Job Discussion Forums

leretif9 · Joined: 24 Mar 2013 Posts: 152

How would those of you on this board with experience teaching ESL in Barcelona and Madrid compare working and living in these two towns?

The question has come up before, but it was some years back, and I am curious to see how things may have changed.

SirKirby · Joined: 03 Oct 2007 Posts: 261 Location: Barcelona, Spain

Don't be too hopeful of an unbiased reply Wink

!

I've never worked in Madrid, but I'd say (always assuming you like big cities) that there's not a lot to choose between them, either work or living wise. Very different, both lots of plusses, and drawbacks.

For anyone entering ESL in Spain, I'd suggest it's a mistake, however, to think "either Madrid or Barcelona". You want to be prepared to go wherever you can get a job, and that might be somewhere else, like Valencia, or Zaragoza, or Seville.

Yellowrose · Joined: 31 Jan 2012 Posts: 9 Location: USA

SirKirby · Joined: 03 Oct 2007 Posts: 261 Location: Barcelona, Spain

I'd says there is a certain amount of age discrimination in ELT, though perhaps not conscious.

Most ELT people tend to be young and though you do find people into the 50s and older (myself included Shocked

) they tend to be people who have been years in the same place (school).

As an older person trying to land your first ELT job in Spain, I think you would find you are at a disdvantage.