I spent the first few days enjoying the sun, surfing, and spending quality time with my Basque girlfriend. Then it was time to get down to business and find a good TESOL job in Spain.
Finding Accommodation – TESOL Spain
Lucky for me I did not have to find a place to stay, but if you do, I suggest walking around and looking at the posters that are all over the streets with phone numbers and announcements on them.
There are things like cars for sale, rooms for rent, services offered, things like that. So look for a room for rent and start making phone calls.
You can make phone calls at the “locutorios” which are little internet/phone call cafes or buy a prepaid cell phone from any cell phone company. The price of a room for rent is usually around 250-350 euros per month including utilities.
Finding TESOL Jobs – TESOL Spain
Once you are set up and have a place to live, you can start looking for work. I recommend you grab the yellow pages and call every English academy. It will be under “Academias” in the phone book and then under the sub-section of “idiomas” (languages).
This is probably a good time to say that if you know Spanish or at least some Spanish, it is a huge help. Sometimes the secretaries don’t speak English very well and navigating the phonebook or looking things up online is all done in Spanish.
I did exactly that and was able to get some interviews. Most of the places want an email copy of your C.V. before you go to the interview so be prepared and have one ready.
After several interviews, I was able to find a summer job for the month of July that paid 15 Euros per hour. The next summer I was able to work again in an English program for 5 and 6-year old children. This program offered more hours and better pay.
Job Conditions
The average pay rate at the academies is 10-18 euros per hour and if you work full time you get around 1200 Euro per month. An internationally recognized TESOL certificate is highly recommended. Now that I have been here two summers I have been able to make contacts and got my foot in the door at several places.
The school year is when you can really get settled in a more stable job as the highest demand for English teachers is from September to June. I will also try to offer private English classes and/or tutoring on the side.
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How I found My First TESOL Job in Spain
