PHD Benefit

[Maha Sarakham]

Hello Friends,

 

I have a Bachelor's Degree in Business and I'm currently taking a Master's Degree in a business related field as well in my home country (USA).

 

However, I'm debating taking a PHD in Educational Leadership after I finish the Master's Degree so I can pivot into an international teaching role and live with my wife in Thailand.

 

My question is, will having a PHD in Edu help me at all in Thailand or is it fairly non-value-added?  I will of course get the teacher certification in my home country before coming over, I just want to be in good standing to get a decent gig when my Thai wife and I are able to move back to Thailand.  We are looking to leave the USA with-in the next 5 years or so.  Do Thai schools even care about anything beyond a Master's?

 

Thanks for any information.

[Puchaiyank]

Logon on to Thaifriendly...check out the profiles...most people appear to have a PhD...it is doubtful if they know what it means...????

[tonray]

Unlikely to help you here. What do you plan on teaching here ? What type of schools are you targeting for employment ?

[uncleP]

A PhD is a must for teaching university, however, a real teacher qualification and experience will get you into an international school.

Business is a bit of a useless subject for schools but popular at university.  Universities do not pay well whereas international  schools generally  pay the best.

[DavisH]

Get teacher certification and teach for a few years in the US. Don't bother with a PhD. What helps most is the home country certification AND the teaching experience in your home country. The more home experience, the better. This will net you inteviews with the better international schools here. They getting employed though one of the international job fairs that are held in the US. 

[Maha Sarakham]

Thank you all very much for the replies thus far.  It seems it is advised to:

1. Finish the Master's Degree.
2. Attain a Teaching License/Certification in the USA.
3. Get some teaching experience in the interim.

Would you advise to also complete one of those TEFL courses or are those largely gimmicks?  My goal would be to teach ESL at an International School.

[Scott]

If you get teaching experience, then the TEFL is not necessary.   I don't think it ever hurts to take a course, though.  

 

[OumarhindaOunsingha]

OP, if you are a NES with all that educational luggage, you can get whatever teaching position you want in Thailand. I guess you are relatively young, too, which generally is a big plus to schools as well. To me, there seems nothing to be discussed, here. There is no question. Just finish whatever you want to finish there in USA and then come here and enjoy life. It will all be fine for you, job-wisely ????

[Maha Sarakham]

4 hours ago, OumarhindaOunsingha said:

OP, if you are a NES with all that educational luggage, you can get whatever teaching position you want in Thailand. I guess you are relatively young, too, which generally is a big plus to schools as well. To me, there seems nothing to be discussed, here. There is no question. Just finish whatever you want to finish there in USA and then come here and enjoy life. It will all be fine for you, job-wisely ????

Thank you for the information, I will most certainly do so!  Looking forward to getting to Thailand eventually ????

[simon43]

He didn't ask about 'PhD' but 'PHD', which according to abbreviations.com stands for 'Pizza Hut Delivery'. ????

[mrwebb8825]

Do the PhD while teaching undergrad courses in the states. (department head is a better position than teacher/instructor) Then, when you're ready, apply to the international universities here like Webster, Stamford, etc. Also be a good idea to check with the wife to see if she has already made plans for the area you will be living in when you get here. Might limit your options a bit.

[JimHuaHin]

My first question is - what do you want to teach in Thailand?

 

Second question is - have you considered the supply and demand of/for educational qualifications (teachers and students (graduates))?

 

Third question is - if the <deleted> hits the fan, and in the future you have to leave Thailand, where will you go and what will you do?

 

In the 1970s, anyone who was a native speaker could get a job teaching English, French, German, Japanese, etc. - now you need a university degree and education teaching qualifications, in most cases.

 

Thailand has many foreign teachers teaching business, administration, hospitality and tourism in Thai universities, while many others with foreign academic qualifications in these fields are unemployed and cannot get work in Thailand.  And there is a massive over supply of Thai graduates in these fields and massive underemployment of university graduates underemployed BEFORE COVID-19 hit.  A Thai academic paper I read late last year by three (for memory) Thai economists estimated that 90-95% of employed Thai university graduates are underemployed!!  Those most likely not to be unemployed were those with health sciences qualifications - medicine, nursing, dentistry, nursing, radiology, pharmacy, etc.

 

My own PhD is in international relations, with a sociology - labour market economics undercurrent.  I taught in an international Masters programme at a predominantly science university in Bangkok in the mid 1990s.  My previous inter-disciplinary teaching experience, and research and publications profile got me the job.

 

But now, the real skill shortage in Thailand is in the STEM fields.  These will have to be strengthened to meet the demands of Thailand 5.0.  The immediate future in education in Thailand lies in STEM.

 

And finally, if you want to secure a long-term academic job in Thailand - your need an active research and publication profile!!  Without these you may pick up a one-year contract here and there; but if you want a long-term academic career here - research, consultancy, publish, publish, publish is the key to success.

 

Good luck.

[Bender Rodriguez]

how much did you pay for your education ?  you don't want that investment back ? you want to live of 60k a month ?

[AlfHuy]

On 9/8/2020 at 7:47 AM, simon43 said:

He didn't ask about 'PhD' but 'PHD', which according to abbreviations.com stands for 'Pizza Hut Delivery'. ????

No

 

Push him deep.

[KKr]

On 9/6/2020 at 6:50 AM, Maha Sarakham said:

just want to be in good standing to get a decent gig when my Thai wife and I are able to move back to Thailand

In Thainglish that sounds rather intriguing. ???? , does your missus approve of your plan ???? ???? ??

 

that aside, if you feel like writing the paper and doing the research, just go for it. Indeed it may get you a better position, but if it doesn’t, you proved to yourself that you can do it.

[otherstuff1957]

You mentioned teaching ESL at an international school as your goal.  There are LOTS of qualified and experienced ESL teachers in Thailand.  Also, because many ESL teachers at international schools are local hires, they are generally the lowest paid teachers there. 

 

As others have mentioned, the best paid (and happiest) of the teachers at international schools are teaching Math or Science or some other STEM subject.  If I was to start over, I would get a US Math teacher qualification and teach for at least 2 years before thinking about Thailand. 

 

Finally, what part of Thailand is your wife from and does she want to live near her parents?  If so, you might find your employment options to be very limited.

 

 

[teacherclaire]

On 9/8/2020 at 7:47 AM, simon43 said:

He didn't ask about 'PhD' but 'PHD', which according to abbreviations.com stands for 'Pizza Hut Delivery'. ????

But to be honest, a Ph.D. would be of great help. 
OP, go for that, get experience, and the chances are much better landing a dream job. 

[Maha Sarakham]

19 hours ago, Bender Rodriguez said:

how much did you pay for your education ?  you don't want that investment back ? you want to live of 60k a month ?

My company is paying for it, I just want to live comfortably in Thailand with my wife.  I love Thailand and have been coming for years now.

[Maha Sarakham]

14 hours ago, otherstuff1957 said:

Finally, what part of Thailand is your wife from and does she want to live near her parents?  If so, you might find your employment options to be very limited.

Thanks for the feedback regarding the benefits of teaching Math/STEM, those are helpful suggestions.

 

My wife is from Isaan but would be okay to live in either Chiang Mai or Bangkok.  She doesn't necessarily want to live with/near the parents, just with-in Thailand for weekend trips to see them on occasion.  She likes a bit of privacy from the village folk and their endless mindless gossiping.

[bbabythai]

On 9/6/2020 at 7:47 AM, uncleP said:

A PhD is a must for teaching university, however, a real teacher qualification and experience will get you into an international school.

Business is a bit of a useless subject for schools but popular at university.  Universities do not pay well whereas international  schools generally  pay the best.

A Masters degree is a 'must' not a PHD

[Yellowtail]

But if you ever do end up back in the US teaching I think the PhD will help quite a lot. 

[CrunchWrapSupreme]

As mentioned, you will need to show a uni some published works in addition to your PhD. Once you're ready with all these, Mahidol would love to offer you 40k. ????

[DrMJA]

The bottom line is a PhD in Thailand at a government university will only pay you between 35,000 - 45,000K base salary a month.

Private educational facilities a bit more. Both will require you to have proven publications outside of your dissertation publications and then continue to KEEP on publishing while working with a full teaching load.

In addition, the Thai's you are working with will want a free ride on your future publications, while adding minimal contributions, and with what they do add .... it will need to be edited from "TINGLISH".

IF you teach at the masters level you can earn a little more money.

 

Keep it simple, get your masters, and learn to read and write Thai, for yourself and your Thai wife.

 

In the future, if you decide to stay in Thailand and never leave, then do your PhD in country, it carries weight with the Thais that you did it in their system, then rise through the ranks at your preferred university of choice.. 

Best of luck and wisdom in your choices!

BTW: I am writing as one who asked the same question many years ago!

[DavisH]

On 10/1/2020 at 9:15 PM, Yellowtail said:

But if you ever do end up back in the US teaching I think the PhD will help quite a lot. 

A master's in education would be more beneficial.

[Maha Sarakham]

Thanks for the comments everyone.  Have plans to finish the MA in Edu and start getting some teaching experience in the US prior to relocating.  Question is now what subject will be most in demand going forward.

[simon43]

Why not teach online and have a choice where you live - not governed by your employer's location?  I have an MSc in Microwave Communications from London University.  I only teach online and tutor science topics to students from about 6 years old up to those seeking entry to university.  Monthly income is about 100,000 baht, (only limited by my preference not to work excessive hours).  I live in Luang Prabang (Laos of course, not Thailand).

[CrunchWrapSupreme]

4 hours ago, Maha Sarakham said:

Have plans to finish the MA in Edu and start getting some teaching experience in the US

Not to discourage you, perhaps you’ll fare better than I.

 

I came to Thailand with an MA in Edu and teaching experience some years ago. With this I expected to be handed something midrange, not the govt school stuff they give to just anyone off the plane. Yet that’s what I ended up doing for several years. I’ve since worked my way up to the middle, but it’s still got many issues and isn’t where I should be, around 100k.

 

The good jobs aren’t advertised. The last people to expect helping you with this are other farangs, due to competition, and perhaps mental illness. Pounding on pavement and knocking on doors isn’t an option. I’ve been waiting to be at the right place at the right time, running into the right people, hoping to schmooze and network, blah blah. But if I was any good at that stuff, I wouldn’t have left home.

 

The plan now’s to give this about three more years, hopefully time for Covid to clear up back home, then return with my Thai wife to the US. Her great personality, work ethic, and experience would easily land her a decent gig in retail. Then I’m more than qualified for community college, while working on my PhD at uni, where I hope to wind up eventually.

 

I’d recommend this path to anyone. Come to Thailand, benefit from the experience, then return home. I got a great lady, and got through some ridiculous nonsense I never thought I would’ve out of it. But I wouldn’t plan on staying here indefinitely.

[Maha Sarakham]

5 hours ago, CrunchWrapSupreme said:

I’d recommend this path to anyone. Come to Thailand, benefit from the experience, then return home. I got a great lady, and got through some ridiculous nonsense I never thought I would’ve out of it. But I wouldn’t plan on staying here indefinitely.

Thanks for telling your story, it was interesting to hear about your journey!  Congratulations on finding yourself a wonderful lady, best thing that could have came out of the whole experience, I'm sure.  I'm blessed to have the lady I have and I wouldn't trade it for the world.

 

Q: Did you feel in order to work your way up the ladder (close to 100k) it was absolutely mandatory to be in Bangkok?  We like Bangkok, but I'm not sure I'd want to spend many years there, I'd have to have some kind of alternative plan to do teaching online as simon43 mentioned.

[Lacessit]

PhD's are probably of more value in academia. Teaching experience at the coal face is more esteemed in schools.

[Yellowtail]

1 hour ago, Maha Sarakham said:

Thanks for telling your story, it was interesting to hear about your journey!  Congratulations on finding yourself a wonderful lady, best thing that could have came out of the whole experience, I'm sure.  I'm blessed to have the lady I have and I wouldn't trade it for the world.

 

Q: Did you feel in order to work your way up the ladder (close to 100k) it was absolutely mandatory to be in Bangkok?  We like Bangkok, but I'm not sure I'd want to spend many years there, I'd have to have some kind of alternative plan to do teaching online as simon43 mentioned.

 

Wouldn't  trade "it"?