Teaching on Koh Samui

I worked there for six years. It was my first international placement. It’s not competitive because the pay is shocking, making it a good shout for early career folks or later in life and already financially set. 60k no housing or flights. This suited me fine as a single person just looking to get international experience. I wasn’t slammed paycheck to paycheck— but I wasn’t saving either. During covid they cut our salaries down to 40k and I was fine on that too.

I worked at Panyadee. They list living near the beach under their benefits package, so that says all you need to know about that. Back then ISS paid more, but last I heard about a year ago they are paying in the 60s too. It’s a better school than Panyadee though, so I would aim there first. Panyadee has been trying (and failing) to get accredited since it opened. I think they got WASC eventually but had it revoked? Not sure where that’s at now… but I know they fired their head last year. Wrongfully, in my opinion, but that’s neither here nor there.

I was out the door bang on 4 and on the beach with a beer. The schools are small, which meant an all hands on deck approach most of the day re: duties and extra curriculars. It wasn’t an easy job, but it wasn’t crazy late hours either.

Neither school is stellar and other schools on the island even less so. I still visit the island regularly because we have friends there, and it’s quite a bit more expensive there now than it was when I was there (2015-covid).

If I ever go back to Thailand I’ll be aiming for Phuket. Both BISP and UWC are great schools compared to the options on Samui, and you don’t have to deal with Bangkok traffic or pollution if those are deal breakers for you.

As far as I’m aware there are two decent schools on Samui (may be more) International School Samui and Panyadee. For both of these the pay is relatively low compared to most decent Bkk schools. You will probably earn enough to live reasonably comfortably though as long as saving isn’t a priority. One option may be to look at schools on Phuket, as there are some well paying schools there and you can still have the island lifestyle.

I worked for two years at PBISS (as Panyadee now calls itself due to various scandals in the past) quite recently. I'm not exaggerating when I say that the school was far and away the worst thing about living on Samui. I ended up quite miserable there. Totally ineffective leadership who have no control of anything, a vindictive, socially inept and mostly absent CEO who makes decisions on a whim, and run entirely for the financial benefit of a Chinese-Thai investment consortium. It's a truly shockingly bad school.

But as a financial investment, it's a masterstroke. There's a conveyor belt of teachers waiting to join despite the dreadful pay and conditions, and there's almost no choice on the island so the school remains full. Parents are very concerned, but have little choice.

I would return to living on Samui, but I wouldn't darken the doorstep of PBISS again.

ISS is a bit better run for sure, but extremely competitive and people stay for a lot longer. There's also Greenacre, growing and salaries are now in line with what PBISS offers (mostly). Has its issues too. There's also Lamai International School but the salaries are more like TEFL money, and that would be a real struggle on Samui.

Avoid schools on Samui, please! Without going into any details due to defamation laws in Thailand (so don't believe any of the positive reviews you see on internet), we were parents at one of the frequent mentioned schools in this post and it was absolutely horrendous.

Look into Phuket with more reputable schools instead. UWC for example is (still) close to the jungle, and not a lot of traffic or busy tourist places, but you can still be at the beach within 15 minutes. Headstart is near Bang Tao, busier area, but mainly expats, so a nice vibe close to the beach. You can still find afforable housing on Phuket despite what people say. Otherwise look into Hua Hin, also beach place with I believe one or two reputable schools and more affordable and quiet.

Jumping on the wagon here. Isn't Panyadee crazy religious? I've heard stories in which teachers during their induction have to spend hours carrying out religious ceremonies. Would like to know if there is any truth to that. Thanks