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jg
Joined: 26 Mar 2003 Posts: 1263 Location: Ralph Lauren Pueblo
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Posted: Wed Dec 26, 2007 12:09 am Post subject: |
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CEDEI is still only paying $250 a month? I am not surprised to hear about the high turnover; schools in Ecuador pay enough to make one comfy enough for a year or so but after that most get antsy to get home and make some real money, or just get out and travel a bit. Not like Korea, where there are many "lifers".
They had a good resource library for the teachers and there were often privates available, plus the building is gorgeous. I know, who cares about aesthetics, but a pleasant environment does make a difference.
EC might have low costs but Cuenca is expensive but an interesting and beautiful city, relatively crime free and cultured, and they really know how to celebrate holidays, festive balloons and concerts in Parque Central, etc. What someone else called noise I will call festivity. The quality of restaurants is high, and outside of Quito (and maybe Guayaquil) the best in Ecuador. A nice community of immigrants from Chile and Europe exists there, and there is a fairly genteel middle-class area outside the center that bears some exploring. Hollanda panderia makes outstanding cakes and creamy, dreamy ice-cream.
Cuencanos are a little snobby and boring at times though.
I'll say this about the people I worked with at CEDEI, there were quite a few brats and despite congratulating themselves on being open-minded enough to go to SA, were pretty unprepared for doing without North American or U.K. comforts. I include myself in that group and wish that I had been more mature and open about Ecuador. Having traveled and worked in other countries since then, I'd say that as far as an abroad experience, Ecuador is fairly mild. If you do choose CEDEI I'd suggest not too much involvement in the "gringo loop", which mainly consists of teachers and whoever they're dating, very limited interaction with the locals. |
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molson2468
Joined: 26 Jun 2010 Posts: 3
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Posted: Tue May 29, 2012 9:46 pm Post subject: CEDEI |
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Anyone taught for CEDEI since 2008?? Any info would be very helpful. Thanks |
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yoga2012
Joined: 21 Mar 2012 Posts: 12
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Posted: Wed May 30, 2012 7:20 am Post subject: |
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For today, what if one's pay is $350 per month, including housing? Is that enough to live on and save a bit in SA? |
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just_a_mirage
Joined: 11 Nov 2008 Posts: 169 Location: ecuador
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Posted: Wed May 30, 2012 5:02 pm Post subject: |
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The big thing that CEDEI offers, in my opinion is a visa. They do give cultural exchange visas to teachers who stay long term. I think $250 is ridiculously low, even for Ecuador. I teach in Guayaquil, and although it is not as beautiful as Cuenca, there is much more opportunity for teachers. I make much more than that. I do have a resident visa which helps, but I would think it to be almost impossible to have any quality of life at that amount. Minimum wage is more than that. |
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HLJHLJ
Joined: 06 Oct 2009 Posts: 1218 Location: Ecuador
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Posted: Thu May 31, 2012 5:53 am Post subject: |
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When you say including housing, do you mean that they pay for your housing and utilities on top of the $350? Or that you would have to pay for housing out of the $350? The former would be liveable, but it would be a tight budget. The latter would be unfeasible. |
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yoga2012
Joined: 21 Mar 2012 Posts: 12
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Posted: Sun Jun 03, 2012 2:26 am Post subject: |
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Yea, housing and utilities will be paid. I'm thinking that since I don't want to be dipping into my savings, plus, I'm looking to save at least a little money each month, than maybe that amount is not good for my situation. I don't want to be living from pay check to pay check, saving less than $100 each month. |
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orozcom
Joined: 17 Jan 2011 Posts: 14 Location: Thailand
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Posted: Sun Jun 03, 2012 12:22 pm Post subject: CEDEI |
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Hello,
I have recently applied with CEDEI. Which they said they pay between $350 and $420. I was wondering would this be enough to pay for housing and expenses and live comfortably? Also has anyone worked there within the last 3-5 years? Thanks for the help I really appreciate it. |
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rbc089
Joined: 27 Jul 2010 Posts: 12
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Posted: Sun Jun 03, 2012 5:13 pm Post subject: Re: CEDEI |
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orozcom wrote: |
Hello,
I have recently applied with CEDEI. Which they said they pay between $350 and $420. I was wondering would this be enough to pay for housing and expenses and live comfortably? Also has anyone worked there within the last 3-5 years? Thanks for the help I really appreciate it. |
Hi orozcom
I taught at CEDEI for a year (Jan-Dec 11) and I don't think that $420 is nearly enough to cover your expenses and live comfortably. Although it does depend on how you are willing to live! Personally, I think you need about $1000 a month to live comfortably in Cuenca. I came to Cuenca with a lot of savings in order to supplement my monthly pay check from CEDEI.
That said, I'm sure it is possible to live on $420 a month if you are really frugal. One of my friends used to pay $80 a month for a room in a shared house, but they weren't conditions that I would have felt too comfortable with! Perhaps if you tell me what kinds of things you feel you will need on a monthly basis, I can give you a breakdown of what the costs are likely to be in Cuenca.
I hope this helps, and I hope it doesn't all sound too negative! I just got a little fed up of being told that you can easily live off less than $500 a month in Ecuador. Cuenca is a beautiful city with a lot to offer, so I'm sure you will have a great time there if you decide to go. |
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lagringalindissima
Joined: 20 Jun 2014 Posts: 105 Location: Tucson, Arizona
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Posted: Sun Jul 06, 2014 3:38 am Post subject: Not worth it in 2014 |
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They are currently paying 335/month if you get 3 classes of teens and adults..if you had any kid classes it is even less. This does not include housing..and they say housing is 150-170 a month (if you share an apartment). The visa and airfare are not included either. I have been to Cuenca and it's lovely, but it is NOT cheap.. locals will tell you it is one of the most expensive cities in Ecuador to live in. They say that the salary is good by local standards and covers "room and board" but I don't see how you could eat there for 185/month. Granted I went as a tourist and stayed in a hotel, but locals consistently told me Cuenca is expensive. (CEDEI themselves say you will need to bring your own money for all expenses besides food and housing.) CEDEI also forbids you from working for other schools; they said you can pick up extra hours with them, but with pay this low surely everyone wants to do that-- and I'd think that new hires wouldn't get many extra hours. I will tell you this..Loja is much cheaper than Cuenca and when I lived there in 2011 I paid 150/month in housing and was paid 450..I couldn't live decently on that.
Another issue is the visa process..it's very chaotic. In Loja they said you need a local bank account with 1000 in it to get the visa; CEDEI didn't mention this at all. CEDEI's information implies you get the visa issued in your country, but I've had two jobs in Ecuador and it doesn't seem to be that way. But in the end no one seems to have a clue what the process really involves--which is no one's fault, because it changes monthly. I wouldn't trust any school in Ecuador to get you a visa as of 2014, unless (of course) you really are going to be a volunteer rather than a paid teacher.
A final comment: I told them that I have been in Ecuador for 82 days this year and thus I can't be in Ecuador for over 8 days without a visa.. is that a problem? I also asked if we have to leave our passports with lawyers or immigration--because if we do I won't come. They didn't answer my questions. They sent me a vague statement that your country tells you what to do.. google Ecuadorian visas + your country and you'll see that it is very hard to get intelligible and reliable information. (At least for the USA..maybe other countries make it easier, but I'd doubt it since the problem is Ecuador changes their laws constantly.) They said they register your visa "in Cuenca" but that fails to tell me if we leave our passport with a 3rd party. There is also a (refundable) 50 "fee" that we pay to ensure we complete the contract; that means if you go, aren't comfortable with the visa process and thus leave you lost more money. But not being comfortable with the visa process is a 100% valid reason to leave a job! |
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just_a_mirage
Joined: 11 Nov 2008 Posts: 169 Location: ecuador
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Posted: Tue Jul 08, 2014 5:37 pm Post subject: |
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$335 is not anywhere near enough to live on. Its right at minimum wage level. Yes many Ecuadorians live on minimum wage, but as is tradition here, most live with numerous relatives who chip in for household expenses.
The initial visa many people use to work on is the 12-IX. This is a 180 day visa that requires a bank statement of about 2k or more in your balance, a ticket out of the country, a letter in spanish requesting the visa, a completed application form with photo, and a document from Migracion showing your exits and entries from the country. You also need to make color copies of your picture page from your passport and the visa stamp if you apply in Ecuador. The cost is $230. You can legally work on this visa, but it cannot be renewed. |
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