Recruitment process

  1. Submit your application
  2. If we are interested by your candidature and if English is not your mother tongue, we will organize a Skype phone call to check your level in English
  3. You will receive an e-mail that will tell you if you are recruited or not. If you are, this e-mail will enclose an information document explaining as precisely as possible what you should expect from your volunteering in Ecuador, as well as a contract that you should sign, scan and send us back by e-mail
  4. Then, we will ask you to send us scans of the following documents:
    1. Insurance covering health problems during your stay and repatriation (at your charge)
    2. A police certificate indicating that there is no record
    3. A medical certificate indicating that you are in good health conditions to live and teach in Ecuador during your period of stay
    4. A copy of the Visa covering your period of stay (at your charge). We will help you to get it.
  5. At least one month before your arrival, we will send you the name and the address of the family you live with, and the name and the location of the school you will teach in.

VISA

You will need a visa to stay more than 3 months. A tourist visa can be sufficient till 6 months. And a volunteer visa if you stay more than 6 months.

Vaccines

There is no compuslory vaccine to come to Ecuador. But we would strongly encourage you to get the vaccines against

  • tetanos
  • hepatitis A & B
  • typhoïdia
  • yellow fever

Malaria exists in Ecuador but only in the coastal and amazonian regions. Visit with your doctor before you leave for Ecuador about purchasing once-a-week malaria prevention pills (Melfloquine).  If you do not do this, you will also be able to find pills in pharmacies here that you can take a few days before your trip to the Coast or the Amazon regions, during your trip, and a few days after.  The risks are low, but you may want to be safe, rather than sorry.

Packing List

We suggest that you bring the following items to Ecuador:

  • cell phone with removable sim card
  • camera
  • a small, well-labeled (for customs reasons) medical kit: tylenol (it is much harder to purchase here!), nasal decongestant, tums, and something just in case you get traveler’s diarrhea.  There are pharmacies (farmacias) here, but I figure it’s nice to have some of these things on hand when you need them.
  • an English texbook.  Knowing English does not make you a natural English teacher, therefore it is nice to have something to refer to.  Here is a link to a free, downloadable copy of Interchange.
    student book :
    http://www.4shared.com/get/f0ZPEwrM/Interchange_Intro_A_students_b.html
    workbook :
    https://rs136dt.rapidshare.com/#!download|136l34|397808781|Interchange_3rd_Ed._Intro_TResB_-_OCR__1_.pdf|32564|R~B10D49EF74C9962B97B5708ECCD7F6CF|0|0
  • bathing suit and towel
  • an umbrella (December to May is Ecuador’s winter/ rainy season)
  • Warm clothes.  Ecuador is on the equator, yes, however, we are around 2,700 meters above sea level and in some of the cantons outside of Riobamba, the altitude is even higher.  You will rarely wear shorts or dresses (without tights or leggings).  One or two pairs of jeans, and a pair of black dress pants should be good.  Plenty of socks.  A warm jacket, and maybe one lighter jacket, along with a couple of sweaters should be sufficient.  Of course, bring t-shirts as well, and a few outfits you can wear if you decide to dance on the beach in Ecuador’s party-friendly coastal region (where it is much warmer).
  • A pair of durable shoes that go with everything.  Some that can survive walking in a lot of dirt- probably leather.
  • A black outfit that you can wear if you attend a funeral.
  • Your visa and passport!
  • an open mind :)

Travel

You will need to pay for your flight to Ecuador.  You can fly into Quito or Guayaquil.  If you plan on staying for more than 3 months and obtained a visa, you will need to register it.  Quito and Guayaquil are the only cities in Ecuador where you can do this, and it can only be done Mondays-Fridays.  It is a two-day process and must be done within 30 days of arriving, otherwise you will be subject to a $200 fee when leaving the country.  Therefore, it is worth the price of a couple of nights in a Quito or Guayaquil hostel to register your visa off the bat, then travel to Riobamba, where the project is located.

By bus, it takes about 3 hours to get from Quito to Riobamba, and 5 hours from Guayaquil.  Buses in Ecuador tend to cost about a dollar an hour, so the tickets also cost between 3 and 5 dollars.  We will be in contact with you before you arrive, and will plan to meet you at the Riobamba bus terminal, where we will then either drive you to your family or introduce you to your family there.