Thailand seems to be a land that never wants to let people go because once you are there it captures your heart. This makes it a great place to visit as the people and culture are every welcoming. If your want to travel to a new part of the world and teach English while you are there to pay for it, then Thailand is a great place to go. This movement toward “slow traveling”, which means becoming a part of the culture you are visiting to really experience all that the people and the land has to offer. There are a few tips a person needs to know in order to become a teacher in Thailand.

The first tip is to make sure that you are qualified to teach in any school by completing your TEFL or TESOL certificate. This along with a four year degree is all that most schools are going to require. These certificates are specifically designed training for teaching English as a second or foreign language. Just because you speak English well doesn’t mean that you are a good teacher. Experience is a plus but we all have to start somewhere and being qualified will give you that chance. It is a good idea to know if you are really well qualified or not before you move off to Thailand with the dream of teaching English, because it won’t happen if you aren’t qualified.

Learning to speak a little bit of the Thai language would be a great start. It will be difficult to communicate with people in any real way unless you know a bit of the language. It doesn’t have to be perfect but there should be some sort of comprehension of the native tongue, otherwise the interview process will be difficult. Remember that you are becoming a part of their culture not the other way around, at least make the effort to be a part of it by learning the language. It will help in getting a job and also in immersing in the culture. Learning is a two way street and it will simply help broaden the horizons and prospects of the foreigner teaching English in Thailand.

Thailand is one of the places that make it easier to find a job from home before you depart to visit the Land of Smiles. This gives the potential teacher the advantage of looking through the prospective schools and finding one that they like in a region that is most suitable to their personality. Some may be happy with the hustle of Bangkok but someone else may want to experience a more rural existence. The school year in Thailand begins in May and runs all the way to the following March, with major breaks in April and October. Like all school calendars everywhere there will be holidays where there is no school. Most jobs are filled the month before the term is scheduled to open and provides each person with enough time to travel where they want to go and get settled before the school term starts. Most companies that hire teachers allow for a six month contract which will give a person plenty of time to spend in the most beautiful country in the world.


For more information about teaching jobs in Thailand visit our website: http://teachinginthailand.bravesites.com/entries/general/how-to-thrive-in-thailand