Job Discussion Forums

[rob01]

Firstly, thanks for all the useful replies I received in my previous thread, they have been very useful in helping a formulate a plan of action, thanks!

My background; 25 years old, undergraduate degree, 3 years TEFL experience; mostly in Madrid, Spain- but a lot of experience with all ages and levels, good references to call upon, and decent Spanish. I will get my degree certificate aposilled in my home country, the UK.

Im now hoping some of you guys could let me know if ive covered all bases, and let me know if you think my plan is a good one..

After researching quite a lot online, ive decided to head to Oaxaca. Ive never been before, but Oaxaca city seems to be a decent sized city with a lot going on, and there seem to be a healthy amount of schools in the city..? I understand that the pay isn�t great in general.. but it seems to be like this everywhere outside of the massive metropolises, where I generally want to avoid (im burnt out of the big city experience to be honest).. I was in the DF last year visiting friends, and honestly, didn�t get on with it at all.

Anyway, so ive chosen Oaxaca provisionally. My plan is to go there in the last week of July, and im going to take Spanish classes for atleast a couple of weeks; whilst pounding the pavements, cv in hand, looking for work, the Oaxaca Spanish Magic school seem to have good reviews for a Spanish language school, so im going to give them a shot, for the first week atleast, and see how I get on.

Is the end of July, beginning of August a good time to search for work? I understand that many schools and universities start up again in the middle of August, is this true in Oaxaca? I presume schools/academies will be recruiting before the start up date?

My initial idea is to try and find work in Oaxaca, and just be there on the ground and see if I like the place, I�ve got enough money to last at least a couple of months (and possibly longer) without a pay cheque. So I guess this will give my briefing space to find work? Does anybody know the ESL market is at the moment?

Is it a challenge to find accommodation in Oaxaca at the moment?

What are the chances of finding work in Oaxaca with my background and qualifications at this time of year?

My plan B, C and D, is to head to another city if im unsuccessful or just don�t like Oaxaca, maybe Puebla or another nearish city in the south, I guess I will go with the flow. I will have a return ticket home in September if things go wrong for whatever reason.

From what I can gather and have been told already, Mexico seems to be like Spain in that you have to be there on the ground; with all documents ready, to get the work; so this is what I�m going to do.. is this brave? stupid or pretty standard?

Is this a workable and good idea? Or is there something that I�m missing? Thanks for listening

[rob01]

I somehow forgot to include the fact that I have a 120+ hour TEFL qualification..

[MotherF]

Rob

You might want to arrange interviews at some of the regional universities, and visit them soon after arriving in Oaxaca City. The SUNEO semester starts the first week in October, but there are classes in the summer and the campuses usually try to have hiring wrapped up before the last week in July, but there are always people who drop out at the last minute or arrive and leave after two days ( )

In the city there are many schools, both language schools and private universities and high schools most teachers end up having to work at two or more places to get enough money to cover their expenses.

Its not at all hard to find housing, but cheap housing will be the challenge. A lot of retired Americans spend some time each year in Oaxaca City and in the center and the San Felipe areas there are a lot of furnished rentals that cater to foreigners--but they are pricey.

[wildchild]

wa ha ka... is saturated.

give it a go, but you might wanna look elsewhere... (Puebla

[Isla Guapa]

[jaimem-g]

My reason for going to Oaxaca is for the people and I kinda skipped over it many years ago. I'll try to contact you if I find anything you may be interested in.

If I were a young person looking for the ideal place to work long term I would pick Puebla. I was in Atlixco for a few months and made it into the city a few times. And Cholula is not to be outdone for an arqueological (and church!) site!

I even went there on our honeymoon with my ex-wife and she still has good memories of it - more so than Mexico City and Guadalajara.

[wildchild]

[ElJuero]

There are serious issues in Oaxaca. People get sucked in by the architecture and environment. Dysfunctional Universities (at least two) and a very saturated market for teachers as has already been mentioned. At least one of the older private schools has nightmarish management. Political problems etc.....