Study Abroad: Bangkok, Thailand
I had already been living and working as a teacher in Bangkok when I came across the opportunity to take a Master’s Program (International Education Program) through Framingham State University in Massachusetts. I thoroughly enjoyed the program and the rich culture in Thailand.
Since I was already living and working there, I didn’t need to worry about student visa’s, finding a place to live, or working out travel plans. It is pretty easy to fly in and out of Bangkok from Don Mueang Airport. Finding a taxi is as easy in Bangkok as it is in New York and the drivers generally know enough English to understand where you want to go. If you have never been to Asia, it can be daunting to fly in without someone there, so you may want to consider a hotel shuttle if you don’t have someone to pick you up.
The International Education Program was a great opportunity. To be accepted you have to already have a Bachelor’s in any field and have to be teaching already in an international location. It is a two-year program and twice a year for two weeks, a professor will be teaching classes in a specific location (the location changes with the demand for it). In my case the program was taught in Bangkok during the holidays when the teachers were already off from school.
The program was amazing. It’s an intensive program involving study in every aspect of teaching English as a Second Language. I really enjoyed learning about how to teach English at more advanced levels since I have always been a preschool and Kindergarten teacher. I thought it brought a little more to the table for me to learn about how to teach reading and writing to not only elementary and high school students, but also adults.
The program itself was great; there were a couple of downsides though; you have to commit to two years at your location to complete the program. If you were only planning on staying somewhere for a short while, this is not the program for you. I ended up staying in Bangkok for two and a half years. Another big downside, since the program is taught over regular school holidays, if you were planning on coming back Stateside, you have to plan around the classes. Overall though I had really enjoyed the experience and would do it again in a heart beat.
