This presentation will describe a qualitative research project carried out with 26 pre-service students of a B.Ed. program with an Emphasis in English at a state University in Bogota (Colombia). The purpose of the study was to portray the experiences the pre-service students went through as English language learners, their feelings and insights as such. The researcher used narrative inquiry methodology and autobiographies as the main source to collect data. The results show that the pre-service students invest in the target language understanding that they will have access to better job opportunities as well as opportunities to travel and be able to interact with people from other cultures. The results also showed the pre-service students’ affiliations to different communities in order to practice English as well as their imagined communities and identities. Finally, the autobiographies provided information about the activities the pre-service students resist and the ones they consider worthy. The data analysis was carried out taking into account the content and form of the autobiographies. The findings of this research project can provide useful information in order to design alternative pedagogical practices that are more compatible with the student teachers’ imagined communities, identities and investment.