Comments on: Mediakids Thailand

By: Raymond

Raymond — Fri, 13 Feb 2009 18:06:51 +0000

If you need a good school but can’t find one, try Teach-to-travel.com. They have really good schools and are very teacher-oriented. They will help you get a non-immigrant visa too if you need help. They only employ good teachers with good references though.

By: Fritz

Fritz — Tue, 18 Mar 2008 06:44:27 +0000

MK is okay, not good not bad, however they have a couple of very rotten fish in their pool of schools. I used to work at one of the schools. Envy, jealousy, serious interference in teacher’s personal life, posting outside one’s house to see where you’re going and some serious backstabbing are everyday routine. I’m happy that I got out of that hell hole. I won’t name the school.

However, I am still waiting for the reimbursement from MK. When I started working for MK they deducted a work permit deposit from my first salary and I kind of have been waiting for the last 4 months to get my money back. Well kind of… I wrote dozens of emails, tried to call them a million times but no one’s home!

@Brandon: Which tefl was blacklisted? the one in ban phe?

By: Alisia

Alisia — Tue, 04 Mar 2008 13:08:43 +0000

I taught in Thailand Oct 2005 through February 2006 with Media Kids and have to say that I couldn’t have done it without the company. They hooked me up with everything I needed to do and it was through them that I met many other foreignors who made my teaching experience most memorable.
There were many hiccups along the way, don’t get me wrong. When my contract ended I was not paid the full bonus for completing my contract as I had expected. I argued with MK back and forth for a while and got frustrated and gave up. But really, it wasn’t worth the argument. All of the fantastic and wonderful things I experienced far outweighed the issues with the contract.
Even just knowing the experience and knowledge the company has made the decison to go to the foreign country much easier.
I would ABSOLUTELY reccomend Media Kids to my friends and family who wish to teach in Thailand. Media Kids helped take a lot of the pressure off.

By: Michael

Michael — Tue, 26 Feb 2008 10:17:53 +0000

When all is said and done you truly must rely on ones-self. I read with intrest the comments and can see the good and the bad. I have had on the most part a very good relationship with MK. I agree with Brandon that they are at first a foot in the door, just give it a go and see where it leads.

By: Brandon

Brandon — Sun, 24 Feb 2008 08:02:51 +0000

I feel pretty neutral towards them right now.

You do pretty much have to fend for yourself 95% of the time but there were a few times when MK did bail me out of a few tough situations.

After I finished my first contract with them I went to another school which was offering a higher salary (MK told me about this school) but after a week or two I just couldn’t take it so MK
re-hired me to work for them again with a small school in Isaan and I have no major complaints about this school at all.

So, in a way, they did really help me out and I am grateful to them for that but, in all fairness, it was mutually beneficial.

The guy who I replaced at this school quit after a few weeks because he couldn’t adjust so he left Thailand and went home so MK needed someone to fill the spot….I didn’t like my job so they offered to me.

Again, I do feel like they helped me out in that instance but it wasn’t completely altrusitic. I’m not complaining either, just trying to be objective.

There was another time where I was in Khon Kaen and lost my atm card (stupid of me) and didn’t have enough money to get home and it was a weekend. I got a hold of MK and, after some time, they were able to access my account and wire the money to me. So, they really came through for me that time and didn’t really have much to gain from it.

The way I would describe MK is that they are a good way to get your foot in the door. If you want to work in Thailand they can get you a job for 4 months which isn’t a long time. It’s not like you are locked a in a year contract.

So, I’d say just go with them for a semester and see how you like. If you are happy with them you can probably re-new (unless you’re like a totally irresponsible alcoholic) and if you find a better job or a job in a city you want to work in you can do that after 4 months…..so, they’re not that bad.

Some people have had good experiences with them and some have had bad experiences with them.

My major problem with them right now is them pressuring me to enroll in a TEFL Course which I found out has been blacklisted and is self-accredited….MK charged me $500 for this course and I am still waiting to see if they will give me the refund I am entitled to.

By: Richard

Richard — Fri, 14 Dec 2007 16:28:51 +0000

MK, like most Thai agents, are so so. Actually not so bad compared to some. I had a major problem with them but that was mostly due to staff at the school trying to cheat me out of money! The main problem with them is they do nothing in terms of support for curriculum – but again neither does anyone else! The Thai TEFL market is a case of the lowest possible standard wins as there is no respect for intellectual property rights. Thailand won’t see improvements in English standards until they kick out all the cowboys (and all the corrupt thieving school directors.)

So I rate them as average. But their client schools are rubbish. I have worked for terrible agents BUT with good client schools which works much better!

By: michael

michael — Sat, 06 Oct 2007 00:43:57 +0000

I have to give credit where credit is due. When I was down and out with dengue and had to take two weeks off work and spent three days in the hospital, Media Kids had the decency to not dock me for missed work, had the patience with me to allow for time to recover when I wanted to go AWOL, they always paid on time and put me in a very decent living space and at a great school. While I see the potential to branch off at some point, I would not hesitate to sign on with Media Kids again for a full year or more when I am ready to teach again in Thailand. While I was a newbie to the teaching world, I am pretty well versed in Thai culture. Proper behaviour is the essence of enjoying the Kingdom of Siam, and one of the reasons I love being there so much. Hats off to my consultant and the new HR manager, I have no complaints and offer my sincerest thanks.

By: eric

eric — Mon, 01 Oct 2007 19:54:08 +0000

As expected, when complainers are asked to clarify or give details of thier situation, they seem to get quiet or dissapear altogether. Keep running from yourselves. Your problems and bad attitude will always catch up to you.

I haven’t worked in Thailand for almost 1 year now but I like to keep tabs on the the teaching world in general. I am continually amazed that people seem to think that they can move to a country half way around the world; a country that probably has a completely different history, culture, religion, etc. and expect things to be the same.

As this pertains to Mediakids. Once again, a good company if you are a newbie and dont want to go through the strenuous and arduous task of organizing visas, accom, work permits, etc. yourself (most schools are clueless and the rules constantly change). They pay a good salary and in my 3 years experience always pay on time. Can you find find better jobs than they offer? Of course! Does everyone have the time, knowledge, desire, tenacity, sheer qualifications to get those good jobs? Nope!

DA, ever think that other cultures don’t view “a lie” the same way that you do?

Do your homework. Make the move with an open mind and willingness to learn and maybe even change. Accept the fact the you cannot control everything.

By: George W

George W — Sat, 15 Sep 2007 00:59:52 +0000

I have just completed a 4 month contract with Media Kids and was treated very fairly and they processed my work permit in less than three weeks. The only problem I had was getting hired by the company, they would not answer my e-mails. Since then they have a new Human Resources Director who is very good and corresponding. George.

By: Eric

Eric — Wed, 22 Aug 2007 03:02:05 +0000

From my experience with Mediakids, they are about average for Thailand, as far as recruiters go. They pay a good salary these days, do a fairly good job of visas and work permits, ok for accomodations (vary greatly dep on school location). Most of the teachers that compained about Mediakids were not aware that they were in a different culture with different customs. Newsflash complainers, you are not in the U.S, England, Australia, etc. anymore. I can’t think of any instance that MK “ripped” anybody off, but they have had some dissagreements with teachers. The teachers that were patient, continued to do their job, respected Thai culture, etc. usually came to some kind of agreement (p.s. if you dont like Thai culture, dont come or get out of Thailand). Those that bitched and moaned about everything or yelled and screamed or were just crap teachers, usually got fired (as you would anywhere in the world). I speak from 3 years of experience with the company. I find it VERY hard to beleive that MK worked anybody out of 50,000 baht. Clarification please Kpisguy. How is this a “classic MK man.”? Scandalous…NO, Great…NO, bad reputation…amongst a few.

I agree with Cameron, “Attitutde is essential” and MK is not known to mistreat their teachers, but also not known to take excellent care of them either. Find me a recruiter anywhere in the world that takes excellent care of their teachers and I will be on the plane tomorrow.