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[chiang mai]

I think the question the OP needs to answer is this:

You have two choices and your present leaning is towards staying in Thailand to study and teach versus returning to the UK to learn a trade or skill. If in say ten years your current choice turns sour and doesn't work out for whatever reason, can you recover and will your other current option still be possible? If the answer is no then you're putting all your eggs into one basket rather than giving yourself future options and that's risky.

[markg]

silsburyhill, on 2012-01-19 21:21:36, said:

Most of those I've met working in TEFL here are in it because they have no other viable option to sustain themselves or their Thai 'lifestyle'.

At your age, unless you are a committed teacher, go get another skill set (not on-line, looks naff on your future resume), or go teach in Korea. Big bucks.And it's still Asia, albeit colder climate, but nicest people.

Make up your mind soon as. Time's a'wasting.

There is online and there is online. I have an online degree from a UK university. It was three years of extremely hard work, research, essays and a thesis. It's the exact same degree that you would get if you attended the university in person for 3 years EXCEPT i was also holding down a full time job here in Thailand too. Far from being looked down upon, the right sort of online degree is looked UP upon ! To do a full on degree whilst having a full time job is much harder than just doing one or the other ! Of course, some self accredited 'universities' will confer a 'degree' on you for doing minimal or even no work at all. I'm not talking about them. I did mine with Anglia Ruskin University in England which is a proper university. My degree certificate does not mention that it was done as either distance learning or online. If you've got the self-motivation, then i'd recommend it as a more cost effective way of getting a degree without the hassle of having to move back to the UK for 3 years. It sure aint for everyone though. The drop out rate was 40 or 50 percent with no refund.

[TomJoad]

My Advice:  Stay here until you're sure what to do.    Just don't be like a lot of long-term westerners and begin thinking because you're making more money than the Thai teachers (who work harder & longer hours than we do & put up with a lot more b.s. than we'll ever know), you're somehow more valuable or more talented.   The truth is, we're taking advantage of an unfair situation and one of these days, the Thais are going to wise up and kick us out.

[JiveTalker]

Not many people in the UK can save what you are saving each month. If you enjoy teaching in general then perhaps it's time to find a better job. If not, save some money and move on once you graduate.

To those of you knocking on-line degrees, stop it. It is 2012 now. On-line degrees are as applicable and as valuable these days as any other degree. More and more young people are doing on-line degrees because of the reduced cost.

[SlyAnimal]

imo - move to somewhere else in Thailand and check out the teaching opportunities there instead.  Now is the best time in your life to travel and experience something new and different.

Don't spend it dicking around in Bangkok, because Bangkok is just a huge, sprawling mass of people and not a particularly nice place to live.

Or, instead of trying somewhere else in Thailand, try somewhere else in the world.  You could spend a year in south america, or somewhere else in Asia, or even in Europe or Africa.  Travel the world, experience what it has to offer.  You're only young once, when you get older you won't be able to pick up and move so easily because you'll have a wife and kids in tow.

You should be able to teach in England aswell, I have no idea what the jobs are like there, but in NZ there are tonnes of English language schools, and they want people who have experience teaching already, not just job blogs off the street.

As far as your retirement etc goes, save what you can, invest it.  You don't have to save huge amounts each year so long as you start doing it at an early age.  If you're planning on retiring in say Thailand or another country where the cost of living isn't too high, then what you're making a large amount at present, and saving a lot.  Remember, each month you're saving around 2x what a Thai university graduate would make each month (and then their cost of living comes out of that).  I'm pretty sure that if you continue at that rate, or even if you save half of that every month, you'll be sweet as for retirement, particularly if you invest it well so that it starts to earn a half decent return aswell.

Alternatively of course, work your arse off in the UK for the next 35 years, then come back to Thailand or South America or something to live out the sunset of your life in luxury.  But imo just live the super relaxed world wandering lifestyle for now until you find a country which you love enough to settle down in (Or perhaps just where ever you find a nice girl to settle down with)

[mrdome]

Quote

"5. Teaching, in my opinion, is a calling."

Oh, so true. In my humble opinion's the OP's first question should not be "where should I be?" but "do I really want to teach for perhaps decades more to come or is teaching just a means to the end of staying in a place I've fallen out of love with at the moment?"

[FiscalFizz]

China, South Korea, Japan.  Ever look into South America OP?  Sounds like you are sick of city life in Bangkok, not TEFLing.

I am in America right now in one of the hardest hit places by this world "recession".  Detroit, Michigan.  I graduated with a B.B.A in marketing 5 years ago and worked my way up to a director of marketing for a small business outside of detroit.  I made enough to buy a starter house and a new Chevy to zip around in.  I could go out and eat and buy a new LCD TV and all that crap.  You know what, up until I got fired from that job last month, I was aboslutely miserable.  I had no savings because I was stuck in the consumer hamster wheel.  Going out to the movies with the girlfriend, dinner, beer, my mortage was 800$ a month for a 1200 sq ft shit home.

You are saving close to 1000$ USD per month.  I am 26 and about to start my TEFLing journey this year.  I almost feel the opposite of some of the people posting here.  While I have never TEFLed and am a complete noob, as stated above I have experience working back in the western-world.

You are never to young to do what you want. You are never to young to get an education.  Gaps in your life on a resume don't mean as much as the hamster wheel system and society make it out to be.  Sure, you should get at least a bachelors degree in something or learn some trade skill.  But you know what brother, you can learn to weld or build furniture or get a MBA from Harvard at age 35, age 45, age 55 if you want.  Don't ever let society or indviduals tell you that you have to follow a certain path.  What if the next person you meet out on your journey could lead you to an important discovery or point in your life?  That might come in the form of your next job, who knows.

Shit sucks back here in the United States, I have never been, but it doesn't sound any less shitty in the England or any part of the western world for that matter.

Just don't get suckered back into the rat race by societal pressures and outside influences.  Listen and take it all in, but be your own man.

Cheers from Mo-Town

Edited by FiscalFizz, 2012-01-28 11:00:58.

[markg]

FiscalFizz, on 2012-01-28 10:56:20, said:

China, South Korea, Japan.  Ever look into South America OP?  Sounds like you are sick of city life in Bangkok, not TEFLing.

I am in America right now in one of the hardest hit places by this world "recession".  Detroit, Michigan.  I graduated with a B.B.A in marketing 5 years ago and worked my way up to a director of marketing for a small business outside of detroit.  I made enough to buy a starter house and a new Chevy to zip around in.  I could go out and eat and buy a new LCD TV and all that crap.  You know what, up until I got fired from that job last month, I was aboslutely miserable.  I had no savings because I was stuck in the consumer hamster wheel.  Going out to the movies with the girlfriend, dinner, beer, my mortage was 800$ a month for a 1200 sq ft shit home.

You are saving close to 1000$ USD per month.  I am 26 and about to start my TEFLing journey this year.  I almost feel the opposite of some of the people posting here.  While I have never TEFLed and am a complete noob, as stated above I have experience working back in the western-world.

You are never to young to do what you want. You are never to young to get an education.  Gaps in your life on a resume don't mean as much as the hamster wheel system and society make it out to be.  Sure, you should get at least a bachelors degree in something or learn some trade skill.  But you know what brother, you can learn to weld or build furniture or get a MBA from Harvard at age 35, age 45, age 55 if you want.  Don't ever let society or indviduals tell you that you have to follow a certain path.  What if the next person you meet out on your journey could lead you to an important discovery or point in your life?  That might come in the form of your next job, who knows.

Shit sucks back here in the United States, I have never been, but it doesn't sound any less shitty in the England or any part of the western world for that matter.

Just don't get suckered back into the rat race by societal pressures and outside influences.  Listen and take it all in, but be your own man.

Cheers from Mo-Town

Why on Earth do you think that TEFLing is NOT part of the rat race? Just because you do it in, say, Bangkok, it's still the rat race if you compare like-for-like. If you buy a house or apartment here (as you did in Detroit) then you have a mortgage to pay. You got fired from your last job? You think it's different here? TEFLing is a dog-eat-dog world my friend, with many MANY school directors swapping out teachers like used light bulbs. I work the same, if not more hours than i ever did in the UK. Going out to the movies, dinner and beer is actually what a lot of TEFLers do too. If you were on the consumer hamster wheel in the States, you may very well find yourself back on it here. Thailand is obsessed with consumerism and how you 'look'. I know Thai people who spent 2 months wages on an iPhone 4. I know Thai people living in 6,000baht a month rooms so that they can afford the 12,000 baht a month payments on their new Toyota Vios. I don't know anyone back home that pays double their rent just on the latest motor car. Reason for my post is that over the years, i've met many people who came out here thinking it was an easier life than back home. Many of them quickly became disillusioned !

[Scott]

A little off-topic, markg, but very true and very insightful.

[jji23]

Ditto Markg,

If you think you're escaping the rat race believe me your not. In fact, some of the stuff that the teachers at my school are given to do, or policies that are set make me feel that working back home was better! Yeah I was slogging it on the Underground etc but at least I had some efficiency etc. The phrase 'if it aint broke don't fix it' couldn't be more applied to my school.

Also, I have to say that all this stuff about teaching being a calling I agree with. However, in Thailand, no not true. Let's be honest, I'd say 90% of teachers here, came out travelling or on holiday and thought 'hmm how/what can I do to stay there' discovered TEFLing and away they went. That's what happened to me. But during my time here as a teacher I have discovered that it is an amazing job that I really enjoy. It's something I could see myself doing back in the UK.

At least I know that I will never work in another Thai School again. So, I'm pretty limited in terms of my options. Stay here for a few more years, finish my online degree and then go back. Or, say enough is enough go back and start at a Uni doing Primary Education.

I did fail to mention that I am emotionally tied here! Which does hinder a decision, but she has said I should go back if I feel it's the right thing.

[FiscalFizz]

jji23, on 2012-02-02 09:28:19, said:

Ditto Markg,

If you think you're escaping the rat race believe me your not. In fact, some of the stuff that the teachers at my school are given to do, or policies that are set make me feel that working back home was better! Yeah I was slogging it on the Underground etc but at least I had some efficiency etc. The phrase 'if it aint broke don't fix it' couldn't be more applied to my school.

Also, I have to say that all this stuff about teaching being a calling I agree with. However, in Thailand, no not true. Let's be honest, I'd say 90% of teachers here, came out travelling or on holiday and thought 'hmm how/what can I do to stay there' discovered TEFLing and away they went. That's what happened to me. But during my time here as a teacher I have discovered that it is an amazing job that I really enjoy. It's something I could see myself doing back in the UK.

At least I know that I will never work in another Thai School again. So, I'm pretty limited in terms of my options. Stay here for a few more years, finish my online degree and then go back. Or, say enough is enough go back and start at a Uni doing Primary Education.

I did fail to mention that I am emotionally tied here! Which does hinder a decision, but she has said I should go back if I feel it's the right thing.

Right on!    I understand that anytime/anywhere you work a full time, 40 hour a week job, there is some kind of "rat race" for lack of a better term, going on.  The main kicker in my response above to You JJ was this-  You stated he is saving 1000$ per month!   I don't know of anyone who is litterally saving that much money.  It seems like the more money people make here in the USA, the more debt they tend to accumulate because they go out and finance bigger houses, better cars, bigger televisions.

The average salary for a teacher is about 1000$ USD per month in thailand...... if you are saving that much and are young, why leave to go back to the UK???  That was my point.

Also, a 5-10 year gap in your resume doesn't mean a thing when you can  A- Prove you can sell something, anything, service or product- B- Start your own business.

While very rare- I know guys with a High-School diploma that work in pharmaceutical sales making 300,000$ USD per year.   There are always people out there willing to pay very nicely if you can make them a bunch of money.

Have you thought about opening your own business.  Are you that type of person?  Do you find yourself coming up with unique ideas out of no where?  Being self-employed is something to think about.   ( I sure do, I write them down and tell no one).

I would love to hear back from you JJ once you decide what you are doing.

Good luck.

Edited by FiscalFizz, 2012-02-03 03:51:58.

[BlackArtemis]

Just found this topic interesting as I am planning on the opposite.
I for one would say get back home as fast as possible if you are not happy there, that is going to be your best choice.
I am 29 and just graduated w/ my second BS, this time in BSED Biology and a minor in Earth sciences.
I have been wanting to move back to Thailand since I have set foot back in the US, I love the US, but I feel Thailand is more my home.
I am looking at returning and have a few options.
I have calculated that a modest international school job and some tutoring or a higher paying bilingual school and a steady amount of tutoring would be more than enough to support me and save up a few hundred thousand USD by retirement.
Though my options are bit more open as I can return home and teach or move to a different area of the world and teach as well.

Do what is best for you, but plan out your future as well.
good luck