Go To Los In Jan, Do Course

[westybrook]

can this be done? To go to LOS in the month of Jan, do a PELT course which is one week intensive classroom, 4 weeks to 8 weeks intern work. So March or April I should have finished the course and got the TEFL certificate

What are the chances of then going out and finding a teaching job in the month of March and April?

Also what resources can you look at to find these jobs, how to people generally get a teaching job, what is involved finding these vacant places in Thailand?

Thanks!

[mbkudu]

can this be done?  To go to LOS in the month of Jan, do a PELT course which is one week intensive classroom, 4 weeks to 8 weeks intern work.  So March or April I should have finished the course and got the TEFL certificate

What are the chances of then going out and finding a teaching job in the month of March and April?

Also what resources can you look at to find these jobs, how to people generally get a teaching job, what is involved finding these vacant places in Thailand?

Thanks!

I just finished a CELTA course on July 29th. One of the trainees in our group found a job on www.ajarn.com from Ilingua on the 28th. He started the next day after the course, the 30th. He works 5 days a week and is making 50,000 baht a month

with work permit. Not bad for a guy who has zero experience. There are lots and lots of jobs. Finding a job is the easy part, the trick is to not jump into a crap one.

[westybrook]

Wow mbkudu you make it sound so easy to get one then

So the website you quoted is that known throughout Thailand for schools to advertsie on there?

Also what other places do you know if say someone was to go to a city, Rayong, Udon, Pattaya, Chang Mai, Bangkok, what would be the first place of call for you to find a job.

Or is the net all you need?

Cheers for the reply mate!

[mbkudu]

Hi Westybrook. You really need to look in this forum. There is lots of information here and a lot of people here who know more than I. I have been out of teaching in Thailand for awhile, but used to teach there for many years. I just completed the CELTA because next year I'm getting back into it again. Like I said finding the job is not the problem; there are endless jobs. It's finding a decent, well paying job with good conditions that is the hard part. The Ajarn site is very well known. What you might do is visit Thailand and just walk into schools and see what they say. Then you can see how the places are run and meet the people you might work for and work with.

I don't know anything about working up country; I worked only in Bangkok while in Thailand. There are plenty of posters here who work up country and in the south. Bangkok is where the most money and most work can be found, but some people hate it and need the countryside, up to you.

[Neeranam]

I just finished a CELTA course on July 29th. One of the trainees in our group found a job on www.ajarn.com from Ilingua on the 28th. He started the next day after the course, the 30th. He works 5 days a week and is making 50,000 baht a month

with work permit. Not bad for a guy who has zero experience. There are lots and lots of jobs. Finding a job is the easy part, the trick is to not jump into a crap one.

I guess he is working teaching classes of spoiled rich kids on a Saturday or/and Sunday. He may be working for the cororate section, who only pay around 900 baht a gig - fine if you don't mind travelling for 3 hours or more out to Bang Plee or Bang Poo and back. Ok for a guy with no experience, but there are a lot easier ways of earning that much money. I know a non-native speaker who is getting 2000 baht an hour for privates. That's 6 hours a week for 50,000.

To the OP, forget the tefl certificate until you get some experience and decide teaching is for you. It is SO easy for a white native speaker to get a job.

I have many contacts looking all the time for teachers, give me a PM and I will get you a job without a useless piece of paper. Experience is what counts in Thailand.

I got a proper TESOL(London Trinity) and have never needed to use it in Thailand.

[kenkannif]

Westy,

Attend a proper course. More and more employers (AUA for example) will not employ people with a distance or online learning course. They want at least a 100 hours class time.

Do their proper course, or save your money and just get a job and learn as you go...as that's all you're basically doing anyway (except paying for the privilige of working).

Good luck though you're going to need it

[Neeranam]

I don't know anything about working up country; I worked only in Bangkok while in Thailand. There are plenty of posters here who work up country and in the south. Bangkok is where the most money and most work can be found, but some people hate it and need the countryside, up to you.

I have worked in Bangkok and upcountry for many years. For a beginner there is much more work upcounty.

[kenkannif]

Neer if you was already qual'd up err how do you know you didn't need to use it? Or do you mean show it as opposed to using the skillZ you'd learnt?

[Neeranam]

Neer if you was already qual'd up err how do you know you didn't need to use it? Or do you mean show it as opposed to using the skillZ you'd learnt?

I started working here in 93 and got my TESOL in 97, in Spain and since then have never needed to show it as I have plenty of experience, which is what I think will get you the job rather than a TEFL "qualification". What a waste of money, about 1500 pounds, mind you it was a good months holiday.

[mbkudu]

What a waste of money, about 1500 pounds, mind you it was a good months holiday.

That's too bad that you got nothing from it. I experienced quite the opposite from one I just completed. I am an experienced teacher as well, but I came out of the course with a lot of new, fresh ideas for teaching. I also saw that I had acquired some bad habits from my past teaching experience that the instructors pointed out to me. I was then able to change and hopefully become a better teacher.

It all depends on where you want to put down the money. For me $US 1,400 is a lot of money, but I feel it was well spent and I got more than just the piece of paper out of it. Cheers.

[westybrook]

Thanks for all your reply’s everyone

I want to do the course for a few reasons, your right I am a native white English speaker. I can talk well, but I want to know how to teach and have someone show me what techniques I should use. The couse I want to do is $650 so its ok I guess, and this is taken in Thailand, either in Pattaya or bangkok.

I have a little experience teaching English to a Spanish speaker from Venezuela, but it was hard, as she didn’t know much English, so I had to speak to her in my small amount of Spanish I know. It was good fun but hard work, I would like to do this as full-time, but I need to be shown how I can teach well.

Also, as Kenkannif said I could go to a job interview and then be asked to see my certificate.

One more question to you guys is, what is the interview like when you attend one. I have been to many interviews for jobs in the UK and I feel very confident in them. But how do teacher interviews differ. Would they expect you to do a small performance in a class for example or in front of a few other teachers to see if you are up for the job.

Thanks for the reply’s in advance

[kenkannif]

Westy it's not a course per se mate, basically you're 'buying' a job and receiving minimal training.

I actually said more and more schools WILL NOT ACCEPT distance or online learning certificate....of which the PELT is one.

Spend a bit extra and do their or some else's PROPER course.