I’m sure many of you are wondering this, whether or not there are teaching jobs in Thailand for NNES (non-native English speakers). In fact, I was one of those just 6 months ago. Let me tell you my story, and give my honest opinion on it.
Your qualifications and experience
Be honest with yourself. What kind of a degree have you got? In most cases, they want you to have at least a Bachelor’s degree, preferably in your own field. If you fancy teaching in an expensive and posh private school, they often require a degree in education as well. If you already have some teaching experience that’s a big advantage. If you know Thai culture and perhaps speak a little bit of Thai, all the better.
Our EP (English Program) motto
TEFL/TESOL/CELTA
If you are a non-native English speaker and planning on teaching English in any school that takes teaching seriously, you have to have one of these. Preferably it would be a course with 120 hours, including teaching observation. You can do a TEFL course online nowadays, but I’d say that you increase your chances a whole lot if you have done your certification in a reputable TEFL school/ institute. It can be in Thailand or overseas.
Check out the testimonials before making your decision. I did mine at Paradise TEFL on Koh Phangan and couldn’t be happier with my choice. If you already have some teaching experience and/or degree, then an online course might perhaps be ok.
Bear in mind that reputable TEFL/language schools often have valuable contacts to teaching world, and they can help you find a suitable placement. Your TEFL teacher can also (hopefully) give you references if you have done your best and completed the course satisfactorily.
English or something else?
If English is your only skill then you are facing fiercer competition, compared to eg. teaching math or science. Nowadays almost everyone who has a decent education can speak English. It is not special or unique anymore. Young people learn English on the internet, movies, video games etc. They acquire the skill easily. Knowing English is kind of the minimum requirement. For a more detailed list of pros and cons of teaching English overseas, check out this post: a complete guide to teaching English abroad.
If you plan to teach English, you better be good at it. If you plan to teach for instance physics, PE or Chinese, you don’t need to sound a native English speaker. A good command of English comes in handy, though.
Students having fun
Are you willing to work somewhere remote?
I wouldn’t advise you to fantasize on those more sought-after locations, such as Koh Samui, Phuket, Chinag Mai or Bangkok. Many farangs want to live in prime holiday and beach destinations where there is plenty of sun, sand and sea, or in an intriguing and vibrant city.
The farther you are willing to travel, the more you increase your chances of getting hired. Look for vacancies eg. in Isan, South, near the Malaysian border or up in the North (excluding Chiang Mai which has a healthy expat community) and embrace the laid-back countryside lifestyle.
The ugly truth
I am sorry if this hurts someone’s feelings. I’m not happy to write this either. This is how it is, however, unfortunately. Thailand is still quite backward in terms of skin colour. It’s not said out loud but often they prefer to have a Caucasian, over, let’s say a dark-skinned African. This country seems to be fixated with a fair complexion anyway.
You have probably noticed how beauty parlours and chemists are full of whitening creams and often Thais dodge sunlight so they wouldn’t get any tan. For Thais, having a fairer complexion means that you belong to the middle class and can have a nice office (inside) job. If you have a darker complexion it can imply that you work outside, and need to do manual labour (which is arduous and doesn’t pay well).
One reason for the reluctance to hire someone from Africa can be that apparently there is some human trafficking from certain African countries. These people are brought here to work yet receive very little to no compensation. I don’t know much about this topic, though so I won’t write any more than these few lines.
Despite all this, you can find all nationalities, with different skin tones working side-by-side in Thai schools. And this is how it should be. I made a big issue out of this to my students, explaining that racism under any circumstances is unacceptable. I hope the younger generation will bring about changes.
Salary
Expect to settle for less, if you are a NNES and with little or no teaching experience. I think 30 000 baht/ month seems to be a typical salary if you have ticked all the correct boxes. Some nationalities might be getting less and some nationalities also settle for less. These days, there are many Filipinos working in Thailand and I am under the impression that some of them settle for considerably less for multiple reasons, such as competition from other Filipinos or because of the economic situation of their home country which forces them to find work overseas.
Other factors
I believe there is a little bit more demand for female teachers. This is especially true if you are trying to find work in kindergarten or with younger children. Your age can also be a contributing factor. Often they prefer to have younger, rather than older teachers.
How I got my teaching job in Thailand (even though I’m a non-native English speaker)?
Okay, so my original idea was to teach English as well. I got my TEFL certification about 10 months ago. I didn’t start looking for jobs straight away because I did yoga teacher training as well and wanted to relax after completing these two courses.
My initial idea was to go to Vietnam because the salary is a bit higher there and it would’ve been quite close to Thailand and therefore, easy to take my dog with me. But as it turned out, they wouldn’t consider me for a full-time position, because I wasn’t a native English speaker, and I didn’t want to get a part-time job either. I needed to change my plan completely and do it fast! I had already spent way too much money. Don’t be alarmed by this anecdote, though, I’d still recommend teaching English in Vietnam because I know some people have really enjoyed it and as I mentioned, the pay is better than in Thailand.
I applied to quite a few schools and got multiple offers in the end. I wasn’t too picky about the location. Both north and south were just fine with me. I got interested in teaching Social Studies because it seemed a very versatile subject and I have studied quite a few things starting with “social”. By the way, if you don’t know what Social Studies entails, have a look at my guest blog post on Ajarn.com. And it’s okay not to know. I didn’t know either.
What’s more, I also made my background check, and both Rayong and the school seemed nice. So, off I packed my things and moved to the other side of The Gulf of Siam.
As you see, my teaching career didn’t have the smoothest start. However, I can assure you that there are teaching jobs in Thailand for non-native English speakers. Perhaps in my case, I was also lucky because the semester was just about to start and the schools were desperate to fill out any remaining positions. But whatever the reason was, it got me my first job, and I’m happy about that.
Dreaming of a teaching job in Thailand as a non-native English speaker? It is possible
If you have any questions I’m happy to help but, unfortunately, I am not able to help you with finding work. This is something you need to do on your own. Good luck to all of you, I hope you find what you are looking for!
Do I have chance to teach english abroad even though I graduated BS in Computer Science? I’m planning to get a TEFL course next month.
Hi Jane! Usually any Bachelor degree is good enough. But if you are a non-native speaker like I am you have to be prepared to work twice as hard to find work. Some countries choose only native speakers (might be required by the law) whereas others are more flexible. One option would be teaching Computer Science in English! Find suitable Facebook groups or internet sites (like Ajarn in Thailand) to get a better idea who’s teaching what and what are the requirements in that particular country. Good luck, Jane!
Hi,
My name is Santosh Rai. I have been teaching English and Social Studies over two decades.I love to teach in Thailand.
Nice to hear, Santosh Rai =)
Am JAGWE SSELUWANO, from Uganda but am currently staying in Bangkok and am looking for a teaching job in English, Science and Social Studies.
Anyone who can recruit me is highly welcome and am ready to start immediately once am given an opportunity to join your team
I’m wishing you good luck with the job hunting, Jagwe. Unfortunately, I don’t work at that school anymore (and not teaching in Thailand at the moment overall). Best to look for work outside of Bangkok and the main tourist cities because there is less competition.
Did you find and apply for those jobs online, or did you have to be already in Thailand and do it by yourself?
I was already in Thailand and they usually prefer it like this. Ajarn is a good site for finding work. I found mine through it. Good luck for job hunting!
I am currently in Nigeria and I am really interested in teaching in Thailand. I do have a degree in Education and English/Literature. I also have good knowledge of computer and social studies. I plan to come to Thailand and take a TEFL course. How do you suggest I go about it.
Also, do u know any African Black teaching in Japan?
Hi Emmanuel! It might be easier finding work outside teaching English (eg. Computer science, Science etc) but not saying it would be impossible finding English teaching work. For English teaching though, you need to have a neutral accent (whereas in other subjects it might not be a top priority though does make a difference). Here are some tips when trying to decide which TEFL course to choose https://hammockstories.blog/best-tefl-course-in-thailand/
Unfortunately, I don’t know about teaching in Japan. Good luck to you!
Hi i am a primary school trained teacher. I would love to teach in Thailand i an worried about my age as i am 50. Maths and food science are also my speciality areas. I am currently a chef teacher at an international school in nz. What are your suggestions.
Hi Paul. Yes, Thais prefer younger teachers, unfortunately =( I’ve heard stories about older teachers who are getting tired of being rejected because of their age. However, I don’t know if that’s the whole truth. Probably better to contact the schools directly and ask them. Wishing you good luck!
Hi, I am considering a change of pace in my professional path and thinking of teaching English abroad, preferably in Asia (not strictly Thailand). I am a non native speaker though and I am almost 40; Italian is my mother tongue and I have an extensive working experience in the field of marketing (although neither in teaching nor education). What do you reckon? is being around 40 considered too old to start a career as an English (non-native) speaker? would it be easier finding a job as an Italian language teacher or marketing? do you know if there is some demand for Italian (or marketing) teachers? Thanks in advance for your answer!
Hi, I had a very good friend teaching Italian and French at Rayong where I was teaching. So I think there might be a niche for that if you are lucky. About marketing, I can’t say really. I think 40 might still be ok if you still look the part (at least in Thailand). I don’t know about the other Asian countries how they perceive this age issue. Would be probably better to go on the spot and try places a bit out of the way which are not that popular. Would get your foot in the door easier. Best of luck!
Hi,
I’m planning to to TEFL in Thailand in Chiang Mai University.. Planning to join the batch which starts on april 22, 2019 and ends on may 17, 2019. Is it a good time to do the course (as schools reopen in june, there will be more opportunities) or will it be better to do the course early in March so that I will have more time finding a job? Which one do you suggest?
Hi! I’d suggest doing the earlier one. And also as a novice teacher, bear in mind that the opportunities for finding a dream place are somewhat limited. Be prepared to travel to more remote locations and you will increase your chances of finding work. Best of luck!
Well sir I liked your article for being told by someone who seems to have suffered in the skin the consequences of not being an English speaker country. I don’t know what your color or your race is, but your words and that matters. Now I have two questions: I heard that having a good score on TOEFL, TOEIC or other and possible depending on the school being a non native speaker. Would it be true that is mandatory,compulsory to have a BA still in any area?
And another question: Is there any online course that will allow me to improve my level of English and thus take a good score in these tests? My level and intermediary if I had an online course would be good since I can not and I do not think it pays to go now only when the level improves.
A good TOEFL etc score would definitely increase your chances of finding work. I don’t know what you mean by BA so can’t answer that, unfortunately. You can find different online courses on the web. I don’t have any particular on my mind that I could recommend.
Hi,
Thank you for providing us with such useful information which enlightened me and cheered me up cos I was losing hope for applying as a non-native English speaker.
I am a persian (so called Iranian) and I’m not sure whether my nationality is considered positively or not. I have 2 questions. My 1st question is : Have you by any chance seen a persian working in Thailand as an esl teacher?
And my 2nd is: Can you name some of the schools you’ve seen NNES have worked in? the city doesn’t really matter
BTW, I have CELTA and BA in translation studies. I’d appreciate if you tell me how do you see my chances. Any advice would be appreciated.
Hi! Unfortunately, I don’t know how Thais would react to your nationality nor have I seen any Iranian teaching in Thailand. Similarly, I can’t name any specific schools. Read my other posts about my teaching time in Thailand and you will find at least one hint =) Anyway, it’s best to go there before the recruiting season with some savings in your pocket, and not be picky about the location. This would be my advice. Good luck!
I have been applying for a teaching job in Bangkok since last two 3 months and I have applied for almost 40+ schools. But unfortunately, I have got no reply from any schools. I have almost six years of teaching experience, however, it’s difficult to get a teaching job if you are not a Native Speaker or from EU.
Are you in Thailand already? Because they prefer the people to be in the country so they know that you’d be ready to start asap. Furthermore, it’s best to apply for schools that are more remote. It will improve your chances of finding work. Good luck!