Job Discussion Forums

AMPTZ · Joined: 01 Jan 2005 Posts: 2

Anyone signed up for the EBC March course in Madrid? I am signed up for the course starting March 21st in Madrid.
I am presently working on my housing in Madrid. Does anyone have any suggestions/ recommendations? I have emailed a couple of places a few weeks ago and have not heard back from anyone. I am most interested in Madrid Insider. Has anyone used this agency?

frijolita · Joined: 06 May 2004 Posts: 35 Location: Madrid

I did the Oct course with EBC. I went through Ven a mi casa. The host family I got was very nice. I had some friends that went through Madrid Insider and didn�t like it so much. You may not have gotten responses because it has been vacation time in Spain with xmas, new years, and dia de los reyes. If you have any questions about the course let me know. Good luck! Very Happy

AMPTZ · Joined: 01 Jan 2005 Posts: 2

Do you have a web address for Ven a mi casa? What did your friends dislike about Madrid Insider? Madrid Insider seems appealing just because I am not that familiar with Madrid and with them is seems I won�t have to worry about finding a place if I�m not there. I would like to live with a Spanish family, but most of the companies I have looked at are pretty costly and since I�m coming from the USA, and thus using the devaluing dollar, I�m just trying to find the best value. Thanks for your help! Hasta Pronto

JimRoss · Joined: 22 Oct 2004 Posts: 31

We removed Ven a mi Casa from our list of recommended accommodations because of complaints from students on our October, 2004 course.

We received various complaints including one that said that she was put in the same room as a 50 year old woman when she had requested a private room.

The accommodation providers listed on our site are totally independent of EBC and as such we value all feedback from our students and we act accordingly.

Regards,

Jim Ross,
TEFL Coordinator.

EBC Servicios Ling��sticos

Email: [email protected]

Madrid Contact:
Phone:(+34) 91 555 3975 (Training centre)
Fax: (+34) 91 345 0843

UK Free Phone Contact:
Phone 0800 011 2806
Fax 0800 011 2860

US/Canada toll free Contact:
Phone 1 888 393 4015
Fax 1 888 393 4050

Mailing address:
EBC Servicios Linguisticos Europe SL,
Orense 26, 2A, 28020 Madrid, Spain.

Web:
http://www.ebc-tefl-course.com

Victoria Morley · Joined: 01 Jun 2004 Posts: 22

Hi there Jim and EBC,

I�m glad you�re keeping up the close hold on your independent service providers. Madrid has been superb but I guess I�m not alone on this observation. For those wanting some advice or tips on Madrid, life in general, in this great city, TEFL programs, housing, jobs, etc, etc, send me an email or a pm.

All the best,

victoria

frijolita · Joined: 06 May 2004 Posts: 35 Location: Madrid

I do recall hearing about that incident with ven a mi casa. They took that house off their list. Me and a few of my friends stayed with hosts from this agency and had no problems. The rooms were clean and the people were very nice. I can�t speak for my friend about Madrid Insider. I can ask her to hop on the forum and maybe write about her experience. I would recommend just finding some sort of non permenant accomodation in Madrid for a month then when you get here start looking for a flat.

Rosemary Walder · Joined: 01 Jun 2004 Posts: 7

Flats in Madrid are between 300-350 shared between 3 people. Budget for this and you�ll be fine. Sometimes there are cheaper ones but the area might not be so nice. The best way to go about accomodations is to get yourself set up for the duration of the course, nothing too fancy, and then look for the more permanent hosuing as soon as you get to Madrid, BCN, Seville. The major cities are the ones where you need to scout for flats early, but again these cities are where the jobs are plentiful but then there are lesser flats for the choosing!

Also many TEFL schools will have local contacts, Spanish people enquiring if there are students looking for housing, so that�s another good way to find good housing opportunities.

Rosemary

Jenny Thomas · Joined: 26 May 2004 Posts: 12

The first apartment I got was 250 euros a month, but the area wasn�t good, (metro, Pueblo Nuevo). I�m now with some friends close to metro, Tribunal, paying a bit more, but the area is great. Always ask your school for help about housing, they have so many useful leads that they�ll be able to advice you especially if you need help with your Spanish. I came upon this comment on some threads and I agree with them.

F Johnson · Joined: 14 Jan 2005 Posts: 9

March is a great month to be in Madrid!

A lot of schools call you for teaching hours that could last through to June when the school year ends. This is great especially if you�re just starting and you want to earn but enjoy the city as well. Meaning you don�t want to burn yourself out. Of course it can be tempting especially if they call you all the time, but don�t go overboard on the hours, you might get overwhelmed. You gotta enjoy Madrid, it really is a fun city!

March is not too cold, not too hot, just right and Madrid is full of life and fun around these months. There seems to be a lot more fiestas, parties in the spring! Must be the weather.

I would definitely recommend doing a March course , enjoy Madrid, and Spain in general. Good luck.

justin andersen · Joined: 10 Oct 2004 Posts: 17

I must agree with the message about March, spring in Madrid is a good time to study and teach. When I was looking around for TEFL courses in Madrid, I read a lot of reference to the seasons and short intensive courses given by companies. At that time (seems like a long time ago!) I wasn�t sure about that term, short intensive courses. Now I know.

You see I�m teaching a lot of them myself. They�re great! Not too long and you�re not with the group or student for such a long time! Especially if its a difficult group! These short intensive courses run from March to July and they go from 10 hours 20 hours, 60 hours, all done anywhere from 2 weeks to 2 months. I think the companies prefer these courses because the students are forced to learn and show they�ve learnt something. I work for different schools and I do these short intensive courses for 2 of them. I like them as well. Pay is also much higher than the 1 year courses. So yes, studying in March and working until the summer with these short intensive courses is not a bad idea! Suerte en Madrid!

sneakerpimp · Joined: 06 Feb 2005 Posts: 4 Location: Madrid

I agree w/ a lot of the others -- March is a fine time to come to madrid. there is work, but in my experience, it took me longer than i expected to get the right kind of work. by "right" i mean jobs that weren't paying 10 euros/hour and were in the city (accessible by metro). if you are willing to take anything offered to you, you'll have no trouble finding work. but if you wanna ensure a solid income every month of 900+ euros, be prepared to wait it out a bit longer. That was my experience, anyway. But now I'm living, working, happy Smile

About housing -- I did Madrid Insider --- wouldn't necessarily give them two thumbs up. The place was fine, but just that. The ads online make it look a heck of a lot nicer than it was. Sure, my room was clean, it also was tiny, had a tiny interior window, and stuff was constantly in a state of repair (or disrepair...) -- a few times i came home to random maintenance men in the flat and no one else -- that didn't leave the safest impression on me. also bear in mind you'll be sharing a flat with 6-8 other people. if you're into having peace and quiet and your own space, this might not be the place for you. flexibility is key.

the one bonus is that you can set it up from the US and have a room waiting for you when you get there. However, after living here post-madridinsider flat, i realize it was certainly not worth the money. for the convenience, yes, it was worth it, but not for much else. email me if you have any other questions, i'd be happy to help you out!!

justin andersen · Joined: 10 Oct 2004 Posts: 17

Ask your school for a list of places other students have used. At EBC they told me about the good ones and not too good ones based on students�experiences. I think that�s the best way to go about it. Ask your school for advice, they should have the information on important issues like housing. Also for the month of the course, get something not too fancy, always safe to book from home, then start looking when you get to Madrid. Finding good long term housing is not that difficult if you know where to look. There are good sources like www.segundamano.es (only if your Spanish is very good!, this is a local paper) or the ones in English, Inmadrid or The Broadsheet.

shevek · Joined: 29 Jul 2003 Posts: 17

When I was looking for a place to stay during the October class, I googled for placement agencies and looked at those recommeded by the EBC site, but ended up using word of mouth because I got to Madrid early and stayed in a hostel for a few days. It's not riducously hard to find places once you're here, but over the internet seems more difficult. At least for cheap places.

F Johnson · Joined: 14 Jan 2005 Posts: 9

If you�re with EBC they�re quite good at helping you find housing. What I would do is get a hostel for 2-3 days, then ask them at the EBC front desk for recommendations, they�re usually very helpful and knowledgeable. If youre in the March course, enjoy the endless fiestas! Suerte y hasta luego.

lauren d · Joined: 17 Feb 2005 Posts: 5

Hi,

I�ve been googling , emailing, watching the forums and I think I�m going with EBC Madrid. What I really want to do is work in Madrid , maybe Barcelona as well, save a bit ( Wink

) and then take advantage of their job help program. I am going with EBC because firstly they were referred by a hometown friend who attended their course in 2003 and secondly I like to study with a company that will help me work in Madrid, maybe Buenos Aires then last stop maybe China or Japan. Itchy feet I guess.