Tour guide education criteria lowered

[buksida]

Tour guide criteria lowered to 4th grade

The Ministry of Tourism and Sports plans to lower the minimum education level needed to become an accredited tour guide to Grade 4 for three foreign languages.

Tourism and Sports Minister Somsak Pureesrisak said on Monday that the criteria has to be lowered due to the shortage of tour guides for foreign tourists.

However, the tour guides must be able to communicate in Chinese, Korean or Russian, he said.

"We have vacancies for 2,000 guides for Chinese tourists, 1,500 for Russians and 1,000 for South Koreans," Mr Somsak said. "Just improving the image and knowledge of tourist guides might not be enough to solve the problem in a timely manner."

Thailand's tourism industry is growing fast and the number of foreign tourists, particularly from China, South Korea and Russia, is continually rising, he said.

The Department of Tourism will purchase smart cards with Quick Response (QR) Code system for qualified guides. This will prevent scammers from taking advantages of tourists, he added.

In February, the government committee on tourism problems approved in principle a proposal to lower the minimum education level needed to become a tour guide to Grade 9. The previous requirement is a bachelor's degree.

Source: Bangkok Post

[PeteC]

I scratch my head again about these decisions. Is a person with only a 4th grade education capable of learning Chinese, Russian or Korean unless of course they are native to China, Russia or Korea? Maybe all this means that foreign tour guides with those language skills will find it easier to get a visa, license and work permit? Pete

[TakeitToTheMax]

A friend of mine has a daughter at Uni in Thailand, she is studying International Hotel Management and guess what, she only speaks Thai and there is no requirement for her to speak another language.

Amazing Thailand