Surpacifico Spanish School

Placement organization

Name of organization: Surpacifico Spanish School
Town/city: Manta
Country: Ecuador
Website: http://www.surpacifico.k12.ec/

Name of student: Laura Zwart

Specialist area: MT
Placement period: 2015-2016

Information about placement organization

Type of organization: Spanish School
Organization’s activities: The school offers Spanish courses in combination with other programs, like kite surfing, volunteering and medical Spanish. Besides these programs the school offers extra curricular activities for students in and outside of the school.
Target group of the organization: Students who want to learn Spanish of all ages
Company culture: The company culture is informal. All the staff is very friendly and helpful. The owner and his wife are very open and hospitable, they even let students into their house for some activities. Which makes you feel at home immediately. The atmosphere is really relaxed.
Number of employees: 8
Dress code: casual
Did the organization meet the agreements you made beforehand? Yes

Information about your placement

In which department(s) are you working? Marketing, administration, customer service for students.
Brief description of your daily activities: – Organizing trips and activities for students
– Answering the telephone and emails
– Updating social media
– Answering questions and solving problems of students
– Payments
– Promotion
– Doing market research and write a promotion plan

Brief description of your company assignment: I had to make a marketing promotion plan.
Comment briefly on your supervision by the organization: The supervision is good, you will get a lot of responsibilities. My supervisor was always available for questions even when he was not present, than he responded very quick via his phone and the teachers are always willing to help. They expect you to show initiative and to be responsive to the work environment at the school.

Requirements for students on placement

What kind of personal skills are required for this placement? independent, responsible, social, take initiative
Additional company requirements for this placement? Word, Excel and a little knowledge of Photoshop
English: Advanced
Spanish: Intermediate
French:
German:
Italian:
Other languages:

The trip

Mode of transport to reach your destination: Airplane

Accommodation

How did you arrange your accommodation? Company
How did you go to work every day? By foot

Visa / work permit / vaccinations

Do you need a visa? Yes, I had the 12-IX visa
Do you need a work permit? No
How did you arrange the necessary documents: At the embassy of Ecuador in The Hague
How much time did it take to arrange the necessary documents? 2 weeks
Did you need certain vaccinations? Yes
How long in advance? 3 months

Language course

Did you take a language course before you started your placement? No
Would you recommend to have a language course prior to this placement? Yes

The costs in euros

Travelling expenses (e.g. return ticket): € 1300
Accommodation (monthly): € Free
Local transport (monthly): € 35
General costs of living (monthly): € 250
Costs of visa: € 200
Costs of work permit: € –
What did the company pay for/to you? The accommodation, some trips and activities, Spanish classes and a compensation of 100 dollar a month.

Culture

How did you prepare for the country’s culture?
I read some information in books and at internet, but I don’t think you can really prepare for it. Just be open-minded and go with the flow.
Did the culture of the country influence your performance during the placement in any way? No

Future students on placement

Future students are free to contact me for further information: Yes
My e-mail address: 120214@nhtv.nl

Other information

Recommendations on what to do and what not to do: In general it is safe, but it still South-America, so watch your belongings! Especially in public transport, restaurants, when you’re going out, etc. In the night you’d better not walk alone, but take a taxi. Don’t wear expensive jewellery and keep your bag in front of you.
Leisure possibilities in the city/surroundings of where the placement took place: There are lots of interesting places in the neigbourhood, some a bit closer than others, places like Canoa, Montecristi and Montañita are very nice. When you have the time I would recommend going Quito, the capital, which is very beautiful. From there you can take the bus to Otavalo and/or Cotacahi, which only takes about 2 hours. Here you can visit the big markets with artisan souvenirs (the biggest market is on a Saturday) and see people walking in traditional clothes. When you like more adventure you should visit Baños, here you can amongst other things go rafting, bungeejumping, hiking, seeing impressive waterfalls and much more!

Ecuador is a beautiful country and has so much to offer so try to see as much as possible!

Media

Youtube link Youtube placement video link