Job Discussion Forums

[Justapirate]

It seems that my last post(some time ago!) inspired a few to persue their ambitions to teach in Costa Rica. Perfect. I have a few comments to make now, a year++ later.

The demand for teachers since my last post has probably doubled. Period. An article in last weeks Tico Times told much of the story....a private call center firm, Sykes, resorts to teaching their own potential employees. Teaching is not their business.

I met a public school English teacher at my gym the other day....she could hardly talk to me. Someone REALLY needs to teach the TEACHERS here....or there will NEVER be any progress.

The demand for English will surely grow and grow.....and the demand will NEVER be met. I just don't see that happening.

The ads for teachers grows and grows....in the Tico Times....and in the block ads on Sunday in La Nacion. I think that if a person can put an ad in La Nacion saying teacher available, no, I KNOW, they will get immediate work. I'd bet on it. I am not kidding.

I have always felt that the best school here is Intensa. It is expensive for most...demanding to some.....and they use Side By Side(the very best of all texts) Maybe work there!! This school doesn't know me from Adam....but I have NO OTHER school to recommend!...and I have been here eight years! Go figure? I believe they are the best at teaching English. Everytime I read an ad from them they seem to have a new location around town(or the Country)

Any new job wouldn't pay alot....but promote yourself and you can earn better money. It is about selling yourself. Tico's don't care about your credentials...maybe some schools might...but nobody else cares. There is maybe 1 in 1,000,000 who knows what a TOEFL is( a what?)

Think of starting in Heredia(I did, at Interamericana(no recommendation either way)) or another of the places to teach there....Heredia is kind of a center of such things. There you will also find young(not me) teachers to network with.

If you want the life...and can't do it here...well...believe me....you can! Costa Rica REALLY needs you who love teaching. Now!

Pure Vida

[John Hall]

I've got to agree with JustaPirate about the incredible increase in demand for English classes in the last year or so. Most serious teachers that I know are working a full-time and a part-time job, and also doing private classes on the side. And fortunately, there have been some increases in teachers' wages (at some places) because of this high-demand, short-supply situation.

But it is worth pointing out to readers who do not have legal permission to work in Costa Rica that these really good positions (like working directly for a company like Sykes) are available only to those who do have legal permission to work here. Nevertheless, there are plenty of private language institutes around that will hire the teacher-traveller types.

[teachwrite]

[John Hall]

I don't think that I can be much help except to suggest that you look through posts on http://costaricaclassroom.blogspot.com/ and also look at djlera's post which I just now bumped up.

[John Hall]

Regarding the importance of learning English in Costa Rica, check out this article in the Spanish daily La Nacion:

http://www.nacion.com/ln_ee/2007/septiembre/15/economia1240751.html

[misteradventure]

This may be inappropriate, but in Panama I hear alot about FBI record and it is so untrue (this coming from lawyers).

The reason is that most countries have a national police agency. In their country, the report comes from their local equivalent to the FBI. THis is rarely the case with the USA (New Zealand is one exception I know.)

The USA is broken down by state & local jurisdictions. THe solution is to get a "Letter of Good Conduct" saying you have no record, or that you have no outstanding warrants and are not on probation/parole, etc. Once this is apostiled at the Consulate serving your State, you should be good to go for Immigration.

The expats I know who settled down on their little finca needed no such FBI papers. They took the documents I had them assemble for Panama and took them to CR and the lawyer had it in the queue within 2 weeks.

Of course, CR may require something from the FBIthat is special for a work permit, in which case, ask at the US Consulate in San Jose. I doubt it, however.

[teachwrite]

[John Hall]

Costa Ricans are losing jobs because their English is not good enough.

http://www.aldia.co.cr/ad_ee/2007/noviembre/05/nacionales1302469.html

J�venes necesitan mejor preparaci�n

Ticos pierden empleos por su mal ingl�s

Estudio de Cinde revela que pa�s pierde oportunidades

Franklin Arroyo Gonz�lez
[email protected]

El poco dominio del idioma ingl�s de los j�venes ticos hace que muchas empresas no encuentren el personal que necesitan.

1.061

empleos de servicios en ingl�s se llenaron en nuestro pa�s en el a�o 2000.

15.000

ticos que hablaban perfectamente el ingl�s hallaron trabajo en el 2006.

Los datos son reveladores. Desde el 2004 se perdieron 2.000 empleos por a�o, porque la calidad del ingl�s no es la requerida por las empresas, seg�n estudios hechos por la Coalici�n Costarricense de Iniciativas para el Desarrollo (Cinde).

Esto a pesar de que Costa Rica sigue creciendo en puestos de trabajo en el �rea de servicios en ingl�s (6.941 en el 2005 a 15.000 en el 2006).

Gabriela Llobet, directora general de Cinde, dijo que, seg�n encuestas recientes de las empresas, solo tres de diez personas que acuden a entrevistas demuestran un nivel adecuado de ingl�s.

Rezago

Arturo Barboza, director regional de comunicaciones de Sykes, asegur� que a Costa Rica le tomar� al menos cinco a�os ponerse al d�a.

�Los programas de ingl�s, del MEP o del INA, dan una respuesta lenta con respecto a la oferta que se genera. Estamos rezagados�, asegur�.

Ante esta realidad, miles de j�venes se acercan a las academias o institutos de ingl�s, pero no siempre salen preparados de acuerdo con las nuevas exigencias del mercado.

Curr�culo sin ingl�s = devaluado


Un curr�culum en el que el postulante no incluya el ingl�s pierde atractivo entre las empresas de hoy en d�a, sobre todo en las multinacionales.

�Una persona que no cuenta con ingl�s corre el riesgo de perder oportunidades laborales con atractivos paquetes de compensaci�n y excelentes oportunidades de desarrollo y crecimiento�, expres� Cesar Trujillo, Gerente General de HP Centro Am�rica.

Trujillo a�adi�, sin embargo, que el crecimiento que tendr� la empresa en Panam� no se debe a las deficiencias en la materia del costarricense.

�Obedece a un plan de expansi�n en nuevos sitios y no est� directamente relacionado con la operaci�n de Costa Rica. En ese pa�s encontramos un conjunto de condiciones adecuadas que inclinaron la balanza a su favor�.

Raquel Golcher, vocera de INTEL, expres� que en esta empresa trabajan con el MEP y con el INA para atacar las deficiencias en el manejo del idioma.