Job Discussion Forums

[milesjq]

Hey Everybody!
I've been checking out the website for a while, but I am newly registered.
Although I have seen some postings regarding cost of living and salaries for teaching English in Latin America, I would like to ask a general, probably over-simplified question. Is it feasible to make payments on student loans (around 150 USDs/month) with an average ESL teacher's salary, and still have money for rent, food, and a little for spending? I am not too partial to any one city or country, but I like the idea of Santiago, and Buenos Aires, for examples. Information on any location in L.A. wanted. By the way, I will have certificate, college degree, and some Spanish, and not too much money saved. Again, I know it is a very general and simplified question, but any thoughts would be appreciated. Thanks.

[milesjq]

Oops! I just read responses to another newbie, which helped. Any more light to be shed welcome.

[MELEE]

We've had a couple of teachers try to keep up their debt payments, which I believe were also around 150 a month, only to end up miserable and leave. It is possible to save that much a month, but saving, and having it to spend if and when you need it, and having to dedicate that much money to payments are two different things. I would suggest starting off in another part of the world, or exploring the possiblity of differing your loan payments, OR work like hell in your homecountry and start travelling once you get your loan paid off.

If you are a recent grad it may be possible to differ for a couple of years, but that's only me going on hearsay, since I didn't have any student loans. In Japan, way back in 1996, I saved about 300 US dollars a month without hardly even trying.

[naturegirl321]

I agree with MELEE, it can be difficult, but can be done, There is a teacher who is saving 500 USD a month in order to pay for a distance learning course.
It takes discipline, but you can do it. I save 30 for retirement (wow) and 100 for a MA and then about 150 for savings.

[naturegirl321]

One thing that helps me is envelopes. When I get paid I separate my money into different expenses that I have. Though you would need to have a regular salary to do that, one that wouldn't vary too much month to month.

[denise]

Depending on where you end up, your monthly salary could be anywhere from $400 to $1000. $150 is quite a big percent of a $400 salary!

You said you didn`t have very much money saved. How much is "not too much"? Enough for your airfare + living expenses for the first two months + a TEFL certificate? Plus an emergency cushion? If you don't have those things covered, you'll be hurting!

Unless you're absolutely set on Latin America, why not start off elsewhere to build up some savings? I spent two years in Japan, and if not for those two years (and a generous ex-boyfriend!), I would not be able to afford to live down here (Peru) because my combined student loan and credit card payments are something like $400 monthly.

And yes, you can defer your loans (as suggested by Melee), or you can apply for "economic hardship," or change your repayment plan to 20 or 30 years.

d

[Justin Trullinger]

If you're planning on a long term EFL career, either pay them off before you go, or consolidate them, extend the period, and get the payments WAY DOWN.

If you're just planning on a year or two out, defer them.

Here in Ecuador, $150 a month would be a stretch on a good teachers salary, a near impossibility on an entry level one. Even on a rather good entry level position, it would be the difference between a nice local lifestyle and living in near poverty- that $150 would be your travel money, your weekend money, and your going out money. Not advisable.

Justin

[ls650]

[denise]

Justin & ls650 have raised an important point--yeah, it may be doable (especially if you never go out and take on as many private students as you can), but what is the point of living in another country if you're not going to actually go out and experience and enjoy it? You did mention that you wanted a bit of spending money--I agree that it's crucial. I could save a lot more of my salary here if I really applied myself, but with only a year to experience Peru, I'd much rather enjoy my time here!

d

[Not St Louis]

If you have no plans to go back to the states, you could just default on them and not to have to worry at all, ya know? Who cares about a bad credit rating, no ability to ever take out loans again, etc.

If on the other hand, you are only going for a few years, just try to get them deferred until you return, you can get a forbearnaces and deferments to stretch out the time for a couple of years.

If you are going for unknown amount of time, contact your lender in order to do a grduated payment schedule or even income contigent repayment plan. You might only need to come up with 15 to $25 a month in payments and you preserve deferments and forbearances for when you really need them. (This is probably the best of the three ideas!)

[milesjq]

Thanks to all. Very helpful indeed. I am set on Latin America, even if it pays less than Asia, so I guess I will cut my payments by half, at least. Or maybe i should take 'Not St Louis's' advice and not worry about it; leave for good, and check out Cuba while I'm at it. Thanks Again.

MJ

P.S. I am about to enroll in an on-line tefl course, and hope it will be about as good in the eyes of a prospective employer. Should I wait to take an on-site course, or go ahead with on-line certification based on price and convenience? Any thoghts? WELL, I'LL SAVE IT FOR ANOTHER THREAD I SUPPOSE.

[denise]

I don't know who your loan company is, but mine is nelnet. I just sent them a message through their website about different repayment options, and they responded with a few different options and a pdf file with a repayment plan application (I'm about to declare "economic hardship" or something... ). So my suggestion to you is... contact your loan provider! You certainly aren't the first person who has had questions. Even if they just send you a form letter in response, as they did to me, it should have some options for you.

And as to the TEFL course--an on-site one would be better because of the supervised practice teaching sessions that you get with it. If you find that employers don't know the difference, or don't care, then you just need to decide how much training YOU think you need... Those practice sessions and feedback really are valuable.

d

[milesjq]

Thanks, e-mail is a good idea.