Job Discussion Forums

Gini-Bini · Joined: 12 Jul 2010 Posts: 5

hello!

i'd like to do a celta course in colombia and also work there afterwards, but i've got a few questions left before i decide.

does anyone know of a school offering celta courses in cartagena? i only found tefl international and they are expensive.

i'm not a native english speaker. will this be a problem when looking for work in colombia?

is it possible to find a furnished apartment before traveling to colombia?
do apartments generally have internet? (my boyfriend will need it for his work)

thanks in advance for your answers!
gina

windowlicker · Joined: 05 Jun 2008 Posts: 183 Location: Bogot�, Colombia

celta isn't offered in Cartagena. It's only offered in Bogota at IH and the BC.

you not being a native english speaker may be a problem, but it would seriously depend on lots of other things.

yes, apartments generally have internet, and the internet would be a good place to look for apartments.

Gini-Bini · Joined: 12 Jul 2010 Posts: 5

thanks very much for your reply!

MNguy · Joined: 01 Feb 2010 Posts: 129

If you have good command of the English language, and aren't Colombian, you are as good as a gringo in many places. I don't think Cartegena is a good market for teachers though.

Colombia has excellent internet.

BocaNY · Joined: 24 Mar 2009 Posts: 131

I am just going to hop on this thread for a bit. What's the market like for an American who is Latin especially if their family comes from Colombia? Will they think that one is not actually American but a local?

MNguy · Joined: 01 Feb 2010 Posts: 129

spanglish · Joined: 21 May 2009 Posts: 742 Location: working on that

Boca, I've never heard of or seen any discrimination based on being or appearing Latin. A CELTA will establish you as a serious job seeker.

windowlicker · Joined: 05 Jun 2008 Posts: 183 Location: Bogot�, Colombia

MNguy · Joined: 01 Feb 2010 Posts: 129

A CELTA qualifies you as someone willing to pay $4,000 to earn $1,000 a month.

BocaNY · Joined: 24 Mar 2009 Posts: 131

Thanks guys for the info. I was just asking because when I was in Ecuador some of my students didn't believe I was American but luckily for me my boss was Canadian so she confirmed it.

Do you have to include a copy of your passport page for the CVs (in Ecuador I had to). I was thinking I would just include that and then when the question of visa came up I would just show my Colombian celuda(sp?).

Windowlicker my resume says fluent in Spanish.

MNguy... I didn't any where close to $4k for my CELTA. I paid less then half.

JonnyBravo · Joined: 30 Oct 2006 Posts: 80 Location: Bogota, Colombia

At current exchange rates, the CELTA in Bogota is around 2200 dollars.

spanglish · Joined: 21 May 2009 Posts: 742 Location: working on that

It cost $2000 at the British Council in 2008 and I don't think that number has changed (you didn't need to pay in pesos) and last I checked IH was charging $1500.

JonnyBravo · Joined: 30 Oct 2006 Posts: 80 Location: Bogota, Colombia

I have recently looked into the CELTA at BC (for last November) and they were charging 4 million pesos, in pesos. They cancelled the class and I took the TEFL elsewhere.

spanglish · Joined: 21 May 2009 Posts: 742 Location: working on that

Did you ask them if they accept dollars or pounds? Because if they are only accepting pesos that is a change.

Interesting that they canceled the class, maybe because IH is only charging $1500. The BC definitely has much nicer facilities, but why pay an extra $500 for the same certificate?

JonnyBravo · Joined: 30 Oct 2006 Posts: 80 Location: Bogota, Colombia

To answer your questiona bout non-native speakers, I know a german, a hungarian, and lots and lots of Colombians teaching English here. Native speaker is great, but lots of places take what they can get. Not one place I applied told me my TEFL cert needed to be a CELTA. I paid $1200 for it and it helped me a ton.