| Of all the questions we get from our readers, currently | | | | one meddles, and no one really cares. Unless you plan |
| the most common is: Can I move to Mexico and get a | | | | on a career as a mass murderer, serial killer, or start |
| job? The answer to the first part of that question is | | | | your own drug cartel, then you will pretty much be left |
| easy. | | | | alone in Mexico. |
| Yes, you can move to Mexico. | | | | The most popular and well-advertised option for |
| The second part of that question is not as easy. | | | | working in Mexico is teaching English as a Second |
| We are hearing more and more from younger | | | | Language. In fact, there is a huge industry that grants |
| Americans who want to leave hearth and home | | | | certification in TESL. If you type "TESL Mexico" into |
| behind and do what we did, move to Mexico and | | | | Google search engine, you will come up with 135,000 |
| become expatriates. It used to be that the issue of | | | | hits. |
| working didn't even register with American expats. | | | | Web page after web page comes up with promises |
| Most who moved here were retirees on Social | | | | of getting you certified to teach ESL in Mexico (and |
| Security or artists who made a living from their | | | | elsewhere in Latin America). They make promises of |
| creative ventures. | | | | the glamour of living in exotic places while making a |
| But now, more and more young people, those with | | | | decent salary. Some of them even guarantee job |
| children, want to escape America. The reasons for | | | | placement. It looks good, sounds exciting, but fails |
| this, one can only speculate. I have long suspected that | | | | miserably. |
| we should start calling the new crop of Americans | | | | First of all, there is a difference between certification |
| moving into Mexico escapees rather than expatriates. | | | | and accreditation. Anyone can make the claim to |
| So, what do you, as a young married couple in your | | | | certify you for just about anything. The problem is that |
| thirties, perhaps with a kid or two in tow, do when you | | | | the word, certification, gives the impression that the |
| move to Mexico? That, of course, is probably the | | | | schools have met some sort of standard for equipping |
| reason this question is now the major one we get | | | | their potential ESL teachers to go forth into the ESL |
| from potential expats. You have to do something to | | | | world and teach someone English. The word |
| support yourself and your family. Not all can boast of a | | | | accreditation means that some educational institution |
| huge inheritance, a lottery winning, or a movie star's | | | | has made itself accountable to meeting the standards |
| salary. You have to do something to make a living or | | | | required for equipping potential teachers to teach ESL. |
| you cannot come. | | | | There is currently no accrediting body, no organization, |
| We've met scores of young people with children who | | | | nothing to which these TESL schools hold themselves |
| are living and working in Mexico. They either work for | | | | accountable. They are not accredited. |
| private companies or for their host country's | | | | The vast majority of available ESL jobs in Mexico are |
| government. Recently, we met a young couple with | | | | in private schools. These are small, private schools, |
| two children who have been living in Mexico City for | | | | sometimes on the upper floor of the director's home, |
| the past two years. The husband, a native of Belgium, | | | | where the director offers classes in English. Locals |
| has been working on a project that is a joint venture | | | | send their children (and they are mostly kids) to these |
| between the governments of Belgium and Mexico. | | | | schools in hopes of improving their children's grades in |
| They had it easy. He didn't have to look for a job... his | | | | the English classes they are already attending in their |
| government gave him one. Also, his government | | | | formal educational institutions. If these schools have a |
| secured the proper visas for him and his family. | | | | curriculum, you will be lucky. |
| If you come to Mexico already employed with a | | | | The wages from these small private setups are |
| company that has a branch here, then you are set. | | | | abysmally low. The going rate in Guanajuato is less |
| The company takes care of securing the proper | | | | than $2.50 USD per hour. You can occasionally find a |
| documents for you and your family. The official rules | | | | school that pays a little more. |
| are that you can work in Mexico for a foreign | | | | For another article I wrote, I did a survey of these |
| business as long as you are not getting your salary | | | | sorts of schools all over Mexico. I was able to get |
| from a Mexican source. | | | | responses from at least three schools in all the major |
| Now, a Mexican company can hire one but there are | | | | cities. All of the directors told me in their e-mails that |
| hoops through which one must jump. A Mexican | | | | they rarely pay more than $3.00 an hour. I found one |
| company that wants to hire you would have to prove | | | | or two that paid $5.00 an hour. The overwhelming |
| that you, with your skills, education, or peculiar talents, | | | | answer to the question, "Could some gringo make a |
| are not taking the job of a Mexican national who could | | | | decent living teaching ESL?" was an emphatic "No!" In |
| do the work. A Mexican company who would want to | | | | fact, one person said someone would be hard-pressed |
| hire you would have to prove that you had specific | | | | to make a living teaching ESL in his school. |
| skills that no Mexican in that area could provide. There | | | | Also, each school that responded to my inquiry said |
| is, of course, the paperwork nightmare that has to be | | | | that a certificate in TESL was not a requirement. Most |
| satisfied in order to be employed. You have to have a | | | | did not care if the potential teacher even had a |
| work visa. | | | | degree. This begs the question then, why are there so |
| A good example of this is in my city, Guanajuato (the | | | | many places promoting the "TESL Certification" when |
| state capital of Guanajuato). The University here does | | | | it isn't accredited nor required? The no-brainer answer |
| indeed hire some Americans to do what no Mexican | | | | is: MONEY! |
| could do. The logical example is teaching English. | | | | These places make bucket loads of money off |
| Though there are some amazingly bilingual Mexicans | | | | gringos who think not only will this training secure them |
| here who could teach English, they could not teach | | | | a job but also that the TESL school will find them one. |
| English as a native speaker. | | | | These schools also have all manner of ancillary things |
| The same goes for the American who may have | | | | like "home stays" that will increase their coffers and |
| been raised in a Spanish-speaking country. He may | | | | decrease yours. You can even do this online before |
| even have a university degree with a major in Spanish. | | | | coming to Mexico. |
| But, he could not come to Mexico and teach Spanish. | | | | Guadalajara is like some kind of TESL Mecca. There |
| He could come to Mexico and teach English, though, if | | | | is school after school, all highly competitive for your |
| English was his first language. | | | | attendance. They will send you a classy video |
| Which jobs are available to you is entirely dependent | | | | presentation of their schools with the usual promises |
| upon the principle of not taking a job from a Mexican | | | | of changing your life forever if only you will come to |
| national. Even if you could teach Tae Kwon Do, you | | | | their school for a gazillion dollars. |
| could not do it here. There are hordes of Tae Kwon | | | | Ok, having said all of this; let me drop the bombshell. |
| Do schools here that are owned and operated by | | | | It is not impossible to make a decent living teaching |
| Mexican nationals. If you taught some bizarre and rare | | | | English as a Second Language in Mexico. After all, |
| form of Chinese Kung Fu, and could prove some sort | | | | since it is the most popular form of foreign work in |
| of certification, you might have a better chance of | | | | Mexico, there has got to be a way of doing it. |
| opening a school here. Again, you would have to jump | | | | There are three ways that we have observed in |
| through the paperwork hoop-work visas! | | | | which gringos who have come here actually made a |
| We know young married couples with children who | | | | living teaching English as a second language. |
| have beaten the odds and are now successfully | | | | One is by teaching at three or more schools. Since |
| self-employed here in Guanajuato. One woman has an | | | | most schools will only give you three classes at the |
| acupuncture practice while her husband has his own | | | | most, you will not be able to work full-time any one |
| metal and wood shop. She has some sort of Oriental | | | | school. You may get 6 hours a week, if you are lucky, |
| Medicine certification and was able to convince the | | | | at each school. We know of a girl from California who |
| powers-that-be in Mexico to grant her a work visa. | | | | had to teach at three schools plus teach a few private |
| She has a practice set up in an area of town that | | | | students just to pay living expenses. |
| mainly is populated by upper class Mexicans. Her | | | | All of her time was spent busing or running from |
| husband brought all his equipment from the States and | | | | school to school. Only in this way could she get |
| has a successful business doing work with metal and | | | | enough hours (at $3.00 USD an hour) to make ends |
| wood. | | | | meet. She was so exhausted by the weekends that |
| The majority of gringos here, I am convinced, are | | | | she could nothing but stay in her apartment to recover |
| those in the University orchestra. Though there are | | | | and prepare for the next week. |
| Mexican nationals in the orchestra, the vast majority | | | | No thank you! |
| are professional musicians from other countries. Many | | | | Second is that you could take one of the rare jobs at |
| of them have begun coffee shops, restaurants, and so | | | | a public school. We have seen these advertised |
| on as sidelines during the off-season. | | | | occasionally. The government will grant the school's |
| Another way that some make a living here and never | | | | request to get you your work visa if they pay you at |
| even have to fool with notifying the Mexican | | | | least $1,000 USD per month. Out of that will come your |
| government (and I do not think they would want to be | | | | Mexican Social Security and Mexican federal taxes |
| bothered) are those with online businesses. Web site | | | | (around 35% according to one source). With what is |
| designers and translators are two that come to mind. | | | | left, you will have to buy suitable clothes, pay for your |
| We have a good friend, from whom we rented our | | | | living expenses, and pay for transportation. If you bring |
| first apartment, who is a translator. He is an American | | | | a car, then your expenses will be even more to |
| who moved here from Europe with his wife and | | | | maintain the car in Mexico. |
| young daughter. He is fluent in French, Spanish, and his | | | | My wife was offered a job at a school affiliated with |
| native language, English. He gets translating gigs online, | | | | a university. However, it was not a city where we |
| does the work, has the companies wire the money | | | | wanted to live (it's fairly industrialized). She would have |
| into his bank account and no one cares a bit. There | | | | had 4 classes a day plus 4 hours a day for |
| were no hoops through which he had to jump, no | | | | preparation and meetings. The school paid $800-1000 |
| work visas to obtain, nothing to do but do his work and | | | | USD a month (less taxes and Social Security). |
| collect his fee and live happily ever after here in | | | | However, the classes would have consisted of 30-50 |
| Mexico. One could do worse, if you ask me! | | | | students each. Whereas the smaller, private schools |
| The paperwork nightmare I keep referring to is that | | | | pay smaller wages, you do not have 35-50 students in |
| according the Mexican law, if you are going to work in | | | | a class like you do in public schools. In addition, she |
| Mexico, you should have a work visa. This is the | | | | would have had to sign a "morality contract" with |
| official word on working in Mexico. I have a friend who | | | | conditions set by the school (for example, no drinking |
| opened up an English bookstore. She was able to | | | | or buying alcohol in public; only dressing in clothes |
| obtain work documents. What this woman had to go | | | | approved by the school...even outside of school hours). |
| through I would not wish on most Republicans I know. | | | | Third you could try and teach private students out of |
| But she did it. This is what you are supposed to do. By | | | | your home. We know of a couple in a large, |
| law, you should get the work visa. The work visa is | | | | industrialized city that found their own private students. |
| company-specific. Therefore, if you change your place | | | | They advertised and were able to get enough |
| of employment, you must obtain a new work visa for | | | | students to make a good living. They mainly had |
| the new company. They are not transferable. | | | | professionals who wanted to learn English for |
| Now, follow me closely here. Everything that I have | | | | business. These people charged $9.50 USD per hour |
| just said in the last 1000 words of this essay is about | | | | and made their students pay one month in advance. |
| to be flushed down the commode. | | | | The kicker in all this is that you constantly have to |
| Though the Mexican law says you have to have work | | | | advertise. Also, according to my wife's interview with |
| papers and you cannot take a position that would | | | | this couple, you have to live in a major industrialized city |
| keep a Mexican national from employment, foreigners | | | | to make this kind of money. They said unless you just |
| work here all the time and violate these two principles. | | | | want to teach ESL as a hobby, you would have to |
| We see gringo barmaids, bartenders, restaurant | | | | move to Mexico City, Guadalajara, or Monterrey to |
| workers, laborers, and bakers. You name it, we see it. | | | | find private students who would pay that much per |
| Most of them are working here without papers and | | | | hour. Plus, you may just have to get that work visa if |
| are taking jobs Mexicans could do. I know a young kid | | | | you get caught! |
| in his early twenties who has been here as long as we | | | | These schools that promise to get you certified to |
| have. Not only does he not have a work visa, he | | | | teach ESL fail to tell you that you are NOT going to |
| doesn't have a visa at all! | | | | land a plum job in Puerto Vallarta or Cozumel and will |
| There is a universal principal in Mexico that is one of | | | | not be spending your off-hours lounging in the sun on |
| the reasons so many Americans want to live here: If | | | | the beautiful beaches. |
| you don't break some major law such as killing | | | | You can work in Mexico. It is not an easy gig. It is not a |
| someone or dealing dope, no one is going to bother | | | | life of luxury. Think about it! |
| you. They leave you alone here, no one inquires, no | | | | |