Job Discussion Forums

chica88 · Joined: 28 Dec 2012 Posts: 107

I've been thinking about this for the last week or so...

I am going into a city to teach in which is known to be difficult to get full time hours.
This will not be the first or last time I'm sure I run into this situation.

My question is this...

What are some good ways to make money on the side from abroad?

Some of the basic ones that come up are:

1. Private tutoring
2. Tutoring/ teaching through a company on the internet.
3. Translating

I myself have been trying to look into writing blogs which of course you can do from anywhere in the world.
But, securing a position like that has proven much more difficult than I first thought.

BadBeagleBad · Posted: Fri May 03, 2013 1:02 am Post subject:

I have been working entirely online for close to two years now. I have moved from position to position and am now in a full time, salaried position which, in the small town in Mexico that I live in, is a King�s Ransom. I save more than half of what I earn. I also work part time for a program that works with immigrants that are returning to Mexico after having been gone for many years, as well as the children of immigrants, many US or Canadian born, who are having a hard time adjusting, many of whom, in fact, don�t even speak Spanish. That is just to get out of the house a couple of days a week, though, not my bread and butter.

MotherF · Posted: Fri May 03, 2013 3:13 pm Post subject:

In the past, I made additional money, giving private lessons on the side. You can generally charge the students much less than they would pay at a language school while you still earn more than you would get paid at a language school. But it can be hard to find and build a good student base. BUT if you are in a city without a lot of language schools (my situation) you may find there are way more people looking for private lessons than you can handle.

I also do translations, but the type of things that come up to translate are most often outside of my area of expertise, so it's actually A LOT of work and I generally don't enjoy it and the pay is not that great since I can't offer them any sort of certification of my translation. The lucrative thing is I've got a deal going with the local board of education that even though I'm not certified to do legal translations, no one in this part of the country is, so they will accept my translations of US birth certificates for children entering local schools for the first time. I live in an area with a lot of immigrants so there are actually about 10 such requests each summer. If the child was born in a state which I've already translated a birth certificate for it will take me less than 15 minutes to do their translation.

In the past I also did some consulting with a Textbook publisher, this was work I enjoyed and the pay was good, though sporadic. But you have to build up experience and contacts to get this kind of work.

I pretty much stopped doing most extra work when I had kids as my spare time if for them.

chica88 · Joined: 28 Dec 2012 Posts: 107

chica88 · Joined: 28 Dec 2012 Posts: 107

BadBeagleBad · Posted: Sat May 04, 2013 7:30 pm Post subject:

chica88 · Joined: 28 Dec 2012 Posts: 107

I kind of agree with what was said about doors opening depending on experience regardless of where you are at.

But, with all due respect Mexico is a hard nut to crack.
Many would agree Mexican wages are low compared to other places.
And the price of living tends to be high meaning when you need a pair of jeans your paying extremely high prices for a low quality product.
Depending on where your located in Mexico makes a huge difference in what type of jobs are open.
I've never come across any positions dealing with what the members have mentioned here.
In the parts I'm in most have their own type of business in Mexico.
But, I feel this is a good forum to have that may assist in esl teachers with finding extra ways to make income abroad.

MotherF · Posted: Mon May 06, 2013 2:26 pm Post subject:

Many would agree Mexican wages are low compared to other places.
Not if you have the right qualifications for the type of work you are looking for. Simply being a native speaker of English is not the right qualification for getting a well paid English teaching job in Mexico. A relevant MA goes a long way.

And the price of living tends to be high meaning when you need a pair of jeans your paying extremely high prices for a low quality product.
Psst--ropa americana. Ro.pa.Am.er.i.cana.

Depending on where your located in Mexico makes a huge difference in what type of jobs are open.
That's true, but there are so many nice places in this country. If I was looking to move, it would be really hard to decide where to go.

I've never come across any positions dealing with what the members have mentioned here.
Networking. Remember who you know is how things get done in Mexico so get out there and meet people, be nice, always, don't burn bridges, and become knowledgable in your field and willing to share some that knowledge. When you help someone out for free you are cultivating contracts. And when you are looking for paid work--let everyone know. You never know, that waiter you are chatting with, might be the son of a woman who cleans the house of a school director...

In the parts I'm in most have their own type of business in Mexico.
That's a completely valid way to go. Some of the regulars in the Mexico forum opperate their own businesses or have in the past.

chica88 · Joined: 28 Dec 2012 Posts: 107

Very interesting so far.
My hope is that this will be a good platform for people to exchange ideas which others may benefit from.

If anyone else wishes to share what they do for extra income please do.

MotherF · Posted: Mon May 06, 2013 9:29 pm Post subject:

Joining your local MEXTESOL chapter is a great way to network. Attend the conferences and then start giving talks yourself. Make sure you make friends with people working for the textbook publishers. If those people like what they see, they are the ones who will think about you and possibly start to throw work your way. The best jobs often aren't advertized to the public by passed around within networks.

notamiss · Posted: Fri May 10, 2013 4:40 pm Post subject:

I translate, and I don�t teach. To be a good translator, he doesn�t have to be certified, but he does have to be a good writer, and picky about language correctness; the kind of person who wants to correct everyone�s grammar and gets indignant at spelling mistakes on signs in the street. The kind that�s a pain to go to a subtitled � or even dubbed � movie with, because he spends the whole movie critiquing the translations.
To be a mediocre translator, all you need is knowledge of two languages, but you get better referrals and can charge more if you are excellent.
If he is interested in pursuing translation, he can register at some translation hubs like www.translatorscafe.com/ and www.ProZ.com; basic registration is free. These sites have a lot of information about getting started and he can meet other translators virtually and network with them.
Thanks to the internet, translators have the world as their market; they are not limited to local clients and local prices.

BadBeagleBad · Posted: Sat May 11, 2013 1:27 am Post subject: