[Vacancier Permanent]

I contacted the people at Aide and have been emailing back and forth for the past week or so with Stephanie, the project manager for this Teach in Brazil programme. I have to admit I was extremely interested in this gig, specially the fact of spending 1 year in Brasil LEGALLy on a Work Visa which is truly next to impossible to obtain otherwise. But after really thinking it through, I decided not to do it as I'd much rather focus the summer on building my businesses and then hit the road (either Brasil/Colombia or South East Asia) this October for an undermined amount of time and on my terms without having to work to support myself.

So from my dealings with Stephanie at Aide, this does sound a legit programme and they're offering a valuable experience for someone who is looking for that and ready to experience Brasil as a local. I say as a local as the salary of 1500-3000 Reais per month is not much to live on. While one can certainly live on that as a local, it certainly won't allow one to live a fun lifestyle. The whole point of this geoarbitrage is to go abroad and to live where your $$$ or Euros or Pounds or Yens etc will stretch much further thus affording you a better and higher quality and level of lifestyle. And with 1.5 to 3K Reais per month, that won't cut it at all. However, if one has already an established online biz with a positive and recurring cash flow of say $3K-$5K then that would be a sweet thing to do as you'll have plenty of cash to live it up. While Brasil is an awesome place to go there and have an amazing time with a budget of $3K-$5K a month, it is a brutal place to be penny pinching and poor there. So if you're thinking of going to Brasil, go there with money. As a Brasilian friend of mine said once: "It's better to be poor in the West and Rich in Brasil than the opposite." So keep that in mind.

Below is some of the communication between Stephanie at Aide and myself to help anyone interested in doing this gig in Brazil for a year.





"Thanks so much for your questions. I’ve answered below in blue to be sure that I didn’t miss anything.

I look forward to hearing back!

Stephanie



Stephanie Johnson

Program Manager



AIDE - Association of International Development and Exchange

1221 South Mopac Expressway , Suite 100, Austin, Texas 78746

Phone: +1(512) 904 1137

Toll free: 1 866 6ABROAD ext 137

Fax: +1(512) 857 1108

Skype ID: stephanie.johnson.AIDE

Email: [email protected]

http://www.AIDEabroad.org



My email with questions to her followed by her answers:

Hi Stephanie,
Thanks for getting back to me. I read the updated description of the position and I have to say I am very interested.
Some questions:
a) Is the training period in Brazil paid or not?

You’ll receive your paychecks once you get to your school. The initial 2-day training is a requirement of the program and your housing at that time will be paid for, although you will not receive any additional funds in your check for that training. I’ll verify this information today and let you know if I find anything different then I understand at this point.


b) Any way to know the start date of the training and of the actual teaching position in advance in order to plan things as I'd like to arrive to Brasil a little bit before.

You’ll know the full details of the teaching position before accepting it – that includes pay, benefits, hours, location, name, etc. The exact training date is being finalized this week. It will be in mid-July in Sao Paolo.


c) I understand that the deposit to pay with the initial application is $250, how soon after having submitted the application, would I know that I have been accepted?

After you submit your application you’ll have a phone interview. After that point you’ll learn whether you’ve been accepted or not. At that time your deposit will be cashed (if you’re not accepted it will be returned) and the rest of the program fee is due. Then we’ll place you with a school and you’ll review the contract – after that point, you’ll be on your way!


d) Who pays for the visa fee? Is it me? You guys? Or the school?

Everything is included in the $1895


e) The fee to pay is $1895, what does that cover? What is it for?

The majority of this cost is for your travel medical insurance for one year. The rest covers visa support, in-country costs (i.e. transportation to your individual school from training), and 24/7 support here.



If you’d like a complete breakdown, this is what it includes:

* Guaranteed paid teaching placement prior to departure, with full benefits package*
* Detailed placement offer (including duties/responsibilities, school details, and other relevant information)
* Assistance finding accommodation**
* Pre-departure orientation and detailed handbook
* Travel Medical Insurance
* Visa documentation***
* Airport pickup and transfer to accommodation during arrival orientation
* Arrival orientation in Belo Horizonte or São Paulo
* Transportation from city of arrival orientation to your school's city
* Full-time local representative in Brazil
* 24/7 personal support and emergency number
* Reimbursement of the cost of your return ticket home by the school
* Certificate of completion (upon request)




f) last but not least, how long have you had this Teach in Brazil programme? Do you have any testimonials from people who took part in this progrmame before? I'd like to contact/get in touch with at least 2-3 of them to ask them some questions about their experience while in Brazil and while dealing with your organization.

This is the first time we’ve received the designation. Getting a work permit in Brazil is made impossible for Americans and we’re really excited to be working with the Ministry to offer this program. Unfortunately I don’t have any one for you to contact who has already participated, but come December I’ll have 30 people for you to talk to.


g) I read on your page that at the end of the contract, the school pays the return airfare. Is that true?

Yes. You can either buy a roundtrip ticket and they’ll reimburse you for half, or they’ll purchase your return flight.


h) Will the school I'd be working at provide any assistence with the rent payment?

If the school is located in a smaller community, they will often include housing. Otherwise, you will be provided with support to locate accommodation.

[speakeasy]

Thanks for posting this VP. I'm still weighing my options heavily. Like you, I'm working on my business too and trying to get that going. Luckily for me, I have other sources of cash, so I'm not entirely dependent on what they're giving. I just want enough so that I'm not going in the hole. I wouldn't be doing it for the money for sure.

[elguapo]

At current exchange rates, I would say your minimum lifestyle can be something like $1000-1200 USD per month in Rio.

[Vacancier Permanent]

elguapo,
$1000 to $1200 per month in Rio is very tough to live on, unless you're talking about staying at a favela and living like a local. I don't think anyone would be interested to go to Brasil to live like that. As I wrote in my previous post, Brasil is a brutal place to be penny pinching and poor. It'd be even worst in Rio as there are tons of fun stuff to do and you wouldn't be able to do much with $1-1.2K per month there. IMHO, a minimum acceptable lifestyle in Rio would be more around $3-$4K at the bare minimum. That includes a decent apartment in the Zona Sul, eating out all the time (not always at top places but at decent places like por kilos and launchonettes during lunch and nice decent local restaurant at night), going out 5 nights a week and throw in 1 or twice a month an escapade on the weekend to nearby Buzios, Angra or Paraty with a hot and fun girl and you're easily at $4K.

Speakeasy,
No problem man. If I hear more from Stephanie, I'll post it here for sure.
It's good that you have other streams to support you on the side as that will make your experience of Brasil a lot more enjoyable. If you decide to do it, keep us updated man, I might sign up for it for the January 2011 session.

[Vacancier Permanent]

An update on this:
Today I received an email from Stephanie stating that the actual training will be held in São Paulo for 2 days starting on July 10. After that, you'll be going to your school where the training will be anywhere between 2 days to 2 weeks. The actual teaching contract starts in August. Just wanted to share this with you guys, hopefully this can be helpful to anyone thinking of doing this programme.

Speakeasy, have you decided on this? Are you in?
Again, if anyone is thinking of doing this, please keep us updated on how it goes.

[speakeasy]

(06-01-2010 10:45 PM)Vacancier Permanent Wrote:  

Speakeasy, have you decided on this? Are you in?
Again, if anyone is thinking of doing this, please keep us updated on how it goes.

Not yet, but I'm leaning against it. But may consider the session that starts this winter. Thing is I'm not entirely comfortable with the idea of being locked into a contract for a year. If I didn't like the gig or where they placed me, I could probably put up with it for a half a year, but a full year...shit. I'm kind of a non-committal person as it is. I'll let you guys know if I take a leap of faith and decide to give it a go. I haven't made a final decision yet.

[hydrogonian]

(06-01-2010 11:04 PM)speakeasy Wrote:  

Thing is I'm not entirely comfortable with the idea of being locked into a contract for a year.

Good thinking. Being compelled to stay in a potentially bad situation is no fun. I've been in a bad situation overseas, while locked in a contract, and I'd say that your concerns are well founded. I don't think I'd ever take a foreign contract position again.

But what do they really have over your head to keep you there? In reality, theres nothing stopping you from leaving if you don't like it.

[lilseezie]

According to VP's correspondence with the Stephanie girl:

"You’ll know the full details of the teaching position before accepting it – that includes pay, benefits, hours, location, name, etc."

So if they accepted you and offered you a shitty location, you could always just decline the offer, right? Perhaps you could even try to negotiate for a better location. No one's gonna make you go somewhere you don't want to be!

[Vacancier Permanent]

Good point Speakeasy about being locked in a bad place for a full year. I guess if you or anyone is really looking into teaching in Brasil, your best bet is to just go to Brasil and go directly to the schools and you'll get a job in a week or 2. However, you'd only be able to stay in Brasil for a max of 6 months on a tourist visa and working illegally under the table. Guess you can do that if that's what you're really want to do. Make sure you go to Brasil with some cash, I'd say at least a good 10K to be on the safe side.

[speakeasy]

(06-01-2010 11:26 PM)hydrogonian Wrote:  

(06-01-2010 11:04 PM)speakeasy Wrote:  

Thing is I'm not entirely comfortable with the idea of being locked into a contract for a year.

Good thinking. Being compelled to stay in a potentially bad situation is no fun. I've been in a bad situation overseas, while locked in a contract, and I'd say that your concerns are well founded. I don't think I'd ever take a foreign contract position again.

Can you explain what happened when you were locked in?

[hydrogonian]

(06-03-2010 11:40 AM)speakeasy Wrote:  

(06-01-2010 11:26 PM)hydrogonian Wrote:  

(06-01-2010 11:04 PM)speakeasy Wrote:  

Thing is I'm not entirely comfortable with the idea of being locked into a contract for a year.

Good thinking. Being compelled to stay in a potentially bad situation is no fun. I've been in a bad situation overseas, while locked in a contract, and I'd say that your concerns are well founded. I don't think I'd ever take a foreign contract position again.

Can you explain what happened when you were locked in?

I was locked into an ESL teaching contract in South Korea. Many people have trouble with bad work situations in S. Korea, and have a hard time because of that, while being locked in and not able to leave without significant hassle and possibly being banned from re-entry. Hence the ESL adopted term "Midnight Run" for breaking the contract and leaving the country in the middle of the night to get out of a bad work situation. It happens quite often in South Korea.

I actually had a great work situation, but stupidly started sleeping with my direct supervisor (I think I detailed a lot of it in older posts of mine-you can search), she became crazy, started stalking me, and pretty much drove me to have to quit the job. I decided to leave the country instead of getting another job. But since I decided to leave the job on the up and up, and not do a midnight run, I was stuck in that horrible situation for about 3.5 months while I waited to get replaced and to get the paperwork in order. Without reservation, I can say that it was the longest 110 days of my life, fraught with deep depression, isolation, and homesickness. Being abroad is great, but being abroad in a bad situation is the worst of the worst, primarily because you are alone. I also had some health problems during that time, which made the situation much worse. My supervisor would often threaten to take away my medications (she procured them) as a threat to me for not being her subservient american dog love slave anymore, and for talking to other platonic female teachers. She was insane.

Just be ready to do what it takes to break contract. My true motivation for not doing a midnight run was about 12 thousand dollars in salary. If you dont have that motivation, you can always leave. Plus, its Brazil. Do you think they would ban you from re-entry because you broke some anonymous shitty esl school contract? Not likely, as the bureaucracy isnt that organized there, especially around the ESL industry. In Korea, the ESL industry is heavily regulated and monitored.

[speakeasy]

@Hydro

That does sound like a shitty situation. One year is too long to blow if you don't like the situation. Thing is, sure you could always break the contract, but I don't want to go into it with that mindset. If a school hires you for a year, you have an obligation to those students who were expecting a year of cumulative classes, so kinda sucks for them to just bail out because you changed your mind.

I don't know what the fuck to do right now. I have 30 days left in my current apartment. I'm either going to be moving out and getting an new place, or I'm going to find some gig overseas. Any other ideas besides teaching English to make money while living abroad? I like the idea of building an online business, but that's not going to happen in 30 days. It's a long term goal though.

[lilseezie]

I've often thought about doing walking tours in a foreign city. Go someplace that interests you, spend a few weeks just exploring the city like a madman, learn your way around as if you'd lived there for years, take lots of notes, etc. Then throw up a website offering tours to English speakers visiting that city. Say you charge the equivalent of $20 per person and give 2 tours a day (~1 hour each), 4 days a week, with 5 people on each tour, that's $800 a week right there. In many places you can live like a baller on that. Granted you wouldn't be making that right off the bat, but utilizing some good networking and free online marketing techniques, you could probably get there pretty quickly.

Of course the catch is that you'd be working and earning money as a tourist yourself, which is illegal in most places. However, I've heard that in some countries if you register a business which would be contributing to the local economy you can apply for a work visa and stay for an extended period of time. This would require more research on a country-by-country basis, which I haven't done yet. But it must be possible. How else do all the Brits open pubs and B&Bs overseas?

-LS

[Vacancier Permanent]

I did some search online about them and I found this which would provide more info about the cities they'd be sending people in.:

http://teachabroad.boomersabroad.com/ba-...5/hostx/ba

•Sao Paulo:
Sao Paulo
•Northern Brazil:
Fortaleza, Recife, Olinda, Ilheus
•Southern Brazil:
Florianopolis, Curitiba, Brasilia, Belo Horizonte, Porto Alegre, Campinas

Not a bad selection if you ask me. Out of that list, the only place I'd avoid would be SP and Salvador as it's too hectic and sketchy there. Recife ain't fun either as thats one of the most violent capitals in Brasil, but other than that, the rest is a good line up. I'd take in a heart beat BH, Ilheus (beautiful medium sized beach town), Floripa (the motto of this paradisical island is beach, sex and parties), Campinas (rather big university town in the interior of SP state could be fun there with all the non pros), Brasilia would be fun but even 3K there would be penauts as it's the most expensive city in all of Brasil, but a very fun place none theless.

I called yesterday their head office wanting to speak to Stephanie but she was out of the office till wednesday, so I spoke with another woman, Francesca, she was nice, answered my questions and she suggested me to submit an application. Always wanted to spend a year in Brasil but the thought of going there to work as an English teacher isn't very compelling. But spending 1 year in Brasil and having the time of my life is a very strong factor too. Well, anyone thinking about this, has till Thursday...Speakeasy, are you going?

[speakeasy]

VP, for some reason I thought you were already in Brazil. Maybe I'm thinking of someone else.

I had pretty much scrapped the idea, in large part because I had no idea where the hell they'd be sending me and if I didn't like their choice and bowed out, I don't get my money back. Second reason is that I don't like being committed for a year not having ever taught a class or even knowing if I'd actually like it. This program is actually pretty good though because most schools want experience and a teaching certificate. Many of those schools will sign 6 month contracts, some even shorter. I'd like to find something like that ideally. However, the AIDE school will just take any body, cert or not even with no experience so long as you'll go where they send you and sign a one year contract.

Now after listing the cities, you got me thinking again, lol. Well, you said they are running another program this winter right?

[Vacancier Permanent]

SP,
Nah I'm right now at home renovating my house, painting and doing all kinds of work on my property. It ain't a pretty look right now and it's starting to get on my nerves, but I'm sure the final product will be well worth it.
Anyways, I should be in Brasil in about 3 weeks tough. What you wrote echoes my exact thoughts almost word for word in that I don't like to tied to a place for a whole year, but after looking at the list of the cities, I'm also have 2nd thoughts about it too...LOL. I mean a year in BH, Floripa, Ilheus, Fortaleza isn't a bad place to be even if that means teaching english. Based on my conversation with them yesterday, is that once I'd submit my application, for which the deadline is the 10th of June, then I'd have a phone interview with them sometime next week and then, they'd let me know whether I'd been accepted or not. At that time, they would discuss the contract, the location and other terms of this gig's contract. They mentioned that I could apply without paying the $250 of the initial application to save time due to the proximity of the deadline, but if I were successful, then I'd need to pay the whole $1895 right away. So there's some food for thought. Since I expect and foresee my biz to nicely take off this summer, I believe that I'd have a nice cushion to fall into and still have my basic living expenses covered with this gig plus having a ball in one of dthe most amazing countries in the world. Oh yeah, not to mention the opportunity to network there with some power players there. So all in all, this is starting to look more and more attractive to me than it first appeared, I've got to admit.

Yes, I think they'll do that again in the winter for the session starting in Jan. But if you decide to take the plunge for July, let me know, we might be in the same group.

[Vacancier Permanent]

I was strongly considering doing it for the opportunity to spend a year in Brasil legally, to make contacts and have the time of my life as well, no need to be a hypocrite and hide that. But the the programme for the July session has been called off/postponed due to the slow answer from the Brazilian government concerning the eligibility for the work visa to Brasil. Here's the official reply I got from Aide a couple of days ago:

"Dear Teach Brazil Applicants,

I had hoped to be able to schedule your interview for the Teach Brazil program last week, but unfortunately I will not be able to do so for the session that begins next month. This is because the Ministry of Labor must determine your eligibility for employment in Brazil before you can be accepted to the program, and I still do not have an answer on the applicants whose paperwork was submitted over 2 weeks ago. As such, there is no way I will receive a determination on your eligibility in time to get the visa processed for you to participate in this next session.

What does this mean for your application at this point? We will have a session starting in January 2011. I know that you may not be able to commit to 12 months at that time, but I should know by September whether there will be 6-month contracts available.

In the meantime, I will put your application aside until August/September and work on getting an definitive answer from the Ministry of Labor. Obviously this response will be relevant should you decide to continue the process for the January 2011 session.

Please do not hesitate to let me know should you have any questions in the meantime.

Best wishes,

Francesca Quantrill
Executive Director

AIDE - Association of International Development and Exchange

1221 South Mopac Expressway, Suite 100
Austin, Texas 78746, USA
Phone: +1 (512) 904 1136

Toll free: 1 866 6ABROAD ext. 136
Fax: +1 (512) 857 1108
E-mail: [email protected]

Skype ID: francesca.quantrill

http://www.aideabroad.org"

[speakeasy]

Now wait, what about the deposit they required? Did they send that back?

[Vacancier Permanent]

When I called them about 2 weeks ago prior to submitting my application, they told that since we're getting too close to the deadline, I wouldn't need to send the 250 deposit but that I'd have to pay the whole thing once I'd had my phone interview with them a week later. Which never happened as per the above email I received from them on Monday. So didn't pay anything so that's a non issue. If I had paid, they would have refunded that as stipulated on their website.