Job Discussion Forums

[bentheviking]

Well, I am almost ready to make the plunge into Mexico to teach. I am still trying to figure out where I will take my cert. course. I have narrowed it down to either ITTO's TEFL in Guadalajara and IH's CELTA in Playa del Carmen.

I have seen references to this topic elswhere in this forum but only in bits and pieces. If anyone has any specific experience, I'd love to hear it.

My understanding is that the CELTA carries more international weight, but I want to teach in Mexico. How is it there? Playa del Carmen is beautiful, as I understand it, but is it touristy? Guadalajara sounds more interesting to me, culturally.

Please reply if you have any answers.
Ben

[mikeparker21]

Hi Ben

Not having visited Playa del Carmen or taken CELTA, I can't really comment about them. However, I did study TEFL at ITTO Via Lingua in Guadalajara in September 2002.

All in all it was a very good course. I entered with no teaching experience and came out 4 weeks later confident and ready for my first job. The teaching method sessions were useful and the trainers were helpful and experienced. There's probably no point going into specifics as it was nearly two years ago and I think there have been a few changes in personnel, but on my experience I can definitely recommend it on content.

As far as the job situation goes, Guadalajara (Mexico's second largest city)has many opportunities, more I suspect than a smaller town like Playa del Carmen. I know many other graduates of ITTO, and I haven't heard of anyone ever being rejected based on their Via Lingua certificate.

I got a job with Proulex, a private institute attached to la UdG (Universidad de Guadalajara). It's the biggest school in the city, and they actually phoned ITTO to notify them of interviews, so they obviously have full confidence in them.

I can also recommend Guadalajara as a city. It has lots of culture and the best year-round climate in Mexico (never too hot, cold or humid). The traffic and litter situation aren't great and the centre's kind of crowded, but that's to be expected in any city of it's size. It's certainly much better than Mexico City. I lived there happily for over a year.

I hope that's of help to you. Good luck with your training!

[bentheviking]

Hey Mike,

Thanks for the info. I am basically in the same shoes you were in 2002, so that's good to hear.

I get the feeling ITTO has it together pretty well. I have been corresponding through email with one of the administrators there. Her name is Gabriela Mariscal. She has been very helpful and responsive to my questions.

Good to hear the city is nice. I kind of like big cities. I live in Houston right now. I've been to Mexico City, but not Guadalajara. The pollution was kind of a drag, but I liked the city.

It sounds like you have a pretty good job. Did you get it straight out of the course?

Thanks again,
Ben

[MELEE]

I'm a little late jumping in here (I DON'T read Dave's on my vacation, sorry )

You might want to read this thread
http://www.eslcafe.com/forums/job/viewtopic.php?t=8563&highlight=celta
and it went three pages! and you'll find my opinion as to which I'd hire, a CELTA grad or an ITTO grad.

Best of Luck,

[bentheviking]

Thanks for the post, Melee. No problem about being late. I hope you had a good vacation. So, I take it everyone is pretty gung-ho on CELTA in Playa del Carmen? I have two business degrees but almost no teaching experience. I was a TA for 3 semesters, and I've been working for a year since. So, I definitely need a school/course with some credentials. But, these are my basic concerns about CELTA in Playa:

1. It's new. Does it have contacts with potential employers in Mexico? I want to stay in Mexico to teach.

2. It's a tourist hot-spot. I want to work on my Spanish while I'm there. I'm afraid it's going to be gringo-land down there.

Any comments or opinions welcome.
Ben

[magpie]

I was in the first CELTA class in Playa. To answer your questions:

1. We did not receive a lot of help in finding jobs in Mexico, however, the school employees several great Spanish teachers and they have numerous contacts and will share information about various schools and cities. Also, you CAN find a job--if you really try on your own. And, I understand the second class did get much more assistance, probably because our class asked for that as an improvement in course content and IH took is seriously.

2. I speak some Spanish as did most of my classmates. While Playa is a tourist trap, you can engage any native in conversation in Spanish and learn a lot. As mentioned above there are Spanish language teachers at the school who do teach Spanish classes for the gringos. Having lunch or dinner with them and daily conversation will definitely improve your language skills.

[bentheviking]

Thanks for the reply. CELTA in Playa del Carmen is sounding better and better. I'd better get to work on the application.

[seaskyclay]

I�m a bit late getting in on this conversation also since I�m not really reading the Mexico forum much anymore. My job search has ended up taking me to Europe.

I was in the second CELTA course in Playa, so I thought I�d post a quick comment. Playa has beautiful beaches and very hot weather this time of year, but is about as touristy as it gets. There are plenty of locals, as magpie said, to converse with though if you engage them.

Having an IH CELTA I think is invaluable. I am very happy about my decision to go with them and think it will be quite valuable down the road. Less than a month after taking the course, after applying to dozens of schools I�ve decided to take a job with another IH school. The instruction my classmates and I received in IH Riviera Maya was second to none. No complaints, only rave things to say.

IH Riviera Maya IS new and they are still coming together as a school. I�m sure it will improve with each session they do. The coming session in August will be their third, so it�s bound to be even more organized than it was for either magpie or myself. I know the two teacher trainers that will be teaching in August and you really couldn�t do better. They are both compassionate, professional and immense resources. You will receive a top-rate education there.

Hope that helps. I had a wonderful experience there overall, even though the school itself was a bit chaotic in June. I have all the confidence in the world that IH headquarters will make sure that this school meets up to their high standards.

Good luck!

[bentheviking]

No problem for the late reply. I'm planning on going to the Nov. 8 course, so I've got a nice head-start. I appreciate the comments and encouraging words. I can't wait to go!