Job Discussion Forums

[AliaBelle]

My husband and I are seriously considering moving to Mexico to teach English around October or November and staying for a year or longer. I have a M.Ed. in ESL and experience teaching ESOL in the U.S. He does not have any experience in teaching, so we are thinking that he will take a course and then we will both look for jobs. However, given are very different professional backgrounds we are not sure where to begin. We were thinking of doing the Teachers Latin America course in Mexico City for him and their job placement program for both of us. How does the CELTA course in Playa del Carmen compare to the Teachers Latin America course in terms of getting hired? Given our particular situation what would be your advice to start out in Mexico? Thank you all for any information and insight you can provide to us!

[jillford64]

If your husband doesn't have a degree that qualifies him to teach English, then it is a good idea for him to get a certificate, but I don't see any reason that you should go through a program just for the job placement service. With your education and experience, you are very hireable and, while it might be nice as a back up, you certainly don't need a job placement service to find a job. Taking your resume around to schools works just fine. The bigger problem I see is that you will be looking for a job after most schools will have already filled their full-time positions for the year, and you may have to work part-time at several locations to cobble together a full time job. I suspect it is easier to find jobs year round in the big cities (Mexico, Guadalajara, Monterrey) where there is a big market for business english and private lessons, but in smaller locations the teaching/hiring schedule is more likely to coincide with that of the public schools.

[AliaBelle]

Thank you so much for the information! I guess I had been under the impression that jobs came open throughout the school year. When would be the best time of year to find something long-term (at least a year) and full-time?

[jillford64]

August or maybe early September. I think arriving later than early September would make it more difficult to find a single full-time job at a school that is willing to sponsor you for a work visa. There might be a little turnover in December/January as well. Of course, there will always be the possibility of being in the right place at the right time when somone has just unexpectedly quit or didn't show up.

Admittedly, this is my opinion based mostly on my experience here in Morelia and that of a few others I have talked to. Other posters may not agree. I work for a private language institute. My school starts planning for September in July. New teachers have to go through two weeks of training in August. They will only sponsor someone for a work permit if they are willing to work full time (including Saturdays) and stay for a year. This school can only offer four FM3 visas and two of those are basically permanently spoken for. There were quite a few people who came to the school in September looking for work, but were turned away if they didn't already have an FM3 or they were only offered part-time work.

[hlamb]

[AliaBelle]

Well, it might be possible to come down early and maybe secure a job for at least myself in July/August. My husband would have to come down a few months later and take the course and then look for a job. Would this be the best bet? We would like to be in Oaxaca. How hard is it to get a job there?

[MamaOaxaca]

It wouldn't be hard for you to get a job in Oaxaca, there is a system of universities that hire native English speaking teachers, but they are not located in the captial city and you husband would have to take a TEFL course to get a job with one of them. In most cases their aren't other schools in town that would hire him as they are all located in pretty small places. He could work doing private lessons, if he is so inclined.
In Oaxaca city there are many schools that hire teachers, but most do it on a by-the-hour basis and you usually have to work at two or three schools to get enough hours to cover your cost of living. Let me know if you are interested in the university system, there are several regular posters on here who work or have worked at one of them.

[AliaBelle]

Thank you for the advice. I would be interested in the universities, so if you know anyone who could provide more information that would be great. I just found a post MamaOaxaca had made regarding the SUNEO - are these the main universities in Oaxaca? What do you know about Universidad del Mar in particular? Thanks again!!

[J Sevigny]

The CELTA certificate carries more prestige in many circles than something like the ITTO course in Guadalajara.

[ls650]

[MamaOaxaca]

A couple of the posters here work at UMAR, maybe they PMed you?
I don't know if they are hiring at the moment. I do know that the Universidad Tecnologica de la Mixteca, the oldest university in the system is hiring, as is the newest university, the Universidad de la Ca�ada. That position in particular requires someone with a pioneer spirit as the program is new and resources are limited. A fantastic and rewarding oportunity for the right person.

For all the universities the semesters run from around the first of October to the middle of February, and around the first of March to the middle of July, with a summer session in August and September. So, while surpise openings can pop up at any time, most hiring is done now, and in the summer months.

If I thought my big boss would read this than I would say, yes, the SUNEO universities are the principal universities in the state of Oaxaca. But there is a much older public university in Oaxaca City called UABJO. They also have native English teachers, and they also have an English teaching major. But I don't know what kind of contracts they offer.
Here is a link to some promotional information about SUNEO