Korean Job Discussion Forums

[DosEquisXX]

If I am applying for a public school, does it really make a difference which TEFL certificate I get? In other words is an online TEFL considered equal to an in-person TEFL by the public school system?

I'm on a budget at the moment and if I can save money by taking the online course while maintaining the same credentials, then I would be quite happy.

I also see that there are different TEFL such as one given by TEFL Institute, one from Oxford Seminars and so on. Is there any difference between them?

[JD_Tiberius]

I can't see the point in doing a TEFL course that does not have actual classroom time, that just raises a big red flag to me. You might as well just buy a book on TEFL rather than use a crooked certificate mill to be honest.

[Mongoos150]

So all online TEFL institutions are "crooked certificate mills?"

[JD_Tiberius]

http://hubpages.com/hub/How-To-Choose-A-TEFL-Course-That-Will-Give-You-A-Respected-Qualification--Not-A-Useless-Piece-Of-Paper

That more or less covers it. Besides the only part of the world that seems to hold online TEFL courses in any sort of regard tends to be East Asia. It seems like an awfully lot of money to waste on something that won't actually give you any experience and is recognised in a total of about 3 countries. I would wager that a 20 hour weekend course with one day of classroom experience is probably heaps more useful than a 100 hour online course, and cheaper too.

[DosEquisXX]

So it appears that if you are legit and want to do this for a living, the in-person course is the right decision. But if you just plan to teach in Korea, the in-person course and online course are basically the same.

Is this right? At least that's the vibe I'm getting here.

And it seems that the 4 week in person course is best, but those run around $2,200 US (my only option for location is NYC) and I don't really have that money to throw around. Is there anything more cost-effective that will serve the same purpose?

[ttompatz]

[mzeno]

I think youl'll find that a lot of jobs require a minimun 100hr TEFL course. Other jobs certainly don't mind seeing it on your resume. If you are new to teaching, I think its a good introduction to the fundamentals of the job. I recommend teflonline.net. I just started their 100 hr course and it is very professional and legit.

[edwardcatflap]

If you're new to teaching, you should get some practical training before you go anywhere near a real classroom. IMHO

[withgusto]

"IF you want to work elsewhere (and have it count) then you need an "in person" one with at least 100 hours of class work and 20 hours of observed practicum."

And, would you say the same thing after 2-3 years of ESL experience? Suppose you wanted to take an online refresher course. Only trying to get valid opinions. Should you blow an extra grand on classroom time when you already have hundreds of hours in a classroom?

[edwardcatflap]

In my experience, places that require a qualification with a practical element usually won't accept experience instead. but I'm talking about outside Korea