Basics Of The Auxiliaries De Conversacin Program
- Position as an English and cultural assistant placed in a state school
- 15-18 hours a week in class contact time
- Wage around 875 to1000 Euros per month for 2021
- You apply and are given a one-year student visa as a cultural assistant
- Pay any local taxes due
- Age between 18 -60 years old
- No Spanish language skills needed
- Find and pay your own accommodation
- Choice of 2 options between a city and town
There are other requirements as part of the course to interact with children effectively.
Basically, the Auxiliaries de Conversación programs places you in a primary/elementary or secondary/high school. The aim is to help with children learning English from a native speaker and learn about a different culture.
Depending on the program provider you sign up with you may require a basic level of Spanish, would be useful for you. As a part of the orientation program, you will be taught how to plan lessons and interact with children.
You will be planning your own lessons, guidance is given before you are placed with a school.
Other times you will find yourself supporting a lesson contributing and extending learning in a classroom with a qualified teacher. Team teaching, putting it that way.
One thought: Auxiliares de conversacion regions total 17 in Spain, although you can not pick and choose where you are placed.
English teaching assistant jobs in Spain further information for the above program:
Requirements For The Language Assistant Program
To participate in the Language Assistant program, you should be a junior or a senior at your university or already hold a B.A. or M.A. You do not need to have TEFL certification, but it is a good idea to get the certificate if you are planning to find other teaching work on the side. Also, your chances of being accepted are better if you are fluent in Spanish or have some experience living or working abroad. It is a good idea to have some money saved up for the move as well. You will need to pay a deposit for an apartment, and you do not get your first paycheck until the beginning of November for your work in October. Keep in mind that dollars are worth less than Euros these days .
Another thing to consider when applying for this is program is that you are not allowed to choose where you want to be placed in Spain. You are given the opportunity to select the top three areas of Spain which you would prefer. It is then a matter of chance whether you will be placed in your first choice and if you will be placed in a big city or a small town within that area.
How to Apply:
Visit the Cultural Ambassadors: North American Language and Culture Assistants in Spain website, where you will find a list of the following requirements:
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Is A Tefl/tesol Certification Required
A TEFL/TESOL certification is not technically required for the Cultural Ambassadors program. However, program applicants are encouraged to pursue the certification as acceptance is becoming increasingly competitive and holding a TEFL/TESOL certification shows that an applicant has invested in and studied the methodology behind teaching English as a foreign language. It’s also useful to have gained practical teaching experience included in your TEFL/TESOL certification as practicum.
Some other factors to consider regarding the question of whether you should get a TEFL certification if you want to teach in Cultural Ambassadors
- Your teaching experience will be far easier and more rewarding if you possess basic teaching skills in areas like classroom management, teaching methodology, and error correction. A primary complaint and reason for drop-outs in programs like Cultural Ambassadors is that participants without training feel lost and unable to cope with their classroom assignments because they are totally unprepared.
- Your students will learn more from you and respect you more if you are trained and possess professional level teaching skills.
- TEFL certification will provide you with the skills and qualifications to gain employment teaching English in up to 80 other countries worldwide and could very well qualify you for other teaching opportunities in Spain and elsewhere in Europe and around the world.
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Your Responsibilities As An Auxiliar De Conversacin
Auxiliares de Conversación are expected to be a linguistic model for Spanish students in the classroom. Not only are participants expected to help students with their English abilities, but also to be cultural ambassadors for students. One of the program’s goals is to foster positive international relations between Spain and the United States. As part of your contract, you’re expected to spend 12-16 hours in the classroom each week.
Stipends & Health Insurance
Cultural Ambassadors teachers receive a net stipend of about 700 euro a month , or up to 1000 euro in Madrid. This is typically enough to live modestly. Some teachers find that it really isn’t enough to survive comfortably on. Many participants earn extra cash on the side giving private language lessons and/or babysitting.
Participants also receive basic health insurance through the Spanish national health insurance system. Teachers are responsible for their own airfare and housing costs. Most Cultural Ambassadors arrive in Spain with a minimum $2,000 USD to help with start-up costs like their first month’s rent.
Learn More About the Program & Application Process
Interested TEFL certified teachers can apply to the Cultural Ambassadors program at
Bonus tips: In addition to the Cultural Ambassadors program, there are a few smaller programs to look at: BEDA Madrid, and CAPS.
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North American Language And Culture Assistantships In Spain
The North American Language and Culture Assistants programcoordinated by the Spanish Ministry of Education in collaboration with the Spanish Comunidades Autónomas and Spanish Embassies in the U.S. and Canadaprovides North American college students with paid teaching assistantships in public elementary, middle, and secondary schools throughout Spain. Assistants work for at least twelve to sixteen hours per week during the regular school year, helping English and French teachers in various aspects of their language and culture classes.Language and Culture Assistants receive stipends of at least 700 per month from October through May, as well as medical insurance. The program also provides an orientation course at the beginning of the school year and a certificate upon completion.Candidates must be current juniors or seniors, or recent graduates, and hold either U.S. or Canadian passports at the time of application. Candidates are expected to be native speakers of either English or French, and must also have at least intermediate-level proficiency in spoken Spanish. Recipients are selected by the Spanish Ministry of Education and the Comunidades Autónomas. Provided that candidates meet eligibility requirements and supply all required documentation with their applications, positions are assigned on a first-come first-served basis.
How To Apply For A Visa: Guidelines For Us Citizens
Although the following information is found in the guidelines, we would like to highlight some important points:
Please note that the consulate websites are currently undergoing changes on their websites and concerning regulations for NALCAP visas.
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My Advice For The Application
If you are serious about applying for the program, heres my advice.
- Choose your preferred region carefully. You cannot change them once the application is submitted. Remember that you are signing up for a REGION, not a city, so its the luck of the draw where youll be placed
- If you make a mistake,DELETE your entire application and start a new one. The system has issues with incomplete applications
- Check your statement and your letter of recommendation for grammatical errors. You can reach out to former assistants for statement samples
- Follow all the instructions carefully
- Reach out to the person writing your letter of recommendation well in advance
- Make sure you have ALL of the documents ready before you submit your application
- Apply as early as possible if you want to avoid disappointment
- Join Auxiliares de Conversacion Facebook Groups use the search bar to find answers about the application process, specific schools, housing advice and more
If you have any questions about the application, you can always email me at . Best of luck!
Additional Benefits Provided To Auxiliares De Conversacin
One way that the Cultural Ambassadors Program is dramatically different from other teach abroad programs like EPIK in South Korea or JET in Japan, is that teaching assistants in Spain don’t receive many additional benefits.
The additional benefits teaching assistants do receive are:
- A legal right to live in the EU
- Health insurance
- National holidays and school vacation time off
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Who Can Apply To Be A Language Assistant
In order to be eligible to teach with the Auxiliares de Conversación Program, you need:
- A passport from the United States or Canada
- Have a BA or BS, be at least a junior enrolled in a BA or BS program, have an Associates degree or be in the last year of community college
- Native-like level of English
- Pass a physical and mental health examination
- Able to fill out paperwork in Spanish
The Application Process For Cultural Ambassadors
Applying to the Cultural Ambassadors program is somewhat similar applying to a university or graduate school program. The applicant will be expected to provide information on their academic background Spanish language level & experience experience working or teaching children and young adults and experience with living abroad. Paperwork applicants can expect to submit will also include:
Please consult the Cultural Ambassadors website for more details, including Guidelines for Application.
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Language & Cultural Assistant In Spain
Cultural assistant programs in Spain for native English speakers from western countries offer you the opportunity to be directly employed by the Spanish government and placed in a government state school in cities and towns from Madrid, Barcelona, Zaragoza, Valencia and other major population areas.
Open to graduates with a degree or final year university students on a bachelors degree program who would like to spend 8-11 months English teaching & exchange culture in Spain schools.
You maybe asking can I teach in Spain without teaching experience or qualification?
Language cultural assistants are not teacher jobs, so no teaching qualification needed, although a program provider may require a TEFL, TESOL or CELTA.
Below are the top two programs where you are sponsored by the Spanish government for a student visa in Spain.
Cons Of Working As A Language Assistant In The Auxiliares De Conversacin Program
While there are many advantages of being a language assistant, there are some disadvantages as well.
- Regions are assigned on a first-come, first-served basis. This means that if you have your heart set on a specific region or location, you need to get your application in early and may be disappointed
- Assistant experience really varies from school to school some schools are extremely supportive and other assistants end up leaving the program early due to conflict. Its a bit luck of the draw
- Youll be working 12-16 hours per week, but will most likely spend many more hours at your school due to unpaid gaps in your schedule
- If you take days off, your pay gets severely docked
- Some co-teachers will treat you like a babysitter and abandon you in the classroom. They arent supposed to do this but many teachers dont seem to care
- The pay isnt great so youll need to teach private lessons or teach English online on the side if you want to travel, go out to eat, go to concerts, etc.
- Some of the schools dont pay their assistants on time
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Spain Cultural Ambassadors Program Overview
- Americans between ages 21-60 are placed as assistant English teachers in elementary or secondary schools in Spain
- Assignments last from the beginning of October until May 31 in Madrid, the duration of the program is from October 1 to June 30 a few spots begin after October 1 and these depend on availability
- Participants work 12 class sections a week as assistant English teachers in their assigned school
- Participants may submit preferences for where they want to teach, but assignments are determined by the Cultural Ambassadors and are given in April, when acceptances are announced
- Assignments may be given in school districts in mainland Spain or in overseas regions such as the Canary Islands and islands like Mallorca
- Participants receive a stipend , health insurance and a long-stay student visa for Spain covering the duration of their assignment with Cultural Ambassadors.
- Participants are responsible for covering travel costs to & from Spain.
Pros Of Working As A Language Assistant In The Auxiliares De Conversacin Program
Unfortunately, because the program isnt very standardized, language assistants have very different experiences. However, these are some of the general benefits of the North American Language and Cultural Assistant Program in Spain.
- Help students improve their English skills by playing games, teaching grammar, preparing them for English exams and reviewing vocabulary
- by creating lessons based on Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas, Easter, Valentines Day, etc.
- Gain valuable international working experience
- Improve your Spanish by communicating with teachers and admin at the school
- Use your three day weekends to explore Spain or to teach private lessons
- Get the chance to live in Europe as an American/Canadian
- For people interested in becoming teachers, its a great opportunity to try out the profession
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Auxiliar De Conversacion Preparation Course
Teaching 101: Online Course
A free teacher training crash course for the auxiliares de conversacion program in Madrid, Barcelona & throughout Spain. Learn the basics of classroom management, 21st Century teaching methods, and student-centered learning at your own pace from an award-winning Google Innovator.
Pros Of Teaching With Spains Cultural Ambassadors Program
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Auxiliares Salary: How Much Can You Earn Teaching With Nalcap
Auxiliares receive a monthly grant of 700-1,000 to cover their living costs in Spain. The exact amount you earn each month depends on where you’re placed. Those teaching in Madrid and within the Comunidad de Valencia receive the highest grant to offset the higher cost of living in a big city.
Many teaching assistants find that this stipend is just enough to cover the cost of living and decide to tutor privately.
Do You Need A Tefl Certificate To Teach As A Cultural Ambassador
You don’t need a TEFL certificate to teach English with the North American Language and Culture Assistants Program. However, this teach abroad program is competitive.
Which is why having a reputable TEFL certificate with at least 120 hours can give you a better chance of being accepted. Plus, if you find work teaching English in Spain after completing your contract with the North American Language and Culture Assistants Program, many schools in Spain require full-time teachers to have a TEFL certificate.
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Advice From An Expert
My experience as am English language assistant has been great. I teach 12-hours a week at an Elementary School in Toledo, Spain. My coordinator at the school went out of his way to make sure my schedule allowed time for me to be able to pick up my daughter from school. I am always paid on time, even early at times. The students at my school are for the most part well-behaved, although overall behavior levels here are worse than in the USA.
I think my experinece has been a fairly common one, although I do know of people, like my wife, who have had less pleasant experiences at their schools. Issues I have heard about from other particpants range from problems with payments to rude and unhelpful coordinators to unrealistic expectations from the school.
Lastly, take advantage that you are in Europe and travel! Ask your coordinator to set your schedule to doing your 12-hours on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays so you have 4 day weekends in which to travel. Check out the following discount airlines to travel cheaply Ryan Air, Vueling and Easy Jet.