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Moving to CR in Aug. w/ boyfriend & cat- House/TEFL/Airf

 
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DandelionDreams



Joined: 19 Jun 2010
Posts: 1

PostPosted: Tue Jun 22, 2010 5:33 pm    Post subject: Moving to CR in Aug. w/ boyfriend & cat- House/TEFL/Airf Reply with quote

Hello! My name is Rebecca, I am 22 years old and just graduated from my University with a Bachelor's degree in Spanish and International Studies.

I am looking to find a job in Costa Rica teaching English of course.

I need opinions and advice on the following things- Housing, airfare, Work Visas, the TEFL, and Accounting jobs for non-Spanish speakers..(I know most of these have all been covered at some time, and I have read many of these posts, but things are always changing and would love to get personal feedback, I would really appreciate it!)

1. Housing: I am looking for a place in San Jose for me, my boyfriend, and my cat, a 1 bedroom, 1 bathroom is perfect. My cat is perfect too, she doesn't scratch things or make a mess, she just wants to be cuddled or to chase her toy.

I wanted to have a job lined up first, but so far I haven't had any luck with sending my resumes online to schools (I get no's or no replies back). I was hoping to base where I lived on where I worked, but I think now I just need to find a place to live for us first and then find a job when I get there.

So any recommendations on living for the 3 of us? The cheaper the better, but I also don't want to have to spend half my day traveling to my (hopefully) job location.

2. Airfare: I read online that you can enter CR with a 1-way ticket if you can prove you have $400-$1,000 in your bank account. Is this true? If so how do you go about doing this?

I would like to do this since I don't know when exactly we will be leaving to return to the States.

Also, we are looking to leave around August 14, because our lease is up here July 31, and then we'd like to spend some time with our families. Is there anything particularly good or bad about this time period?

3. Work Visas Should I have a Work Visa with me before or after I apply to jobs? Am I more likely to get hired under the table anyway and not need it?

4. TEFL: Ahh, the TEFL, one of the most confusing things for me. As I have not had any luck with finding a job so far, and have no experience teaching, I figured I would get some form of TEFL. Unfortunately, as I just graduated from college this May, and am moving, funds are low, and so I am going to do an online, 40 or 50 hour TEFL course. Yes, I know this is not ideal at all, but I figure something is better than nothing.

So, does anyone please have any recommendations for this?

5. Accounting jobs for non-Spanish speakers My boyfriend just graduated this May with his Bachelor's degree in Accounting. He does not speak much Spanish, but is learning. Any advice for him? So far no luck in our job searches for that either.

Well, I think those are all my questions. Again I apologize if they seem or are redundant, but I have been doing research myself, I just have a lot on my plate and any advice is so much appreciated. Thank you!! Smile
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jprimm



Joined: 03 Aug 2007
Posts: 91

PostPosted: Wed Jun 23, 2010 3:20 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

I would suggest you read the past posts for a reality check. Forget any accouting job, getting a job before you get here, a work visa...etc...Do some homework on this site...
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queenpinkness



Joined: 21 May 2010
Posts: 3

PostPosted: Thu Jun 24, 2010 8:59 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Hey Rebecca,

I have been living here for a year and a half teaching English. I don't know that much about San Jose but there are plenty of opportunities to teach English, but don't expect to get paid much. It would be very difficult to cover both of you and a cat. You may have to start with a few hours and work your way up, so I hope you have savings. Also online Tefl's are generally not accepted but you maybe lucky. Your chance of getting a job will greatly increase if you are here.

Also don't expect to get a work visa you will have to leave the country every 3 months unless your very lucky. I don't think it's possible to get one by yourself. San Jose is very dangerous so becareful where you choose to live. So it maybe cheap and convenient but do you want to risk your life?

The rules about leaving the country are getting stricter and normally you need to show at the airport you have a return ticket out of CR because they don't want anymore people living here. This is also starting to happen at the land borders.

The only thing bad about the time you suggested it that the school year will have already started and there will be less jobs. Also it's rainy season.

As for accounting jobs I'm pretty sure you can forget it unless you speak fluent Spanish as that is the native language here and English is just a very important second language. But you could check companies like KPMG.

If you start looking for job when you get here and decide to take a better tefl course I have contacts so please feel free to pm me with any more questions.

Hope this helps.
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EdwardinCR



Joined: 12 Jan 2010
Posts: 7

PostPosted: Fri Jan 28, 2011 9:55 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

You don't need to prove a return ticket to enter Rica.
You may be asked to evidence an "ONWARD/OUTBOUND" ticket (which could be a return or not). I've been asked twice in five years. Once by airline peeps in Miami and once by the Feds in the Rica airport. So, yes its policed by both sides. I believe its policed very little from what I've seen. It's worth getting the tix though...just in case. Just make a reservation get the email confirmation printed out then cancel it if you want (before penalty dates kick in). I know lots of peeps who do it this way.
My "exhibit A" was just like this- a printout on typing paper and was never questioned.
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