my plan - get Certified in Chiang Mai then teach in Vietnam - Ajarn Forum

Franklinstein · 30th April 2008, 16:59

hello everyone!

I thought I would start a thread asking about my plan. I am taking some time off from getting my BA in the US to go to SE Asia and try to find a job teaching english. I am going to fly into Bangkok in June and spend a month or two traveling in Thailand, Cambodia, Laos, and Vietnam.

Ideally I would like to teach in Thailand (Chiang Mai in particular) but after spending the last month browsing this and other forums I realize that things are getting more and more difficult for teachers in Thailand (especially with no degree). It appears I will have more pay and less Visa troubles if I choose to teach in Vietnam.

However, I was thinking as a compromise I might take a 4 week certification course in Chiang Mai. Then, if I could not find any work in Thailand, I would move on to Vietnam and search for a job there.

Would a certification from Thailand be useful in Vietnam? I know that many (such as CELTA) are internationally recognized, but for the sake of practicality would it be better for me to take a certification course in Vietnam? Would I have more leads and a better shot at a job in Vietnam if I took the course in nam, or does it not really matter where you get certified?

If I was able to find a school to hire me in Chiang Mai without having a work permit, what is the longest amount of time I would be able to stay in Thailand while doing visa runs. I was reading on thaivisa.com that the one month tourist visa can be renewed twice and you can stay for a total of 90 days within a 6 month span. Isn't there also a 3 month tourist visa that I could get from the Thai embassy in the US? Could I do visa runs to get that extended at all?

Also I read on another forum that some schools (someone mentioned Sarasas) are known to help teachers without a degree in getting a work permit. Is this true and/or possible?

I have ended up asking many more questions than originally intended. I will be very appreciative if you guys could just answer a few of them.

I guess I should give a little more information about myself. I am a 23 year old white native-speaker from North Carolina. I consider myself to be very intelligent, articulate, and capable of becoming a successful teacher. I am a little more than a semester away from getting my BA in History from the College of Charleston in SC. Even though I am so close to finishing I have been stuck in a rut in the US and am dead set on taking time off and moving to SE Asia. I know many of you will tell me to finish my degree and then come out, but I am positive that I need to do this trip now.

I have a decent amount of savings so I am not very concerned with how much I make. If I could break even while I live there that would be great, but I am not opposed to dipping into the savings. If I am faced with a terrible job for little pay, I may just decide to volunteer to teach english at an orphanage or a Buddhist monastary.

I am not a backpacker who is just looking for an excuse to stay and get drunk all the time, and I will definitely take my teaching responsibilities seriously.

Well this is getting to be ridiculously long and I doubt many will take the time to read this whole thing. If anyone wants to give me a heads up on a specific school in Thailand (or Vietnam) that might be possible for me, you can send me a private message or email me at TPFranklin@Hotmail.com

Thanks in advance for any helpful advice.

toong tao daeng · 30th April 2008, 17:04

Welcome to the board!

Chiang Mai is great, but if you really don't think you're going to teach there, I'd recommend taking a certification course in Vietnam---the benefits of this would be that you would presumably have training hours in front of Vietnamese students and local assistance with placement.

Just my two satang.

Good luck.

Topper · 30th April 2008, 17:30

You should also check out SaigonESL.com. From what I remember, the government there prefers to have the TEFL certification course completed in Vietnam.

redhaze · 30th April 2008, 18:37

You are a semester away from graduating? Dude, finish your degree and then come. You take both summer sessions, and you will have your degree in three months, and your job prospects will be vastly improved (ie you can live where you want and make more money). Life will be good.

Cyrille · 30th April 2008, 18:43

Agree.

You prolly 'know many of us will say it' 'cos it's true.

You'd have to be crazy to quit at this stage.

DontTaserMeDude · 30th April 2008, 19:01

You have a good plan. The College of Charleston in SC will always be there if you need a break.

QUOTE: I am not a backpacker who is just looking for an excuse to stay and get drunk all the time.

Does this mean you are a backpacker who gets drunk only some of the time? You can get away with that!

PS: W/ happened to Q-Quote?

naboo · 30th April 2008, 19:11

Quote:

Originally Posted by Cyrille

Agree.

You prolly 'know many of us will say it' 'cos it's true.

You'd have to be crazy to quit at this stage.

Missed that bit. Finish your fucking degree.

My brother has a habit of not finishing/delaying finishing things. He's really paying for it now, can't do what he wants to do. It was only when he came out to LoS with me last year that he realised why i'd put all that work in, why it was neccessary to stick at things even when you didn't want to. He's changed his attitude and finally got his ass into university, completed the essay he needed to complete 2 years ago to get his college certification.

At 19, I didn't want to continue with my degree, stuck in a rut. I continued and completed it. I got a high paying job, was flush with cash for two years. Got sick of it, decided in January 2005 I didn't want to do it anymore. Was about to pack in when I decided I wanted to be a teacher. Worked 8 horrible months until I started my PGCE in September 2005 with money saved. It was worth those 8 months having enough money to go on. Last summer, I was given the option of coming to Thailand and staying, or just spending 6 weeks here. If I did the former, went home for a £5k golden hello and cheap accomodation, I'm currently saving £600/month. Age 25, I'm now going to Thailand in July with a 5 figure GBP bank balance, 3 years teaching in England gaining Qualified Teacher Status along the way, a TEFL course paid and flights paid for and the option to come back to the UK at any point if neccessary and be qualified to earn £25k here, rising year on year. I'm qualified to teach at an international school, hell, I can do what the fuck I want, I just need to find something I can stick at for more than a few of years!

Why am I in such a good position? Because good things come to those who wait. Keep slogging away, not for the present, but for the long term. Fuck this 'live for the moment' attitude, it gets you nowhere further than you are, sets you up no better to do anything you want. Come to Thailand without a degree and you'll regret it. One and a bit more semesters, its nothing.

Franklinstein · 30th April 2008, 19:16

Just pretend I didnt say anything about being that close to graduating. I am definitely coming in a month and am positive this is the right decision for me at this point in my life. I can always come home and finish my degree.

naboo · 30th April 2008, 19:25

You're like my year 11 student who needs to complete 1 piece of coursework (2 hours work) to get 2 C grade GCSEs, but won't come to school because he doesn't like school.

In my opinion, you're making the wrong choice. Think about the difference waiting 6 months could make.

Franklinstein · 30th April 2008, 19:29

From what ive read on the vietnam forums I will definitely be able to get a decent paying job in HCMC if I do the Celta cert. I probably will end up taking the celta in nam. Im still going to spend some time in Chiang Mai to check things out when I travel all over the region this summer.

DontTaserMeDude · 30th April 2008, 19:38

You are definitely doing the right thing since you have the financial end of it sorted. For all you know, you will hate SE Asia and it will be a vacation well spent. You will go back into the Uni studies with a fresh, new perspective.

naboo · 30th April 2008, 19:50

OK, I give up, you want to go to Chiang Mai, but aren't going to because you haven't got a degree. Your decision doesn't make sense to me, but lets be constructive.

Speak to your university. I don't know what your degree is, but I know that in my degree I had some flexibility in my final year as to what I studied. Is there any way you can find an English teaching qualification or some grammar course that will count as credits to your final semester? I don't know if this is possible but its an idea I'd look into in your position. Speak to your university tutors, find out any links they have, eg the University of Nottingham where I studied has links all over the world where students can study with credits counting towards a degree, they even have a university of Nottingham campus in China. Kill two birds with one stone.

Franklinstein · 30th April 2008, 20:06

thanks for the advice regarding my degree situation, but let's move past that.

It might be better for me if I did celta in nam, but isnt the point of celta that no matter where you take it it is regulated by celta in the uk and recognized all over?

In vietnam, would a celta from chiang mai look worse than a celta from the us or uk?

DontTaserMeDude · 30th April 2008, 20:17

Quote:

Originally Posted by Franklinstein

It might be better for me if I did celta in nam, but isnt the point of celta that no matter where you take it it is regulated by celta in the uk and recognized all over?

In vietnam, would a celta from chiang mai look worse than a celta from the us or uk?

You answered your own question.

I think the nay-sayers are making invalid assumptions about your situation. You said you had the financial end sorted, so it will be easy to do this exploratory trip.

Franklinstein · 30th April 2008, 20:22

got to go for a while. Thanks for the responses. I posted this over on dave's forum and havent gotten any replies at all.