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Communicorp in Chile
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aeb123$



Joined: 12 Mar 2009
Posts: 11
Location: Indiana

PostPosted: Sat Jun 27, 2009 11:44 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

so, lunkey - how are you liking santiago? done with school yet? how's the job hunting going?
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Minny



Joined: 20 Jun 2009
Posts: 29

PostPosted: Sun Jun 28, 2009 7:54 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Lunky I decided to go home.

On another note:

Does anyone else find it incredibly interesting that many of the counter replies to negative feedback on this thread are written in the same style and tone?

That the defender is normally a new member and nearly always mentions the DOS by name.

I personally think the majority of positive feedback (not all there are some that are obviously genuine.) is from the same person and probably someone from Comunicorp if not the DOS herself.

My personal experience when googling a school for research is that if it's a decent school you find nothing other than probably their website.

My other experience is that people normally only take the time to whing and write bad things on the internet, they normally don't get on to tell everyone it is roses unless they have a stake in something.

Just a bit of food for thought.

And for the record:

my complaint was never about the hours it was about the unfairness of the contract and the cheek of the school to displace their business risks on the lowly paid teacher while they are the one's making the bundles of money, well still expecting to monopolise all your time.
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lady gator linguist



Joined: 02 Jul 2009
Posts: 9

PostPosted: Sat Jul 04, 2009 9:57 pm    Post subject: Working for Comunicorp Reply with quote

I read the earlier posts before coming to work for Comunicorp and I was encouraged by most of them to work there after spending the last 5 years at a Japanese university. I wanted a change from that environment because I wanted to try and improve my Spanish ability before returning to the U.S. permanently.

I had spoken to Diane last year about working at Comunicorp. Everything she said and e-mailed to me about the working conditions of the contract were valid. A driver did meet me at the airport and take me to my hostel. Later on, he was kind enough to help me move to my first flat (for a fee since it was outside of Comunicorp's work).

Unfortunately, the problems began when Diane remarked to me ON TWO OCCASIONS, "You're an expensive teacher." To all of you readers out there, I have a master's degree with a TESL Certificate. Why should I not be paid more than the other teachers who have less experience? After she said this to me the second time, I was really offended because it was unprofessional of her to complain about paying me more when she had chosen to offer me the position in the first place.

But the straw that broke the camel's back was when the scheduling coordinator called me at 10:30 p.m. one night to tell me that my morning class for the following day was cancelled. She then proceeded to berate me over the phone over why I had not answered the phone or bothered to reply to the secretary's earlier phone calls about this matter. I was very angry that she had chosen to bully me and butt into my personal life 2.5 hours after Comunicorp had closed. I had to restrain myself from saying something very nasty to her. When I told this story to Diane the next day, she stated to me that I should pay a little more attention to my phone at night. Well, first of all, if I had heard the phone, I would have answered it. Secondly, I was busy doing something else (like eating dinner).

In the end, I decided that I didn't want to be treated like a peon and I resigned my position. Now, there is a clause in the contract which states that if a teacher chooses to resign then he or she has to pay the company 100,000 pesos for the administrative costs of obtaining the visa. However, when I resigned, I wrote a letter to Diane and David Silver (the head of Comunicorp) exactly why I was leaving--the things I just said here. I chose to stick up for my rights, and guess what? They offered me an early release without having to pay the 100,000 pesos.

So, what's the lesson learned? Make sure that before you sign any contract, really check out the people for whom you'll be working. If you don't feel comfortable signing it, then DON'T. I should have done that, but I didn't. Fortunately, though, it worked out in my favor. Secondly, if you feel that you're in a hostile working environment, stand up for your rights and document exactly what happened. If you're unhappy with the situation and it becomes unbearable, then leave. Wipe the dust off your feet and move on.
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Piscolove



Joined: 06 Jul 2009
Posts: 2

PostPosted: Tue Jul 07, 2009 2:26 pm    Post subject: AMAZING Reply with quote

I am a teacher in Comunicorp. I obviously know who lady gator linguist and minny are. They are the two teachers that recently left Comunicorp. It was no surprise. One of them obviously didn�t fit in and the other didn�t seem happy from the start, but there are 25 or 30 of us who are doing just fine here.

I signed a contract with Comunicorp just as we all do. I reviewed my contract after reading what minny said and point by point and I don�t see the same problems. Yes, the contract protects Comunicorp from having teachers leave before the end of the year but the work visa saves us from having to make the Mendoza trip every three months and makes everything legal. I always get paid on time and the pay is as good if not better than most but not all schools. I have never had any issues and in fact when I have questions or doubts, I feel supported by the staff. I have been treated with respect by the administrators and from what I can see, that is the standard experienced by my fellow teachers.

I would recommend Comunicorp as a serious, professional school. It is always a good idea to review a contract carefully before signing and to understand the terms, but I don�t think these terms are unfair or unusual. I am enjoying Chile and I�d recommend it as a fun place to be.
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Frank1980



Joined: 13 Feb 2006
Posts: 31

PostPosted: Tue Jul 07, 2009 2:44 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

I think certain people are not prepared to live abroad and / or work for a company that, from my experience, is/was concerned about quality. When I worked for Comunicorp a few years ago I also had issues, but mine were with certain staff members who seemed to be teaching to make enough to either feed their habits or to meet potential mates. I had a couple of colleagues that were too immature and maybe even dysfunctional to feel comfortable working there.

My experience with Comunicorp was good. I don�t know what issues these people have but perhaps having a master�s degree is only a sign of excellence as a student � not necessarily as a teacher.
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lady gator linguist



Joined: 02 Jul 2009
Posts: 9

PostPosted: Thu Jul 09, 2009 10:28 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

I received my master's degree about 7 years ago, so I didn't just excel as a student. I ended up returning to Japan and worked my butt off for 6.5 years (5 of them in a university) after I earned it. I had also worked as a teacher and did other jobs in between my bachelor's and master's degree. After earning my master's I recognized that being a lifelong student doesn't pay the bills.

I would have been happy to remain at Comunicorp until the end of my contract if these two incidents had not occurred. Now it is true that I got homesick from time to time because I had already been away from home for so long and I think that my family would have preferred for me to return to the U.S. after leaving Japan. I also acknowledge that Santiago is very different than Tokyo. But I did my best never to let my homesickness interfere with my work. I tried to keep myself busy so that I wouldn't think of home so much. When I was teaching my students, I was okay. I had no problems with them. And Diane for the most part is a nice person. But when you have someone hire you then turn around and say the things that were said, it makes me feel very discouraged and offended. She didn't have to hire me. If she had said that she would have liked to hire me, but couldn't afford to do so for economic reasons, I could have handled that better. That would have been more honest.
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Minny



Joined: 20 Jun 2009
Posts: 29

PostPosted: Tue Jul 21, 2009 2:35 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

so lady gator are you the one who didn't fit in or the one who wasn't happy from the start because it's got me completely stumped. I need to figure out who I am through a process of elimination.

I love how people deviate to personal attacks when they have no facts to argue.

And like I keep saying from the beginning their is nothing actually wrong with working with Comunicorp if you are happy to sign a contract that can potentionally screw you over.

My advice is to ask the DOS to e-mail the contract before you leave your home country so there are no surprises when you arrive in Chile.

Lastly I am not sure how a company that is in a continual process of staff recruitment but are not actually expanding their workforce can boast to have any type of quality.
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Frank1980



Joined: 13 Feb 2006
Posts: 31

PostPosted: Tue Jul 21, 2009 9:52 pm    Post subject: Why so much hate Reply with quote

It seems to me that if one is unhappy for whatever reason, one needs to make the changes that a happy life requires and move on. I don't get what all the fuss is. Clearly, not all schools are made for all teachers.

I hope minny can find a school that minny finds acceptable. Life is too short.
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Minny



Joined: 20 Jun 2009
Posts: 29

PostPosted: Sat Jul 25, 2009 2:32 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

your funny Frank - absolutely nothing wrong with someone supplying people who are asking for it with a little bit of useful information.

It still never ceases to amaze me how people start to make personal attacks when they have nothing more intelligent to say.
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Piscolove



Joined: 06 Jul 2009
Posts: 2

PostPosted: Mon Jul 27, 2009 12:10 pm    Post subject: Valid information is always well received Reply with quote

I agree with minny that it is always good to give positive, real and honest information to teachers seeking data on schools abroad. I would recommend speaking to teachers that are working in the schools before making a decision. If teachers seek complete information, it is important to get in touch with present and past teachers and get a wider vision of the pros and cons of any one school. Like I said in a previous post, I worked with minny and continue to have a large number of coleagues in Comunicorp. My experience so far has been the opposite of hers and am very pleased to continue being a teacher here.
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DHAPhotography



Joined: 11 Aug 2009
Posts: 49
Location: Kill Devil Hills, NC

PostPosted: Wed Aug 12, 2009 7:26 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

I agree with the previous poster. Do you research with former and current teachers. If the school won't provide contacts, then that should tell you to look elsewhere.
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roadwalker



Joined: 24 Aug 2005
Posts: 1750
Location: Ch

PostPosted: Mon Jan 04, 2010 2:28 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

I worked at Comunicorp last year and I would agree with the posters who said it was a positive experience. The contract is weighted toward protecting the school which makes sense since the school writes it but also since they have more to lose. Nobody from the school tried to take advantage of me with the contract. Chile is a very bureaucratic country and the school took pains to explain procedures for me as far as visa applications, insurance and other red tape.

I had many opportunities both from the school and from colleagues to exchange ideas for classes and difficult students. (There is a mandatory teachers meeting once a month.) Everyone is different, and I met a couple of teachers who didn't seem happy there, but as far as I was concerned, it was a good school to work for. Teacher turnover is high in this business, as people move on to new adventures, so the next group may be different. There were several teachers who had been there a couple of years or more.

There are quite a few language schools to choose from in Santiago. I recommend contacting at least several of them to compare, either over the Internet or in person. They range from fly-by-night to big chain schools. Comunicorp is stand-alone as far as I know, but they have a lot of corporate clients and a track record in Santiago.
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crystal23



Joined: 10 Dec 2009
Posts: 2

PostPosted: Fri Jan 15, 2010 10:15 pm    Post subject: Comunicorp is a good school to work for! Reply with quote

I have just completed my contract with Comunicorp and I have to say that my experience was very positive.
I really enjoyed teaching with them and I have to say that Diane (the academic director)showed me nothing but kindness, even helping me when I needed a place to stay after a very difficult living situation.
There is an abundance of teaching resources at Comunicorp and there is always extra help if your are running short of ideas, I felt comfortable asking for help not only from Diane but from other teachers.
I really enjoyed all my classes and felt I learnt a great deal during my time there.

There also is a lovely new coordinator that is incredibly helpful and fair to all the teachers, always trying to ensure people get an even workload.

There are different kinds of contracts at Comunicorp which did confuse me slightly but even though I was not on a fixed contract I had a good amount of hours and always had a good pay check at the end of the month.

I would also like to mention that the other staff in Comunicorp. namely Monica (the Secretary) and Valentina (the accountant) who were always incredibly helpful and were always at the ready to help with any problem, without them my time there would not have been so smooth.

I believe that I was treated fairly and professionally at all times and that when I asked for special conditions they looked at my situation individually and I appreciated this.

Comunicorp does have a lot of staff and due to this there is always going to be someone who is unhappy.
I think you need to remember that working in a busy city is not easy and that as it is a Business school you have to travel to most of your classes (this part I did not enjoy) but that this is standard practise for any Business school in any city.

All in all I would recommend Comunicorp as a good place to work in Santiago, I met a lot of other teachers working in different schools and I truly believe that I was in a far better situation than them. Anyway to anyone looking to work in Chile it is a fantastic country and I wish you a good adventure and lots of luck!
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