Questions For The Professional Expat Woman

[Jorinda]

All right, I'm coming to Thailand soon (August 1st!) as a foreign exchange student studying econ/business and I haven't found anyone that can answer some of my questions about careers that invovle travel and business or econ. So I figured most of the women on here have to have some experience with this and would be willing to share. I thought about the possibility of finding work with NGO's, the American government, or maybe an American corporation, and there's always the peace corps. Can anyone here offer advice for any of these tracks? (educational needs, difficulty, was it a bad experince, etc)

[girlx]

i don't personally know much about that field but you can try hitting up the companies at the American Chamber of Commerce in Thailand.

[submaniac]

If you are looking for governmental work, you could try the U.S. government's job board www.usajobs.com This lists ALL federal vacancies in all 50 states, and all foreign postings. You could check periodically and search for the word "Thailand".

Another good site is http://www.state.gov/p/io/rls/iva/105038.htm , which lists vacancies for the United Nations.

It's hard for me to give you advice without knowing more about what you are looking for. If you are still in school, then you may be undecided as to what you wanna do with your life. In terms of qualifications, I would search the listings on the two sites, maybe find some internship opportunities, and see what qualifications the jobs that interest you require.

As for private sector/business jobs, the general consensus is to get the job while in the states or wherever, then get transferred to the foreign posting. That way you get a higher, "ex pat" salary. Applying directly in Thailand may be more difficult, due to the visa situation and everything else. As a foreign national, you will obviously want to get paid a good wage, but the demand for a US national is not that great for many jobs (with the exception of teaching English). Basically, unless you speak and read Thai fluently, and even if you could, a Thai national could probably do the job but for less salary. Good luck in your search.

[Misty]

Hi Jorinda,

I had a very good experience working in institutional finance based out of Bangkok. It started about 15 years ago with basically an entry level position that only required fluency in English, the ability to think and communicate ideas, and some basic understanding of economics. A lot of hard work and a professional designation later, I was able to enjoy a pretty decent career for a number of years.

I'm not sure if I could replicate that experience if I just showed up today with no related experience, because the exact market I was in has changed. Even at the time I was initially hired (early 90s) I probably had an advantage over some applicants due to previous work experience (while unrelated, it was unusual and I think respectable), and likewise a unique educational background.

Still, I'd say if you want to be in Thailand, you'll have the best chance of working here if you come here rather than wait to be transferred from somewhere else. I wouldn't be afraid to accept a job as a local hire, as long as the position is in a growing industry where you can see a clear career path for yourself. Take an entry level position, but then work your butt off and do a good job. If the first position doesn't lead where you want to go, go find another one. If you've developed a good reputation and gotten some experience from the first position, you should find more doors open to you.

If you're not necessarily hooked on Thailand, then some larger Asian financial cities like Hong Kong or Singapore might open more doors. Possibly even Shanghai, depending on what you're trying to do Chinese language may not be a prerequisite.

Good luck, Misty

[Jorinda]

Yeah, I'm not speaking specifically about Thailand and any of my career plans are a good 2 years away. I was just curious about how careers have landed some people outside of their home country and what they're doing. I'm surprised no one in the forum is doing NGO work, something I'm interested in.

[Goinghomesoon]

Vis a vis aid work in Thailand - my understanding is that it is quite hard for small NGOs to be formally registered in Thailand and a lot of aid-related positions here work on regional programs, not Thai programs. I have 3 friends on aid work here and they run the gamut - one on an international posting with a UN agency, second works for a regional assistance program, and the third works for a small but well-respected NGO. None of them were recruited in Thailand and none of their organisations advertise for staff (except Thai nationals) here.

[Sheryl]

I do "NGO work" . But I come from a health background so my specific experiences wouldn't be directly applicable. What I can say is:

1) You need skills relevant to development work. Since you are studying business/econ, I'd suggest micro-enterprise and micro-credit, look for courses/programs related to that.

2) Your first overseas job will almost surely have to be on a volunteer basis. Mine was and so was that of all the other development professionals I know. Peace Corps is an excellent venue. Another is the United Nations Volunteer (UNV) program.

And yes, it is very reqrding work. Even those who after an initial vklunteer stint decide they'd prefer not to do it on a log term basis usually regard it as having been a great experience, on many levels.

Good luck!

[Goinghomesoon]

I agree with Sheryl. My friend who now has a permanent job in the UN started as an Australian volunteer (AVI). When I lived in Cambodia, where many friends worked in this arena, most of them had developed their skills in normal jobs back home for several years before jumping into the aid game. My degree and almost-finished Masters are in development but I have chosen not to be employed in the field at this stage of my life.

[MiG16]

Sheryl has given good advice re starting out as a volunteer

but just to set the record straight on what someone else said about there being no NGOs in thailand....thats wrong. there are quite a number of NGOs in thailand that operate at various levels, from very small to bigger more organised ones. the fields ranges too...from women issues, slums, migrants amongst others. however, as these are small local ones, the pay wont compare to the INGOs (international NGOs) that other people have talked about.

many of them also accept internships. some are predominantly ones where you would need to have thai language skill, but again, there are areas where they appreciate having someone with english skill to take on some english language work (they may be getting some funds from foreign organisation and need to submit reports for instance, or they have clients who are non thais for instance...mental health hospitals with tourists as patients, migrants or refugee organisations up north, schools that want to teach children english language or computer skills...the list goes on

good luck

edit to add: there are also lots of church based groups that are always in need of different kinds of assistance. and the work in tsunami affected areas is still on going

Edited May 30, 2008 by MiG16

[Goinghomesoon]

Just to clarify I didn't say there were no NGOs, but friends working here have said it is hard for smaller ones to get registered.

[Jorinda]

great advice sheryl. I wish my business school was less focused on corporate business, and the few small business classes they offer I'm scheduled to take before I graduate. I was looking at volunteer work, mainly the peace corps. I went to talk to my career advisor about this a few months ago but he was completely unhelpful. I think all of the students at my school that want to work abroad are in different majors...

[MiG16]

if you are happy with unpaid internship, maybe I can find out at one place for you

you will need to pm me with a bit of background about your skills and interest though... and also the time you expect to be there

[mssabai]

My friend was in Thailand for a year looking for a job with an NGO. She already had experience in Nepal and her own country and was a graduate of a relevant degree. She eventually found a job with a small NGO but not after a very long period of trying. When I finished my degree (in Anthropolgy) I thought NGO work would be an easy and predictable jump for me, I had no idea how competetive the industry was and what a very specific kind of person they look for. I found it a lot harder trying to work in the NGO sector than the media sector where I ended up (traditionally seen as a very hard industry to get by in). Of course I most probably wasn't NGO material, which is fine, but just wanted to give my experiences. I feel you may find it easier to get relevant (paid) experience within the business sector - the finance and property industries are both big employers of foreigners within Thailand...

If you have your heart set on NGO work, I would have thought an unpaid internship would be your best / only option. I may well be wrong though so good luck!

[Jorinda]

Thanks for all the input everyone.

Mssabai - Did they want you to get a masters degree? I would think that Anthropology would fit in with a lot of NGO work too...

So from what I can gather I mainly have 3 ways to go if I want to travel or live overseas...which is NGO work, work with the American government, or go through corporate/finance centers. NGO work is competitive and would most likely require a masters degree, Government work is probably less competitive but I'd be working in Embassys and wouldn't get much interaction with local people, and corporate/finance is easy to get into but American businesses don't like sending people overseas, and when they do it's usually older employees (this is according to my school advisor). After college I'll probably just apply to all 3 paths and see what happens. I think I'm doing as much as I can right now, I'm majoring in business management, I'm going on my study abroad to Thailand, I'm taking Chinese when I get back, and then I'm minoring in global business. I just find it annoying how American universities rarely offer asian languages and my college has a really incomprehensive global development program. Also, with government jobs it's really useful to know non-european languages, but colleges rarely offer more than a year of Japanese and maybe Chinese. My college (Virginia Tech) had Arabic for a year, then got rid of it due to funding issues. When I get back from Thailand the only way I can still practice whatever I'll have learned is to go to the Thai Student Organization and practice the language there.