Help: Looking For Advice On Finding A Job In A Internation School In Thailand

[DiggerDoug]

Hello, I'm new and looking for some advice and guidance. I
hope this isn't a story that has been repeated here several times before.

I'm 27 and a fully qualified teacher of Design and
Technology from the UK. I've taught for three years and then this year I did a
bit of supply in-between helping out with a family run business. In my time off
from teaching full time I have seriously thought about teaching abroad and in Thailand
in particular. I've travelled in Thailand
for about 3 months in total and even been offered a job and an interview but
was not in the position to accept (although I now wish I had pursed the interview
anyway).

I enjoy teaching and believe that this move would be a great
decision. I am looking to spend two to three years teaching but I wouldn't rule
out staying longer. The problem is I'm not sure of the best way to secure a Job.
Whenever I look, I seem to find a lot of EAL vacancies but nothing else. I
worry that going back to supply and waiting for a position to pop up in October
or May might not even happen.

Should I take a more active role and send my detail to
schools asking about possible positions? Or perhaps even more active and get a
flight out, travel and drop my CV off in person? Or even take an EAL position
and then hope a better/more suitable position opens up while I'm in Thailand? Or
am I looking for rare job opportunity which it is unlikely that I would be a successful
applicant for (due to subject I'd teach, my age and time I wish to commit for)?
I have even considered going to Koh Tao and completing a Dive Masters course to
make good use of time in Thailand while looking for a position.

I hope that someone can help me and may be able to shed some
light on my worries.

Any advice on these matters would be most helpful or any
links to good websites that schools use to advertise Job.

Many, Many thanks

Doug

[DiggerDoug]

Well it was worth a try ! No advice from anyone?

[LucidLucifer]

The majority of schools will have already completed their recruitment for the next academic year. You need to start early, around November time for the next academic year. If you haven't already, check the TES international jobs section, and also go to the school's own websites. You can also try the job fair route.

Do a quick search on here for other threads about this, there is plenty of info on them.

Good luck!

[Scott]

I think the lack of responses has a little bit to do with the fact that most of our posters are not employed at International Schools. The hiring for this year is also complete, so other than the odd job opening, there probably isn't much that can be said.

Hopefully, some of our British qualified teachers will be along and can explain a little about what qualifications and experience are needed for getting into the 'real' international schools.

There are several tiers of schools and the conditions of employment, pay etc. will vary.

It is, as I understand it, reasonably difficult to get into the real international schools.

[culicine]

As you are qualified in DT, that may make it a little more difficult, as it is not an 'in-demand' field. Can you teach science/math/IT? We had a DT teacher from Australia with use for a few months, but he taught English:)

[DiggerDoug]

Thank you all, your information is invaluable to me. I have been looking on TES but not seen anything come up. I have looked for Job fairs on the forum but with little luck. Is there a particular thread or website you could point me towards to get me started, thank you. Also what do you mean by a 'real' International school? I have seen this around a lot but by people that are in the know. I know ideally I would read every post on the forum to find the answers but feel this is a wiser course of action. (Side note: again if there is a web page or thread on 'real' international schools please post a link and I'll get stuck in)

Sounds like my best option is to keep my ear to the ground and continue researching and working here to save until late October time. Then get out to Thailand and do some travelling and be in the country when jobs start advertising. My girl friend will have finished her PGCE by then and had a chance to earn some funds too. Worst case scenario, we come back after exhausting our funds travelling around a country we love. Go back and sub and look for UK jobs in 2014.

Sound like a good plan?

P.S I would be happy to teach Math/ICT/Science, they were always my strongest subjects. What do you think my chances of gaining a position teaching one of these subjects (even though it is not my specialist subject)?

In the UK I have found it common that teachers teach multiply subjects, this is something I would like to do. Does this happen in Thailand (apart from your subject plus English EAL)?

Sorry for the overload of questions and many thanks for your responses this is a large decision but your replies really help me to put things in perspective.

[Scott]

What I am referring to by 'real' international schools are those that are licensed/registered/accredited by their home country and the degree from the school is granted all the rights and privileges as any school in that country. The British International Schools, would, for example, follow the British national curriculum.

These schools usually hire directly from the home country and, as I understand it, seldom hire within the country and when they do it is usually due to an urgent and unforeseen situation. The connection between the school, the teachers and the country of origin is quite strong, consequently, we don't get a lot of them posting on this site. (Also they are not needing much advice about teaching in Thailand).

Edited May 30, 2013 by Scott

[DiggerDoug]

Thank you Scott.

[Trembly]

As Scott said, you've just missed the hiring period.

Your only chance, I would think, is to approach the schools directly with your CV and just see what happens.

This article may be of interest.

[DiggerDoug]

Got some great Information from that article. Thank you muchly

[Stradavarius37]

The one thing that I haven't seen mentioned yet - any "real" international school would most likely be hiring teachers with certifications for teaching from their home country. Without that certification - I think the chances of getting a job are low.

[DiggerDoug]

I am a full qualified teacher from the UK so I believe that would count as the correct certifications from my home country would it not?

[Stradavarius37]

I am a full qualified teacher from the UK so I believe that would count as the correct certifications from my home country would it not?

I have no idea - But I would make sure that your "qualified" status is commensurate with the qualifications required for international schools. (i.e. teaching licence for primary/secondary instruction).

[joeaverage]

What I am referring to by 'real' international schools are those that are licensed/registered/accredited by their home country and the degree from the school is granted all the rights and privileges as any school in that country. The British International Schools, would, for example, follow the British national curriculum.

These schools usually hire directly from the home country and, as I understand it, seldom hire within the country and when they do it is usually due to an urgent and unforeseen situation. The connection between the school, the teachers and the country of origin is quite strong, consequently, we don't get a lot of them posting on this site. (Also they are not needing much advice about teaching in Thailand).

the pay and perks are also significantly better if hired out of country.

As with all things, nepotism is key, if you actually know someone in the community, you have a much better in

[mogo51]

My gf if a teacher in Pattay, she is Filipino, but there are still many jobs available for English speaking expats, but you would have to do the TEFOL? cousrse, not sure how much it is about 10k bht maybe, goes for about 4 or 6 weeks. Pay is poor in Pattaya, better in some country areas. Good luck.

[commande]

My gf if a teacher in Pattay, she is Filipino, but there are still many jobs available for English speaking expats, but you would have to do the TEFOL? cousrse, not sure how much it is about 10k bht maybe, goes for about 4 or 6 weeks. Pay is poor in Pattaya, better in some country areas. Good luck.

Not sure but I would guess that this guy isn't looking for a job in Thailand paying 15k-20k-30k baht a month. Even thought that is considered a common wage for Thai's and TCN's (Third Country Nationals) such as the Philippines, someone from the west that understands what living even a lower middle class lifestyle is about would not find it comfortable in Thailand, at least not after a time, Thailand is great if you have money, if not it's like anywhere else.

A decent place to stay in Thailand would be around 15k-25k baht a month, of course the sky is the limit in renting and of course you can go cheaper but the standards drop real fast anywhere below about 12k baht a month.. Western standard condo/apartment maybe only around 30+or- square meters in size plus utilities that are generally doubled in price as the landlord skims money on that side of the monthly payment and yes it's legal and common practice in Thailand - you won't get city water and electric rates. Now add food, transportation, some sort of expenses for lifestyle and your already broke and can't even save enough money per year to get a plane ticket home in event the sky falls.

There are a lot of younger English teachers among others such as Diving Instructors that fall on bad times, it happens, they call mom and dad and ask for a trip home or money to stay, viscous circle of madness in Thailand. In general, unless you either come here with money or employed already with an MNC you will find it very hard to live here for long and maintain any standard of comfort. Some are lucky, well actually very very very few are lucky, most go home in short order. Most people you see in Thailand that are foreigners fall into these categories; not all inclusive or in a particular order of demographic.

1. Retired collecting a pension and benefits from their home country which is well beyond enough to live comfortably in Thailand

2. Retired and opened a small bar, coffee shop, or other business to give them something to do (normally not even making a real profit) using all the money they had after selling everything they owned in their home countries.

3. Transfer here with an MNC (Multi-National Corporation), most common are Oil and Gas Companies, they didn't get the job in Thailand, they where already employed out of the UK, Australia, etc.

4. Tourist & Backpackers

5. English teachers working for little to no money convinced that they will make it big one day and have a life in Thailand forever - 99.9999% never do and are uneducated and couldn't even find a job in their home country beyond taking out the garbage. Most have a Thai girl in tow which makes it hard for them to leave and see reality before it's to late. Generally always ends in a train wreck in the end.

6. People who are hiding from the law

7. All the rest of the international sludge that made it through the airport immigration and never left and many that are not even on a Visa anymore, they hide out up North or down South in the Villages

8. Wealthy business men investing in Thailand, these guys have serious cash, you will most likely never see them or even meet them unless you run in the same circles which would require you to be of equal standing

Good luck.

Edited June 1, 2013 by commande

[DiggerDoug]

Not too sure where that leaves me. I'm a fully qualified teacher who can find work in the UK but I want to find work in Thailand. My girlfriend is also English and is finishing her PGCE within the next couple of weeks. In the ideal world I suppose we would be

9. professional young couples who work hard for rewarding lifestyle.

or

9. professional young couples with deluded ideas of finding a rewarding lifestyle.

?

[commande]

Not too sure where that leaves me. I'm a fully qualified teacher who can find work in the UK but I want to find work in Thailand. My girlfriend is also English and is finishing her PGCE within the next couple of weeks. In the ideal world I suppose we would be

9. professional young couples who work hard for rewarding lifestyle.

or

9. professional young couples with deluded ideas of finding a rewarding lifestyle.

?

It depends on what your definition of rewarding lifestyle is, bottom line you want to come to Thailand and work as a real professional teaching English then that puts you in a Private School, International University or other high end establishment of which most if any don't hire local, You get the job while your in the UK and then move here. It can be done but generally only in this way, not from on the ground in Thailand while you burn through money hoping and praying you get a job. There are some lucky ones though, question is, are you feeling lucky and can you afford to take that risk.

Edited June 1, 2013 by commande

[DiggerDoug]

I'm trying to find work in an international school in

Thailand. (my girlfriend and I are both 27 year old qualified teachers from the

UK) I am thinking about emailing some schools to help out with their summer

camps or even just help out at anytime. The plan is to get as many schools to

say yes and then travel from one to the other helping out. Hopefully we might

make some contacts and help build our CV's. I imagine that this would up our

chances of getting jobs. We have done the normal backpackers holiday and think

this would be an interesting experience, we both have some money saved, although

would wouldn't be able to live a life of luxury. There are some cheap flights

at the moment £475 with a flexible return trip so if it doesn't work out we can

get home and do supply from September, then look for work in November from the UK.

Does anyone have any thoughts about this plan? Should I just

go for it? Or am I deluding myself? Should I save the money we have for if we get a job in November ?

P.s we have no ties here so It makes little difference either way to us. (oh and we're not really wanting to teach English, we're both Design Technology teachers although I'd happily teacher math science or ICT)

Edited June 1, 2013 by DiggerDoug

[aussiebebe]

Hi Diggerdoug, I might be wrong but I think your girlfriend will need to do a year in the UK to get the qualified status? I think this will be easier straight off the course than after a break. You want to get hired from the UK to get the best deals - getting hired over here by schools gets you the 'local hire' package which doesn't include flights. One school where this is plain to see is the British International School Patana - look at their website and it's laid right out in the benefits section. If you are a local hire you don't even get the pension benefit. This is a top-tier school and will value teachers with QTS and years of experience, they'll attend all the main jobs fairs like TIE, Search Associates etc in the UK.

I see your issue with the ESL vacancies - if you look at ajarn dot com right now there's the Thai Japanese Association school hiring, that's an ESL job offered by Bell (UK) paying 70,000baht/month. That's right around what you'd be offered at a lower-tier International school, I've seen Wells Int. school still hiring. I'd take other poster's comments about ESL teachers with a pinch of salt. Read the 'Escape From Thailand' section on the ajarn website - you might see an English teacher in Bangkok earning 35,000baht/month at a Thai university, but they might actually just be finishing off their MA and get a job the next year in a Saudi university for $6,000/month tax-free. Likewise, for all you know a teacher you see in Thailand could have come from a 4-year stint in the middle east having earned considerably more than that, and just be enjoying Thailand for a while. It's not easy to pigeon-hole people.

Edited June 1, 2013 by aussiebebe

[commande]

Saudi, no way I would work there for less than 16k USD a month - just came from there a few months ago doing some consulting work in ICT for a re-org for a major Telecom company... Place sucks for the girls (unless you married she won't be allowed in the country even as a guest) and well not even a movie theater, entertainment is eating and sleeping, spend a considerable amount of money in rent, at least 1200USD a month for a crappy hotel in the city and compounds forget about it unless provided for free. Decent compound 6-12k USD a month.

They generally like to pay in US Dollars is why I quote it here.

Stick with Asia if you want to travel is my opinion.

[Trembly]

Hi Diggerdoug, I might be wrong but I think your girlfriend will need to do a year in the UK to get the qualified status? I think this will be easier straight off the course than after a break. You want to get hired from the UK to get the best deals - getting hired over here by schools gets you the 'local hire' package which doesn't include flights. One school where this is plain to see is the British International School Patana - look at their website and it's laid right out in the benefits section. If you are a local hire you don't even get the pension benefit. This is a top-tier school and will value teachers with QTS and years of experience, they'll attend all the main jobs fairs like TIE, Search Associates etc in the UK.

I see your issue with the ESL vacancies - if you look at ajarn dot com right now there's the Thai Japanese Association school hiring, that's an ESL job offered by Bell (UK) paying 70,000baht/month. That's right around what you'd be offered at a lower-tier International school, I've seen Wells Int. school still hiring. I'd take other poster's comments about ESL teachers with a pinch of salt. Read the 'Escape From Thailand' section on the ajarn website - you might see an English teacher in Bangkok earning 35,000baht/month at a Thai university, but they might actually just be finishing off their MA and get a job the next year in a Saudi university for $6,000/month tax-free. Likewise, for all you know a teacher you see in Thailand could have come from a 4-year stint in the middle east having earned considerably more than that, and just be enjoying Thailand for a while. It's not easy to pigeon-hole people.

That's Bangkok Patana School.

[Sophon]

I'm trying to find work in an international school in

Thailand. (my girlfriend and I are both 27 year old qualified teachers from the

UK) I am thinking about emailing some schools to help out with their summer

camps or even just help out at anytime. The plan is to get as many schools to

say yes and then travel from one to the other helping out. Hopefully we might

make some contacts and help build our CV's. I imagine that this would up our

chances of getting jobs.

<snipped>

On the surface it sounds like a good plan for making contacts, but helping out at summer camp would require work permits and I doubt that any school would be willing to go through the paperwork for such short term help. So any school accepting your help would probably expect you to work illegally without work permit, and I would like to think that none of the quality international schools you are looking at would be willing to do that.

Sophon

[DaBloodyMess]

Although the people that have said the hiring period is over are generally correct, there will still be positions opening up for some international schools before the new school year in August.

Generally teachers are asked in Jan/Feb if they are staying and positions are filled after that... but there are always stragglers/surprise resignations etc. Not to mention the possibility of someone completely skipping out and not coming back from their holidays.

Last year I accepted a job in April, but was still receiving frenzied offers from other schools up until the day before the new school year began. While the prime hiring period has passed, still get your CV's out there now if you are serious about securing a job for next year. For the last minute hires they wont have time for agencies and job fairs, it will be whichever CV's are sitting in front of them that get considered.

Edit: After reading your OP again, I did exactly what you are considering. I came out willing to teach English Language if I had to as a start and just try my luck. I got lucky and walked straight into an international school job. Many of the other teachers here also went through the same process, so it isnt a rare thing to be hired in country.

Also, missing out on benefits because of being an in country hire is a bit of a myth... it is possible that they will try to strip some, but not guaranteed like some here would lead you to believe. Generally you are dealing with foreign heads of school who actually understand your situation and by and large try to do the right thing by their staff.

Edited June 3, 2013 by DaBloodyMess