Pros
-They took me on as a freshly qualified teacher -You have access to free Spanish lessons, and also any of the other languages taught there (if your schedule allows) -I had some really fantastic students I was very fond of -There is a lot of freedom in your classes - you are given free reign to run them however you see fit and appropriate. -Dance classes, free manicure/haircut appointments -They help you get set up with a bank account. Overall, I had a good experience, and I am glad I took the plunge and moved over to Costa Rica. I think I was lucky with my schedule, and had 2 consecutive free days a week to use to travel somewhere more pleasant than San Jose. I was aware of a lot of drama and issues going on behind the scenes with other teachers, but for me, I just went in, did my job and didn't get involved, so wasn't affected by it. I think it was a good place to start my teaching career, and the students evaluate you every so often so you get direct input direct from those that actually matter, so I feel I was definitely able to develop over my relatively short time (6-8 months). There is also a nice community within the teachers, and as mentioned before the students are wonderful, which makes it easier being so far from home. I felt appreciated and stimulated in my work.
Cons
For me, the hardest part was simply that San Jose is such an unpleasant, ugly city, and Costa Rica is a very expensive country. The wages simply don't match the cost of living, and I ended up living cheque to cheque, despite arriving with a fair amount of savings. This isn't the school's fault so much as it is a national problem, but something to be aware of. I know of other locals who were working full time and only earning $200 a month (if you can believe!!) and so my salary in comparison (around $650ish pm) was actually a lot better, although modest of course to compare it with that of my home country. I came home with absolutely nothing in my bank whatsoever, but my experience of travelling, teaching, and improving my Spanish ten-fold was worth it to me. -the pay scale is rather confusing. Why you get paid more for a class you see once a week, compared to a class you teach every day doesn't make sense to me. -obtaining a visa was also a bit of a long winded and expensive process (probably to be expected). I think my main issue was that it was forced upon us last-minute (an angry ex-teacher called immigration on us), and there were some hidden, unexpected fees which was difficult because money was already a struggle. However, if you go to other schools they will also require you to comply with legal standards of course, and ultimately I felt better when travelling about having a visa than before when I had to do a border hop. (Also, you pay residents price entry fees at national parks etc with the visa which makes a MASSIVE difference if you plan on seeing the more beautiful parts of Costa Rica (isn't that why we all chose Costa Rica anyway?!))
