Thread: walen skool of tie, stoodint visa one yaw. u knowing?

Originally Posted by 3leggedkitty

i have been checking out this walen school of thai language advertised on this site, and am srsly considering enrolling, not just for the fun of learning thai, but to get that big fat juicy one year student visa. 800usd i think was the tuition for one year.


what i'm axing is if anyone has taken advantage of this, if it's a good way to get a toehold in the country, and if it really does score you the visa.

i like travelling but going to phnom penh or wherever every 3 months sounds like a drag.

your insight, opinions and advice, i am thankful for.

This school has been discussed on other threads. If you are currently living in a western country, I believe that you can do get your Thai visa at a local consulate very easily.

I got mine ED Visa in USA with a simple letter indicating that I would be attending a particular language school in Bangkok (not Whalen). The school simple sent me a letter indicating that I intended to enroll. Once I had the visa, there was absolutely no system in place to make sure that I was really attending. But I think there is almost no chance of getting that kind of thing done at a closer Thai embassy such as Penang, Vientiane, etc.

I spent my first two years here on legitimate ED visas. Do a little research, you'll figure it out.

keep us posted with the deal you go for in the end, will ya? Curious myself

I think Walen is doing very well with the Ed visa thing, in fact I heard they handle quite a big volume of applications so they've probably got a good system in place. But as with all these things, you pay for the priviledge. You either pay for someone to do all the running around Bangkok or you do it yourself and save some money.

I've got a feeling in my water that this ED visa is a 'loophole' that won't last forever. It might be unfair to call it a loophole but at the end of the day, it's a convenient way of staying in Thailand indefinitely - and we know from past experience, it's only a matter of time before the authorities take a dim view of things and close the option off.

re: studying at uni.

you could also try that and get your ed. visa for 4 years.

try Ramkhamhaeng uni. »ÃЪÒÊÑÁ¾Ñ¹¸ì don't know why this looks wonky. have tried pasting many times now with no change. sorry.

I've met a bloke doing this, and he said it was easy peasy with no probs.

yes you know, my first thought was not loophole so much as scam o rama, which of course is not the optimum means of setting up my near future, but i thought hey, 800bux and i'm learning language plus getting the visa...

i think i've been living in asia too long and getting more um, pragmatic, morally speaking. i really would like though, to just start uni full on, i know nothing about the uni process at all though, except that several of them are english language.

i will have to make a decision quickly far as the walen wailers option goes, but it seems likely that i'll take the loophole action first off, to kill the anxiety of having to travel and shit. that will be almost a quarter of my transition money, but i may be starting work over there immediately, and if not i can always borrow money from them should it be a lengthy delay.


the best part tho is i'm not skeerd, there's always another plan b, there's always cambodia and any number of other countries.

hey exploring this ramkanheng uni i see the first semester begins in june, which is a huge help...

except that only undergrad program is b.a. english. oh well i didn't want to finish that philosophy program anyway.

RE: Ramkamhaeng Uni

I saw this: International Graduate Diploma in Teaching Profession (English Program) in Thailand

And I wonder what those studies would be worth here if I were to complete their "Graduate Diploma in Teaching Profession" ? Would that make me extra-employable for the "good" teaching jobs here or would I better advised to do a DELTA (the TEFL Dip.) ?

Originally Posted by tomix

RE: Ramkamhaeng Uni

I saw this: International Graduate Diploma in Teaching Profession (English Program) in Thailand

And I wonder what those studies would be worth here if I were to complete their "Graduate Diploma in Teaching Profession" ? Would that make me extra-employable for the "good" teaching jobs here or would I better advised to do a DELTA (the TEFL Dip.) ?

that was my thought, that it was tailored for foreigners to teach in thailand.


it says future english teachers please note:

(in the english program)


At IIS-RU, you can also study the Graduate Diploma in Teaching Profession. With this, you fully meet the requirements for a teacher license in Thailand. Application requirement is a bachelor degree in any field from an accredited university accepted by the Royal Thai Ministry of Education.

You can even transfer the credits earned from the Graduate Diploma in Education to the M.Ed. Master of Education program at IIS-RU if you want to further your education later.

well it is looking like thailand really is my best option to try consolidate myself before i become completely decrepit and unemployable. i'm going to apply for this english b.a. program.

though i may do the walen thing once i weigh the cost with making visa runs until june.