Working in Thailand Series: How to be a Scientist in Thailand

A German anesthesiology professor at Mahidol and an HIV researcher at the Thai Red Cross explain how they landed science jobs in Thailand, and why you do it for the work, not the pay.

The following post is a chapter from our book, Working in Thailand: How to Ditch the Desk, Board the Flight, and Land the Job, written by Patrick Taylor and Karsten Aichholz.

Premium members of the ExpatDen get the full Working in Thailand series, including interviews with people in seventeen professions in Thailand. They shared what they did to land a job here, the requirements, and what to expect.

Key Takeaways

Research jobs for foreigners in Thailand go to people who already have experience, and entry-level posts are rare.
Expect to need at least a master’s degree; a PhD helps.
Both scientists got their jobs through direct contact, one through a former boss and the other by approaching university hospitals himself.
Good English was compulsory at Mahidol, while Thai helps with clinic work.
Pay is modest: Benno earned THB30,000 a month on a 60% contract at the time of the interview, against THB50,000 for full-time.
Reshmie’s salary matched what she would have earned in the Netherlands on paper, but came out 30-40% lower once missing benefits were counted.
For NGO research roles, check ReliefWeb; for university and hospital posts, contact the department directly.

The Scientists

Unless otherwise noted, all quotes by Benno von Bormann and Reshmie Ramautarsing, scientists. Their answers describe their jobs at the time of the interview.

Few but the most optimistic government planners would think of Thailand as a hub for scientific research.

Science education is lamentably weak. Education takes about 13% of Thai government spending, yet scores in standardized science tests remain woefully low.

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