I've been reading your posts and those from the other contributors on your site for some time now, and feel that maybe I have something to offer back regarding finding work in Bangkok at the moment. The following is my story of arrival in Bangkok: I arrived in Bangkok at the end of September with bounding enthusiam and my degree and TEFL certificates. Having left England on a quest for a more enjoyable life, I was extremely keen to find a job and get started.

Things however didn't go exactly to plan. I gave myself a week to acclimatize (get drunk and party) before starting my hunt for a teaching position. Of course, the first resources I went to were job message boards. Everyone I had spoken to, and everything I had read led me to believe there would be plenty of jobs to be found during the month of October. Unfortunately this didn't seem to be the case.

I emailed the schools who were advertising and made little headway. By the first week I had been offered two jobs, but neither were particularly attractive, more down to the school and their working conditions rather than salary. Another week passed with another offer from a similar school. A further week passed with nothing. Not a interview, not a job offer, nothing! By the end of that third week I was becoming concerned. I was meeting many teachers (both employed and unemployed and some newbies like me) who were bemoaning the lack of jobs. Their attitude began to make me feel despondent.

I realised I had a choice to make. I couldn't carry on searching for work if I wasn't going to do it with a clear mind and a vision of what I wanted. So I promised myself two more weeks would either get me a job, or force me to look at teaching somewhere else. At the start of my fourth week of searching, I started googling "Bangkok schools" and other keywords and emailed schools directly. In two days I must have sent over 100 emails. Friday rolled on and still nothing. My luck changed on Saturday morning when my present employer phoned me.

I've just completed my first month at this language centre. I waited for a good job rather than accepting one I wouldn't be happy with and I'm very pleased with my decision. I've earned just over 40k this month, and I am very confident my income will rise in the coming months. While the school is owned and run by Thais, the DOS and all the other teachers are native English speakers. The atmosphere is pleasant at its worst and friendly in the staff room.

Why have I written this? I promise it is not to rub job-searching teachers noses in it. I've written this because one simple aspect of finding a job seems to be escaping many of the unemployed teachers I've met in the last two months. You have to want the job. If you write polite emails, eventually you will get an interview. If you get an interview, you have to make the employer feel like you actually want the job (that is obviously assuming that you do really want the job!). If not, someone else will get the work.

There is probably less work out there than before. Everyone seems to be saying that, so I can't disagree. What I can say is that I am not surprised why so many teachers I meet are unemployed. Their attitudes are all wrong. Before I get feedback complaining that not all job-seekers are the same, I do know that. I'm not painting everyone with the same brush, I'm just painting the majority.

Ben Richards