Nicole Munsami

Ever since I was a little girl, I had dreamt of traveling the world, it was the desire to make this dream come true that pushed me out of my comfort zone as an introvert, to take my first international trip all alone, to go stand and talk in front of hundreds of people, to meet new people, to make friends from all over the world and to make a home in a foreign land, the day I landed I was so far from my comfort zone that I had no choice but to embrace it and learn. This was the best decision of my life. Travel has changed me, it has taught me so much about myself and given me the “I can make it happen attitude”. My journey has taught me that faith makes all things possible and that all our dreams can come true if we have the courage to pursue it. So a lot of people who know me and know my story, know that if I can do it then anyone can, for that reason my Instagram DM and Messenger has been full of questions on this topic for the past few years and I love helping people with this so thought it was about time I blog about it. Why Teach In Thailand? Well, if you’re reading this post then chances are you’re already considering teaching in Thailand but if you still need convincing, here’s what makes it awesome: High salaries, low cost of living - ​Teachers usually get paid between R10 000 and R15 000 per month - To live comfortably you would need to spend about R5000 per month, that includes rent, food, transport and even meeting up with friends on the weekend. This will allow you to save at least half of your salary every month Beautiful Locations - ​Google pictures of beaches in Phuket, Similan or Phi Phi, the mountains in Chiang Mai or Pai, or the city lights in Bangkok. That should be enough to convince you. The Experience -​​ Even if you aren’t planning on living in Thailand for the rest of your life, take one year and go experience being an expat, make friends from all over the world, eat different types of food, change the lives of the kids you teach, no, actually allow them to change your life…. You will not regret it​. Ready to go? How to Teach in Thailand There are two ways you can do this but it will depend massively on preference and experience: I will list out the pros and cons of both for you: Go through an agency: So when I went to Thailand for the first time this is what I did, I used ​OVC​ and they were great, really helpful but if you clicked the link then you know now that they’re also really expensive. The cost is worth it though for someone who needs the help and feeling of security an agency gives you. Pros Cons They will help with Visas, Flights and Airport Pick Up and Accomodation It’s more than double the cost of doing it on your own. They will arrange everything with your TEFL Trainers. Even after you pay OVC and your course fees, the TEFL school gets you placed through an agency who takes a cut of your salary. You will make friends instantly at the course South Africans and other nationalities this is one of the best pros if you’re going alone. You won’t get to choose the location you want to work, you will have to work where they manage to place you. Unfortunately, they do discriminate on people of color so the color of your skin will also also determine where you get placed and how much you get paid. Online TEFL Course & Go on your Own: Thailand was my first international trip so I know that all of you who are reading this and haven’t travelled yet are thinking “Has she lost her mind?” but hear me out, if you go through an agency you will get so much of help before leaving, while on training you will even get help there but as soon as you’re placed, unless it’s with a friend, you’re on your own. They don’t even have a standard mode of transportation to take you to where you’re placed, they will tell you where you’re placed and you will have to decide how you’re going to get there. I’m not trying to scare you, I’m just saying that whichever way you do this you will need to figure things out on your own. As I said before, this is really a matter of preference, look at the pros and cons and then decide what’s best for you. So my experience doing this is a whole other post but long story short, I hated where I was placed. I wanted to be in Phuket, so I quit the job the course guaranteed me and went to Phuket even after everyone telling me that the color of my skin will make it nearly impossible to get a job there. I did get a job there and stayed there for 2 years, while I was there I met a South African guy that was also teaching, he said that he paid R2000 for an ​Online TEFL Certificate​, he started looking for jobs online, got some interviews and then paid for a flight to Thailand - he spent under R10 000 in total! I felt like a complete idiot, I spent around R50 000, well actually more than that because I didn’t end up liking where I was placed and moved anyway but it was that much of a price difference for 2 people who ended up in the same place and earning the same amount of money. At first, I forced myself to believe that the price difference was worth it because of the security I had as a first time traveler but when I stopped lying to myself I realized that from the moment I stepped into King Shaka International Airport that day, I was on my own, I had to figure things out myself, when I got to the airport in Krabi and my luggage was left behind in Jo’burg, I had to figure things out myself, when I hated the location I was placed in and wanted to be anywhere but there, I had to figure things out myself. The point is whichever of these two options you choose, you will have to figure things out yourself and that’s not a bad thing, everything is learning experience and it will be the best experiences of your life. Okay, rant over. Now pros and cons: Pros Cons You will save a whole lot of money. If you’re going alone, it’s not as easy to make friends as it is on the course. You get to choose your location from the start, I will add some job boards under this table, once you have you TEFL, start applying. If you haven’t travelled before you’re going to put in a lot of research time to figure out how things work. The job you get will be yours, no middleman. It’s not the TEFL school that discriminates skin color, many schools in Thailand do that but at least when you’re finding a job on your own you can rule out those schools and still not settle until you find a salary and location that works for you. No agency = No salary cuts. Here are a couple of websites you can apply for jobs on: ● ● ● i-to-i Job Board Dave’s ESL Café ESL101 ● Ajarn When Teaching in Thailand So no matter which option you chose, you will need to sort out your own accommodation, transportation and lesson plans when you get a job so here’s my best tips on this: Lesson Plans: ​They will tell you a laptop is not essential for lesson planning but it is, I left mine in South Africa thinking it would be extra baggage since they said I don’t need it but I needed it so much that I had to buy one there, so take it with you. Accommodation: ​The cost of accomodation will depend on the level of comfort and luxury you require, changing countries doesn’t change that. My apartment across the beach in Phuket cost me R8000 per month but the flat that I lived in before that cost me R3500, the one I had in Samut Sakhon (near Bangkok) was R1500. So as always it depends on location and what you need, with regards to how to find them, look for Facebook Groups in the area and Google, make the internet your friend, you will be needing it alot. Transport​​: When you’re in Krabi, Chiang Mai or Bangkok the ​songthaew​ is the most affordable mode of transport. Phuket has no songthaews, Tuk Tuks will charge you way too much and so will taxis without meters so download the Grabtaxi app or Uber and use them. When traveling between cities there are flights, trains, boats and buses the best mode to use will depend on where you’re going. Google. “If you want to go, go! Travel is an investment in yourself and if you never go, you will never know.” I think I’ve covered most of the questions I usually get asked in this post but please let me know if you have any questions that I may not have covered here, comment here or DM me on Instagram​ and I will try to help as much as possible.