Job Discussion Forums

[julie_girl_]

I'm thinking about sending in my application for IH Mexico City and would love input if anyone has worked there. There doesn't seem to be a lot of chatter about it, which could be a really good thing!

From the profile:
Most of the teaching is off-site
25 hours/week plus seminars/meetings
Shared accommodation that I would pay 2,500 pesos a month for
Spanish lessons provided

My questions:
Have people found this school to be a good employer?
They didn't list salary, but from your experience, is pay from 25 hours a week going to be enough to live on, or will I be scrambling to find private tutoring to make a living?

Thanks!

[geaaronson]

They pay enough to live on if your needs are normal. I taught one class with them and they were alright to work for but nothing special. I would decline the accomodations unless it is important for you to live close to the school, but you might be able to find something cheaper in the neighborhood.
They are reasonably okay to work with. I did not sign on full time as they were a little too interested in working with me and the red flag went up. But they are overly enthusiastic to have you on board.
My biggest problem with them was their academic coordinator, Beatrix. I just didn`t like the woman at all and avoided her, which is usually easy as there are 85 teachers at IH. Just don`t deal with her if you can help it. The other staff is fine.
You will have split shifts which means you will be teaching 7-9 a.m. and again 6-8 p.m. They may send you as far as Santa Fe which is an hour ride each way. That`s the other drawback but for a newbie to DF, you will probably get the long hauls anyway.
I would recommend taking the job and looking around for alternate employment, unless you find yourself liking them. And remember they have schools in 21 countries so if your idea of the next ten years is continuous travel, this is a good way of ensuring employment and getting around the globe.

[julie_girl_]

Thanks for the reply!
When you taught with them, did they have their own curriculum or did you have to come up with your lessons on your own?
Split shifts and long hauls - I understand that newbies get all sorts of fun tasks. Part of paying your dues, I suppose. Is it absurd to assume the school only sends their teachers to locations with access to public transportation?
You mentioned DF - what is that?

[TeresaLopez]

DF = Districto Federal, otherwise known as Mexico City. As far as working splits unless you get a job working for a school, you will probably always be working splits giving private lessons. The only difference over the long term is that you can little by little get things closer to where you live, or convenient in terms of public transportation. I have not worked for IH, but do know people who have and they have a decent reputation, decent pay, pay on time, etc. I also wouldn't take the offered apartment, you can probably find something less expensive on your own, and you can choose who you live with, and where. The public transportation system here is extensive, and inexpensive, it would be the rare class you would be sent to that you can't get to on public transportation. I doubt they would expect you to have/get a car - you wouldn't get there any faster anyway, probably faster in the Metro.

[geaaronson]

DF=Distrito Federale ie. Mexico City

No, they have their own curriculum. Usually a class will be structured enough as to warrant a textbook. Just follow the textbook. It`s up to you if you want to add anything to the curriculum. But, no, you are under no obligation to put in any extra input other than what they have planned for you and the students. If you do, then all the better but still stick somewhat with the textbook. Use your own input as addendum.

Yes, it`s the trial of the newbies. You will eventually move on to better classes and distances if you play your cards right.

[spanglish]

The pay is listed on their recruitment website - 9000-10000/month. 10,000 pesos is $793 USD for 25 contacts hours per week, 2 year contract.

IH Bogota will pay 1.8 million Colombian pesos/month, which is $993 USD for 16 contact hours per week, 1 year contract. This is barely enough to survive in Bogota and without luxuries outside of a few beers and/or coffee.

Given this, I'd say the offer at IH Mexico is absolutely awful.

[julie_girl_]

Thanks spanglish for the info on the pay - I hadn't seen that on their site.

This would be my first position as an ESL teacher. That's one of the reasons I wanted to go under the umbrella of a larger school. I took my CELTA through IH New York and really liked their approach. Do newbies just have to suck it up and make it work or is it possible to find a decent paying job teaching ESL? I don't expect to make millions teaching, but I'd like it if I didn't have to struggle. Do most teachers tutor privately on the side to get by?

[spanglish]

Well, I think it depends on whether or not you're committed to teaching in Latin America. From what I've heard, in Taiwan and Vietnam you can enjoy a much higher standard of living, while saving money. Unless you get lucky, for at least the first year in Latin America, you'll just be scraping by.

Starting at a big school - I think this is way overrated. I think you'll find that you are the one responsible for your own professional development and I feel like the CELTA empowered me to take that into my own hands to some extent. What's more important is that you're content with your employer and don't have to worry about paying the rent or eating.

It's not all bad though. If you came to Bogota, you could work for IH here. You'd need to be careful with your money for a year, share an apartment, keep a good attitude, (lots of complaining among new teachers, definitely justified, but doesn't really help anything) go to teacher development (which has improved a lot there), make lots of contacts and hope for something better your second year. That's essentially what I did and things are looking better for me now.

[spanglish]

And yes, every IH teacher I know tutors on the side to supplement their meager income.

[amaranto]

I know a few people who have worked at IH, and they say that it is better than most other language schools they have worked for in terms of pay and work conditions.

As far as I know, there is only one IH in Mexico City, on Alfonso Reyes in Condesa. Correct me if I'm wrong. I used to live just a few blocks from that branch, and I think it would be slightly difficult to find even a shared apartment for 2,500 pesos in the immediate area. Not impossible, though--you might just have to look in the right places. The surrounding neighborhoods CAN be a LITTLE cheaper.

Also, ask them how they pay their teachers. The amount of taxes you will have to pay on 9,000-10,000 pesos might surprise you.

[julie_girl_]

It's not so much a commitment to teaching in Latin America as a desire not to go to Taiwan/Vietnam/etc. That part of the world has never been a huge draw for me.

As for Bogota, I saw on the IH recruitment page that there was a position available there. I can tell the recruiter that I'd be interested in applying there.

You make an excellent point about taking responsibility for professional growth as well as the advice to first-year teachers. That's good stuff to remember.

[mejms]

[Higo]

To Spanglish (or others), are those positions on the IH recruitment page competitive? Or could one reasonably have a shot with experience? Do you need to have a CELTA, or would a TEFL cert. be acceptable?

How is Bogota, btw? I heard the story about the recent car bombing and actually thought of you ("that poster on Dave's, he's in Bogota, I wonder if he is ok) I know that sounds crazy -- but I did think of you, being the only person I "know" in the area. Maybe you're a she?...anyway...I digress.

[spanglish]

IH will take teachers without experience. Lots of teachers coming and going, so it's not hard to get on with them.

Thanks for the concern! Yep, that was a big bomb, went off right in the middle of the financial district, not far from where I live and right where I'd been the night before. Was probably a little message from the FARC to the new president. Fortunately it didn't kill anybody because it went off at 5:30 a.m. The real problem in Bogota isn't terrorism; it's common street crime. I'm a he by the way.

At IH, technically you need a CELTA, but they've hired a lot of teachers with online certs with the stipulation that they would take IH's course as they teach. I don't know what the situation is now.

[gregd75]

I did a Cambridge examiners course for IH and Beatriz was the trainer.

I found her very friendly and helpful!

She came from DF to GDL to take the training course and it was very interesting. She's the type of person who knows what she wants and means business.