I have a lot of experience teaching in Colombia
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STEMteacher
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- Joined: Mon May 16, 2016 10:23 pm
I have a lot of experience teaching in Colombia
Ask me anything and I'll do the best I can to help you.
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STEMteacher
- Posts: 15
- Joined: Mon May 16, 2016 10:23 pm
Re: I have a lot of experience teaching in Colombia
Jay_Jay wrote:
> Whats the meaning of life?
There is none. I hope this helps. =)
> Whats the meaning of life?
There is none. I hope this helps. =)
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shadowjack
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coin_operated
- Posts: 28
- Joined: Sat Jun 13, 2015 12:23 pm
Re: I have a lot of experience teaching in Colombia
I have a lot of questions, but am not sure if you can answer them all here.
- Is it a good place for a childfree teaching couple that wants to save money and live comfortably?
- They say schools in Latin America are pretty chill in terms of work/life balance. Same for Colombia?
- My SO and I are both English teachers in different stages of our careers - he's been doing middle management for a while, while I have mixed English/EAL experience. If my SO got a job in Colombia, would I find a job easily?
- Any general tips on landing a job there? I've heard good things.
- Are there any bad things about living in Colombia?
Thanks!
- Is it a good place for a childfree teaching couple that wants to save money and live comfortably?
- They say schools in Latin America are pretty chill in terms of work/life balance. Same for Colombia?
- My SO and I are both English teachers in different stages of our careers - he's been doing middle management for a while, while I have mixed English/EAL experience. If my SO got a job in Colombia, would I find a job easily?
- Any general tips on landing a job there? I've heard good things.
- Are there any bad things about living in Colombia?
Thanks!
Reply
@coin_operated
1) Not really, the CSA region generally has pretty low salaries, you cant really build much savings when you dont have the coin to start with. There are a handful of elite tier ISs that you can make decent savings at, but even then your savings potential at other elite ISs is going to be much better. You could really be frugal and maybe save $5K with a typical salary.
2) Elite tier ISs tend to "own you" and this isnt untrue in Columbia either, but you feel more like a heavily worked IT rather than a slave. There are a lot of ISs that you can just show up, follow the text and collect your coin and that would be fine.
3) Your not a teaching couple if you arent married. Being an ET is worth nothing in IE. The rule is there is a job for everyone if you will accept anything. Sure you could find a job easy enough if you are willing to teach ESOL. Will you just be able to show up and find a upper tier IS to appoint you just because you show up at their gate, no.
I like Columbia (not as much as Brazil), you really need an upper tier package if you arent planing on retiring out. You can live very well on IT coin on the economy, very well. Its when you leave that you realize your savings are a pittance. This is fine if your just looking to chilax for a few years and make your bones on an easy roll, otherwise its a location that ITs head to when they want to retire early/semi-retire.
1) Not really, the CSA region generally has pretty low salaries, you cant really build much savings when you dont have the coin to start with. There are a handful of elite tier ISs that you can make decent savings at, but even then your savings potential at other elite ISs is going to be much better. You could really be frugal and maybe save $5K with a typical salary.
2) Elite tier ISs tend to "own you" and this isnt untrue in Columbia either, but you feel more like a heavily worked IT rather than a slave. There are a lot of ISs that you can just show up, follow the text and collect your coin and that would be fine.
3) Your not a teaching couple if you arent married. Being an ET is worth nothing in IE. The rule is there is a job for everyone if you will accept anything. Sure you could find a job easy enough if you are willing to teach ESOL. Will you just be able to show up and find a upper tier IS to appoint you just because you show up at their gate, no.
I like Columbia (not as much as Brazil), you really need an upper tier package if you arent planing on retiring out. You can live very well on IT coin on the economy, very well. Its when you leave that you realize your savings are a pittance. This is fine if your just looking to chilax for a few years and make your bones on an easy roll, otherwise its a location that ITs head to when they want to retire early/semi-retire.
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coin_operated
- Posts: 28
- Joined: Sat Jun 13, 2015 12:23 pm
Re: I have a lot of experience teaching in Colombia
@PsyGuy
Context - we've worked a stint at an 'own you' T1 school in a profitable location and have already saved a fair bit from that and previous IT jobs. We are also married. We want a more laid back school, even if it means going down a tier and being paid less.
Is the coin in Colombian/S American Tier 2 schools that much worse than Tier 2 schools in Eastern Europe? We've done the latter and didn't have that much trouble saving there. It obviously wasn't as much as we're saving now, but we still managed to do so while maintaining an upper-middle-class lifestyle for that particular country.
Why do you think Brazil is so much better? From my research, it seemed like the only viable options visa-wise were high-powered T1 schools that don't particularly interest us at the moment.
Context - we've worked a stint at an 'own you' T1 school in a profitable location and have already saved a fair bit from that and previous IT jobs. We are also married. We want a more laid back school, even if it means going down a tier and being paid less.
Is the coin in Colombian/S American Tier 2 schools that much worse than Tier 2 schools in Eastern Europe? We've done the latter and didn't have that much trouble saving there. It obviously wasn't as much as we're saving now, but we still managed to do so while maintaining an upper-middle-class lifestyle for that particular country.
Why do you think Brazil is so much better? From my research, it seemed like the only viable options visa-wise were high-powered T1 schools that don't particularly interest us at the moment.
Reply
@coin_operated
I understand this is why a lot of career ITs eventually will settle for a more preferential location at a tier 2 (assuming IB isnt something they havent grown tired of) or a 'floater' (a high tier 3 IS) that gives them a more relaxed and enjoyable work life balance. Tier 1 ISs are something you do and either love or hate, staying is often most about career objectives and where you are in those objectives.
Yes it really is, youre looking at about the higher end of the mid $20K salary range for a tier 2 IS in CSA. You can live very well on that with two salaries and a full OSH package. You can have a nice flat/apartment in the city and a weekend holiday place on the beach, eat out, go shopping, etc. You can save out of that but even if you save a whole salary thats still a lot less than two $60K-$80K salaries or even 6 figures you could get, but your only saving $25K a year, at that pace is will take you two decades to save a half-mil.
Well Im a guy and Brazil has the most beautiful woman in the world, even the really unattractive ones are 5s ona global scale and Brazil provides all the right combinations of convenience and access and activities that equate to 'fun' for a guy.
An IS thats going to recruit you will sponsor a visa, its not like parts of the WE that only care if you have an EU passport and working papers.
I understand this is why a lot of career ITs eventually will settle for a more preferential location at a tier 2 (assuming IB isnt something they havent grown tired of) or a 'floater' (a high tier 3 IS) that gives them a more relaxed and enjoyable work life balance. Tier 1 ISs are something you do and either love or hate, staying is often most about career objectives and where you are in those objectives.
Yes it really is, youre looking at about the higher end of the mid $20K salary range for a tier 2 IS in CSA. You can live very well on that with two salaries and a full OSH package. You can have a nice flat/apartment in the city and a weekend holiday place on the beach, eat out, go shopping, etc. You can save out of that but even if you save a whole salary thats still a lot less than two $60K-$80K salaries or even 6 figures you could get, but your only saving $25K a year, at that pace is will take you two decades to save a half-mil.
Well Im a guy and Brazil has the most beautiful woman in the world, even the really unattractive ones are 5s ona global scale and Brazil provides all the right combinations of convenience and access and activities that equate to 'fun' for a guy.
An IS thats going to recruit you will sponsor a visa, its not like parts of the WE that only care if you have an EU passport and working papers.
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Dredge
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- Location: Three continents, mentally and physically
Re: I have a lot of experience teaching in Colombia
The exchange rate in Colombia is awful right now and has been for the past year. I was able to save about $30,000 over two years, but that would be below $20,000 with the current exchange rate. Most, if not all schools, are gonna pay you in Colombian pesos with perhaps a US dollar bonus to your foreign bank account.