and I have already Googled, cheers. Thanks for your comment.

[recom273]

I was about to say, I studied at UTL .. a long while back. I also went to AUA in the evenings, but they have changed their approach so I gather.

 

At UTL they weren’t interested in supplying a visa, although they could, the main idea was to teach you Thai.

 

I started at the bottom, yeah their were people holding the class back but by the second month they had vanished. But that’s life,

I wasn’t any better or worse than the average Joe, and I built a foundation.

 

if you think you are better than the starter class they will assess you and place you accordingly. When you progress to the better levels you find people from Korean and Japanese families who are posted here to work for multinational companies or missionaries. So this isn’t a visa mill, for long stat “tourists”

 

There are special units for newspaper and reading. 

 

Check out AUA - I attended lectures in the evening on politics, religion, royalty, social problems - I think the format has changed but again you will meet some cool people.