PREPARING TO COME TO VIETNAM

PREPARATIONS



COMING TO VIETNAM?










Now you have made the decision, what to do next?









These suggestions not necessarily in order.









1. Get your TESOL/TEFL certificate- Not totally necessary, but if you dont have it, be prepared to be the last person the schools call.




http://tesolinvietnam.blogspot.com/












2. Get a Police check









3. Get a flight and Visa arranged- Use a travel agent as the visa process can be very difficult-Get a 3-6 month TOURIST Visa. Buy a RETURN flight-Do NOT buy a one way. You will not be allowed to enter Vietnam on a one way flight. Ask the travel agent to extend the return date to 12 months- If not, its easy to do that once in Vietnam.
Some recent information indicates that to get a visa on arrival IS easier than in the past now, but personally, I would give myself the peace of mind of having it BEFORE I got to Vietnam.









4. Google as much as you can about Vietnam-It pays to know where you want to go- The north and the south are VERY different from each other.




Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) (in the south), is vibrant, bustling, noisy, exciting and full of fast paced life, with spicy and flavoursome food. Hot in the summer and warm in the winter. Vietnams economic centre- some petty crime, but limited mostly to drive by bag snatching etc. Crazy traffic.









Hanoi is slow, conservative, with shy introverted people, a very rich culture, rather bland food (including lots of dog meat restaurants), and hot in summer and quite cold in the winter.




The "sightseeing" possibilities in Hanoi are vast- Take a quiet afternoon to explore the "Temple of Literature", a University which opened in 1066.




Little crime, limited to bag snatching and home invasions for theft.









Country centres offer less liklihood of employment, but a quiet lifestyle-




Danang in the centre of Vietnam has extensive beaches, Can Tho in the Mekong Delta offers hot steamy summers and hot steamy winters, but is a surprisingly active city on the mighty Mekong.









Vung Tau on the south coast offers glitz and sin.




Nha Trang is a beautiful beach city, but opportunities are very limited.









YOUR decision! Depends on your life style and what you want from your new life.









5. CV: Prepare your CV- KISS (Keep it simple).




Emphasise your ability to impart learning- If you have had no practical experience in teaching, slant such experience as volunteer work, baby-sitting, etc towards how that will assist you in teaching.




Talk about your intention to make teaching in Vietnam a long time career.




Save it in Word format (Not Word 2007 as most emplyers dont have it- 2004 or earlier is better) and have it ready to send to potential employers at a moments notice.




If you are prepared to teach children, you will DEFINATELY get offers quite quickly. So make sure you mention it in your CV.




(details of employers in another section of this blog.)









6. Education qualifications: Scan and file your degrees, TESOL certificate and any other relevant documentation and have them ready in a folder to attach to your application e-mails.









7. Scan Passport- Bio page and do as above.









8. Check out some web-sites of potential employers and send a cover letter, your CV, and education qualifications to the ones you wish to apply to, and indicate a time you are likely to be in Vietnam.









Do NOT expect replies to any of these- If you get a reply it will be ususual-treasure it.




In Vietnam, the employers will only make appointments with people who are actually IN Vietnam- (there are too many arm chairs wannabees who never have the guts to make the trip).



However, to send details first, and then follow up when you are actually here, leaves a very good impression.









If you apply to "recruiters" they are likely to make you immediate offers-BUT remember they will ask you for a fee, they will set up your trip and get a commission from the travel agent, and one from the hotel they put you in, and they will tell you that you have to take a TESOL course with THEIR business ($1200+). Do not trust anyone making such offers- remember, there are so many English schools in Vietnam, that this is YOUR smorgasbord. Do not be intimidated by recruiters offering sure jobs, and airport pick up etc. I will show you (For free), how to do all this yourself.









Don't allow the lack of response from schools to deter you-there are lots of jobs available, and within 10 days of arrival, you should be teaching if you follow my recommendations.









9. Money: You will need to have access to approximately $2000 to cover your expenses for your first month in Vietnam, until your first pay day. (Most schools pay at the end of each month).

Pay rates vary from school to school- recruiters will get you about $8-$15 an hour- You can get from $12-$22 by visiting the schools yourself. More in another section on how to do that.




Visa accessible accounts via ATM are best.




DO NOT BRING TRAVELLERS CHECKS. They are NOT cashable in Vietnam.









If you are using a credit card, make arrangements AT HOME for it to be paid for you, as sending payment back home is a major problem. I will explain later in another section how to arrange this once in Vietnam.









10. Clothes: Corporate wardrobe- Although most schools won't require you to wear formal attire at all times, it makes a good first impression.




Men- Trousers-not jeans, baggies or khakis, collared shirt and tie (class-rooms are air conditioned).




Ladies- Formal attire- No strappy tops, boob tubes, short skirts and DEFINATELY no shorts.




Tops should have short sleeves at least. Sandals are "out: covered shoes. "sensible" shoes. (sound familiar?)









Hair: Men -short or tied back, well kept beard and moustache.









Your job is regarded with the same reverence as that of a doctor or a lawyer- you need to reciprocate.









Clothes in Vietnam are readily available and at very cheap prices- BUT for westerners they are often too small. Tailor made shirts and trousers are a delight, and well priced.









Ladies- shoes over about size 40 (12) are almost non existent, and larger size bras also- tampons are almost unknown.









11. Pack light Remember weight restrictions on air lines- most things are easily available here, and the shopping is paradise.




It is NOT a good idea to bring English teaching books etc as there are very good bookstores here selling the same at much reduced prices.









Lap-Top: Good idea to bring one as they are quite expensive here, but desk tops are cheap.




Wi Fi enabled is good, as many districts have Free wi-fi.









On another section I will outline some excellent web sites where you can get great teaching materials, and have them "on call" when posted into your "favourites" folder on your web browser.

AND on another-

What to do when you arrive in Vietnam.