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Change of ED visa terms

We would like to inform you that due to recent changes in immigration policy in 2018, terms of ED visa for Thai learners have been extended to 14 months, while terms of ED visa for English learners remain at 12 months as before.

ED visa for Thai learners

Starting from 2018, the first ED visa for Thai learners is issued for a period of 8 months, which comprises studying the Thai language across two levels, from Elementary up to Intermediate. In case you want to  pursue your studies and stay longer in Thailand, there is an opportunity to get a second ED visa for another 6 months. You do not have to leave the country to get the second ED visa! However, a visit to the immigration office every 3 months for an extension stamp is still obligatory.

ED visa for English learners

English learners have an opportunity to study in Thailand for 12 months in total. The term of the first ED visa for English learners is 7 months and the second visa buys you another 5 months. You do not have to leave the country to get the second ED visa! However, a visit to the immigration office every 3 months for an extension stamp is still obligatory.

What to do if I want to study in Thailand longer?

If you wish to stay in Thailand for another year, why not switch to another language? Perfecting the language you already know well or taking up a completely new one might open new horizons and extend your stay in beautiful Koh Samui.

Any concern regarding to your ED Visa, please feel free to drop by at our office Mon – Sat 8:30 – 18:00. Or give us a call 077 248 228 and 086-947-2883 Khun Pat

Koh Samui Immigration: ED visa holders should come to class

Koh Samui Language School is the oldest and the most reputable school on the island, and we’re continuously working to maintain our reputation. It is our priority to ensure that your ED visa process runs smoothly and is convenient for you, and the quality of education you are getting meets the highest standards.
All our teachers are highly qualified and use the best practices recognized all over the world.

Therefore, we would like to remind you that all ED visa holders should attend at least 70 per cent of the course they are enrolled in.

Requirement for your next visa extension

In accordance with the latest immigration rules, all language learners staying in Thailand on an ED visa will be checked for their progress every three months when getting a new extension stamp.

Coming to class regularly is a great opportunity to level up your language skills as well as to meet new people and just have fun.
See you in the classroom!

Any concern regarding to your ED Visa, please feel free to drop by at our office Mon – Sat 8:30 – 18:00. Or give us a call 077 248 228 and 086-947-2883 Khun Pat

Koh Samui Language Schools

 

Look! here we found really useful school comparison list It’s in Russian, so we translated it into English.

Many people go to Thailand not only to relax, but also to learn something new.
This article explores options for learning languages on Koh Samui. 

 

By studying at a school in Thailand you can be granted a student visa, which is convenient in allowing you to live in Thailand for a longer period of time than a normal tourist visa. If a child’s parents study in Koh Samui, the child can also obtain a visa known as a Non-O visa, which is a visa for an accompanying family member. 

 

In order to get an education visa, you just need to follow a few simple steps. First and foremost, you must determine the school that you will attend. We will give you all the inside information in this article to help you make an informed choice. Once you have chosen your school, they will provide you with all the documents for the necessary visa and then you can get your head down and start learning. 

 

Below is a list of schools in Koh Samui that are licensed by the MOI (Ministry of Education), whereby admission into the school allows you to obtain a student visa. At the time of writing, July 2017, it was possible to find information about 7 schools issuing education visas in Koh Samui. Of these schools: 

  • Thai solutions has already closed 
  • Walen is closing due to financial loss and is not accepting any new students 
  • The school of Joy is under threat of visa being cancelled due to the sale of documents for an education visa without providing real lessons 

 

The information for each of the researched schools can be found below, followed by a price comparison table. 

 

Koh Samui Language and Vocational School


Address: 11/8, Moo 1, Maenam, Koh Samui, Surat Thani, 84330, Thailand,
tel. 077 248228077 248228 and 086 947 2883086 947 2883
In Maenam opposite store “75”
Website – http://kstvs.com/  
Group on vk – https://vk.com/kstvs 
Page on Facebook – https://www.facebook.com/kstvs 
Page on Instagram – https://www.instagram.com/kstvs/  


KSTVS are the oldest school on the island. They have the most students of all the schools and are recommended by the immigration office on Koh Samui. They are the only school on the island who regularly post training content in English, including video reviews from their students. 


Mind Your Language


Web site – mindyourlanguagethailand.com/ 
Address: 142/7 Moo 1, Bophut, Koh Smui, Surat Thani 84320
Working hours:  Monday-Saturday 9-18
Sunday: Closed
Phone: 077 962 088


Samui Language School

Samui Language School
Website: www.samuilanguageschool.com/ 
Address: 142 / 24-25, Moo 4, T. Maret, Koh Samui, Surat Thani 84310 Working hours:
Working Hours: Monday to Saturday  9-18
Sunday: Closed
Phone: 077 960 103

 

A New Language School


Address: 123/152 Moo 1, Bophut, Koh Samui, Surat Thani 84320
Working hours: Monday-Saturday 9-18
Sunday: Closed 
Phone: 077 426 981 

 

 

Walen


A branch of a famous network of language schools in Thailand.
You can learn Thai, English, Chinese, and Spanish.
Address: 17 / 11-12 Bophut Road,
telephone +66 (0) 77 310 724 + 66 (0) 77 310 724 and 077310-725,
e-mail: [email protected]
The general site of this network of schools is http: www.thaiwalen.com/?lang=en 

The school is not accepting new students and is sending new students to KSTVS. All existing students will finish their paid courses. 


The School of Joy


Web site – www.theschoolofjoysamui.com
Address: Surat Thani, Donsak Pier – Koh Samui,  Tambon Bophut
Working hours: Monday – Saturday  9-18
Sunday: Closed 
Phone: 077 960 776 

According to rumors, there is a risk of visas being cancelled for those buying visas only and not attending real classes. During the last two inspections, the officers did not see any classes at the school and were not satisfied.

 

 

We spoke with a student who is currently registered with The School of Joy. They told us: 

“If you are not going to study, but just want to get a visa, the price is only 15,000 baht”

We also spoke with the immigration department who, in accordance with the law, stated: 

“The minimum standard for obtaining an annual visa is 400 hours of training. If requirements are not met, visas will be cancelled” 

Please view the table below for a comparison of the cost of education in language schools in Koh Samui. They take into account the individual features of pricing and duration of studies in different schools in Koh Samui. For ease of comparison, it is displayed as the cost of education per hour (60 minutes) in THB.

MOE at KSTVS

An interview with Koh Samui Language School

Founder and Director, Dave Belcher, talks about Koh Samui, schools, and ED visas

 

“When did you first open the school?”

 

We opened the school in 2003 in Chaweng, Koh Samui. We were working in Samui’s first international school. We opened a Saturday school for children and ran summer camps for 2 years. We ran children’s classes on Saturdays and on week days. At that time there was no other international school or foreign language programmes in Samui. These classes were very popular. Particularly with children studying at the government schools in Samui, for example St Joseph’s and Tipparat.

 

“Where did you run these classes?”

 

Originally we used the classrooms and campus at Bencaja school in Chaweng. We used the classrooms on Saturdays and after school on week days. We built up a base of children and return students during this time.

 

“What was your next step?”

 

In 2005 we rented a building in Maenam and opened the school where it still is today.  We applied for and received Ministry of Education licenses to teach both Thai and English language curriculums.

 

“What is the most important demand, ED visas or education?”

 

Well, there is a demand in Samui for language lessons. Especially for foreigners, for example Italians, German, and French people. But the most popular thing is to get an education visa and study at the same time. So I would say that most people who come to the school are looking for an education visa and then they choose to learn Thai or English. Of these, English is probably the most popular especially with the Russian community. The majority of our students are Russian, as Russian people seem to want to learn English more than other nationalities and are most interested in an education visa.

 

“How important is the quality of education on Samui?”

 

Education visas are a great way to stay in Thailand over the long term, up to one year and then longer than one year. An Education visa is easier, less hassle, and better than tourist visas over the long term. The quality of language lessons to support education visas is important. Of course when people spend their money to come and learn they are looking for the best quality classes and teachers they can find. Since there are a number of language schools in Samui which offer classes and education visas, it is important to provide the highest standards, the best course, the best teachers, and the best facilities.

 

“How do you find teachers? How often do they change? How do you assess their suitability for the job?”

 

Firstly, we advertise for positions on websites for example ajarn.com. We find teachers who want to come to Thailand or that are already in Thailand, for example in Bangkok, and would be interested in coming to Samui. Secondly, by word of mouth; a lot of people write us emails or call us or come into the school because they heard from other people that we hire teachers. We have a good reputation and people know that we are a good school to work for.

 

Teachers do change quite a lot, it is the nature of the island that most people do not live here for a long time or permanently. Most people will stay here 6 months to one year, possibly a little longer. The nature of teachers who come to Thailand is that they want to move around and travel and see the world and different places. So it is a challenge to get teachers to stay. We have been fortunate and had a few teachers who have stayed long term, for example 2 to 3 years is not uncommon. But it is a challenge and we have to address it by trying to make a good team and a good working environment and paying a competitive salary. For example our Headteacher for corporate lessons has already been with us 3 years. In the past we were lucky to have a teacher called Rose who also stayed with us 2 or 3 years, and several teachers before that also stayed more than 3 years.

 

We always hire native speakers, even though they are more expensive, so most of our teachers come from the UK, USA, South Africa, and Canada. We look for people with degrees and qualifications in education; the best is a degree in linguistics or a diploma in teaching English as a second language, or another kind of degree in education. But other than that we also always look for a recognized TEFL certificate, for example Cambridge Certificate of English Language teaching to adults is the best in the world, or something of similar quality. At the moment we are lucky enough to have a Headteacher who has a degree in education.

 

“Who are your students? Why does someone want to come to learn English in Thailand?”

 

As mentioned most of our students are Europeans and Russians. I think that most people want to study English in Thailand because they want to live in a beautiful tropical island with a great lifestyle and beautiful place to live. And after that it’s a good opportunity to learn English or Thai. The prices here are very competitive and much cheaper than back home in Europe or Russia. And obtaining an education visa and studying is a very convenient way to stay in Thailand.

 

“There are 8 language schools on Samui, why someone should come to KSTVS? What are you doing to improve your school and ensure you are the best school available?”

 

We were the first school here, of course, but that does not mean that we don’t try to keep ahead of the competition and continually improve. We have the most experience and the best reputation. We’ve been here the longest and the reason for that is we’ve always been successful in supplying high quality language courses that customers are interested in. We are always looking to reinvest our profit in hiring better teachers and staff to improve the quality of our classes. We invest in our classrooms and resources, for example this year we have invested in projectors and tablets for providing eteaching material in the classroom, using a DVD version of our textbooks. We are now delivering lessons using an interactive format. In addition we are embracing technology by buying Active Teach student packages from the publisher Longmans, so that our students can complete workbook assignments online in their own time. We also invest a lot in our textbooks and research them carefully to ensure we get the best available. Our Thai text books come from England and are probably the best Thai text books you can find anywhere in the world. Our English textbooks are either Cutting Edge or New English File by Oxford University Press and Speak Out which we use for our conversation classes. In addition, we try to keep prices low and competitive as we believe it is better to have a wide range of students and a large body of students who are happy with the service and the value they receive than to charge people a lot of money and have unhappy customers.

 

“Do you have any plans for the future?”

 

Yes, we want to make online classes that would use the Longmans Active Teach online material and Microsoft learning tools like OneNote class notebooks. This would allow students to have an online tutor, use the same material, but study remotely from home and still have their work graded and reviewed by a teacher.

We would also like to arrange live internet sessions with the teacher using Skype and stream our classes live on the net for people to watch remotely.

We are planning to open a school in Krabi and Phuket, and possibly another branch here on Samui, perhaps in the south of the island in Lamai.

In the corporate world of teaching, we are working on our hospitality and hotels programs, which we are currently turning into e-learning material; both blended solutions for the classroom and apps that students can use by themselves if they are working in hotels.

Finally, we want to start Chinese classes in the school with ED visas.

 

Do you want to know more? Send us an email, phone us, or visit us in our office. We are always happy to answer your questions.

Learn Chinese with an education visa.  


Study Chinese with an education visa! We are starting Chinese courses at KSTVS.  
If you are planning to stay 3 months, 6 months or even a year in Koh Samui than this is your chance to learn Chinese at the same time!    
 
Find our course hours and prices below.


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Are you interested in this course or thinking about taking this course? 
 
Please let us know by leaving a comment below so we have an idea how much demand there is for courses starting in May and June. 
 
Thank you for your help! 

kstvs-logo

Good news! 
 


Apply THIS MONTH for your ED visa or your extension! The new visa rule, to have a National Police Certificate will apply from MAY 2017. Take and advantage of this and get your ED visa NOW! 
 
 
Feel at home in the land of smiles, study Thai with a native Thai speaker.

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Brush up your English skills and study English with us!

 

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Sign up today or contact us!

Contact: [email protected]
Call us: +66 077 248 228 | +66 086 947 2883

For more information about the new visa rule click here.

Pre-intermediate class working hard and having fun

Our great pre-intermediate English class this Monday morning! They were working hard and having fun learning English. Most of our students in this class do have an ED visa which allows them to study English and enjoy the island life at the same time! For more information contact us on [email protected]!

Our pre-intermediate classes take place on Monday and Wednesdays from 10h00-12h00.



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Latest visa news!

We would like to inform you about the new requirement for the ED visa. The Thai ministry of education is requesting a criminal background check for new students and students getting a second year ED visa. So if you are a new student or applying for a new year this only applies to you. The good news is that KSTVS can help you with this application and can get it for you in Koh Samui at the same time as applying for your other documents. If you already have this check, then we can translate it into Thai for you for free.

New rules are once again being rolled out through as immigration offices begin to impose a 90 day max extension to education visa, now while to most education visa holders this will be nothing new, there are immigration offices which have been known to give more, those offices are now under the watchful eye of the ‘clean-up force’.

Another aspect of this change is simply once you have been in Thailand for 1 year, since your first entry. You must leave, and then re-apply for an education visa. No matter what you used to do, you can now only have a maximum of 1 year in Thailand, from your first entry date.

While this isn’t a massive problem for most education visa holders, it does put you under the scrutiny of the border immigration officers, who have the power to refuse anyone entry, even if you have a valid visa, simply because they have suspicions you are not here using the correct visa. All fair I know, but unfortunately innocents get caught up along the way, and some perfectly legitimate students can be turned away from Thailand, playing havoc on their near future.

Finally the 8 hour a week study quota is being approved as I type, making students have to study for 8 hours a week, not the traditional 4 hours students have been used to up till now. This extra 8 hours, while not confirmed if you can have your lesson spread over 2 or 4 days, will for sure increase all fees for standards courses, simply due to the higher teacher hours, classroom hours, and increased course material necessary.

Original Source:

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/750734-the-new-extension-rules-for-people-studying/