Location
  • United States of America
Length
120 hours
Training Type
Classroom

Program Details

Teaching Practicum
Yes
Job Placement
Yes
Certifications
TEFL TESOL
Housing
Apartment Host Family

Pricing

Starting Price
1499
Price Details
All ITA students received lifetime job search guidance featuring:

Tuition includes lifetime job search guidance featuring:

✔️ Personal guidance from an experienced Job Search Advisor.

✔️ ESL Job Search Manual: All of our graduates receive a 400-page manual containing all relevant information for major job markets around the world.

✔️ESL worldwide school directory listing over 20,000 schools & online teaching companies worldwide.

✔️ Referrals to preferred recruiters, placement agencies, online teaching companies, and language schools.

✔️ Job interview assistance for International TEFL / TESOL course participants.

✔️ Engaged alumni community of 40,000+ ITA graduates in 80 countries worldwide.
What's Included (Extra)

✔️ University-level instructors
✔️ Award-winning accredited TEFL courses
✔️ Personalized pre-enrollment guidance
✔️ All courses include live practice teaching

Dec 26, 2022
Nov 08, 2021
35 travelers are looking at this program

About Program

Earn your accredited TEFL certification with International TEFL Academy (ITA) and you’ll be qualified for paid English teaching jobs online and in 80+ countries across the globe.

If you’re a native English speaker from the U.S. or Canada, at least age 21 years old, and passionate about education, then teaching abroad is one of the best ways for you to live, work, and travel abroad in Europe, Asia, Latin America, or the Middle East.

You can take your ITA TEFL class Online or In-Person in 20 locations worldwide. All ITA graduates have lifetime access to one-on-one job search guidance and exclusive alumni networks. Join 40,000 ITA graduates teaching abroad in 80 countries and begin your journey today!

Video and Photos

Why is International TEFL Academy the Right Choice?

  • One-on-One Pre-Enrollment Guidance: What TEFL class is best for teaching English abroad in Spain, Japan, or Costa Rica? Which country is right for me? How much money do I need to bring with me & what kind of visa do I need? Your personal ITA Advisor will help you navigate these questions about TEFL certification & teaching English abroad.
  • Professional TEFL Certification Courses in North America: We offer accredited, 4-week In-Person TEFL classes at our headquarters in Chicago and in New York City. We also have 25 locations internationally. All of these TEFL classes qualify you to teach English in 80 countries worldwide. Every ITA TEFL class exceeds international professional standards for instructor qualifications, accredited curriculum, and student teaching hours. Getting TEFL certified in U.S. before going abroad is a great option if you’re not sure where you want to teach yet but know you want to get TEFL certified, and it’s also a great option for those who prefer face-to-face learning over online.
  • We Have Been in YOUR shoes: Everyone on the ITA staff has extensive international experience. Take your TEFL class at the ITA HQ and you’ll be interacting with fellow travelers on a daily basis! Travel is in our blood. It’s our passion to help people realize how realistic this dream of living & working abroad can be. We all appreciate the challenges & rewards of living, traveling, and working abroad.
  • One-on-One Job Search Guidance for Teaching English in Japan: How do I actually find a teaching job in Europe, Asia, or Latin America? Once enrolled in any ITA TEFL class, you’ll work with our team of expert Student Affairs advisors to help you prepare for your job search. You’re welcome to make an appointment with us during your time at the ITA HQ to work on your job search. Enjoy access to the most comprehensive job resources & guidance on the planet to help you navigate international job markets in 80 countries worldwide.
  • Access to ITA Worldwide Alumni Network: Don’t know anyone teaching English abroad? No problem! As an ITA alumni you have exclusive opportunities to network, connect, and correspond with our 20,000 ITA alumni teaching English across the globe. This is a great way to meet friends before you head abroad & get all of your questions answered by current ITA alumni on the ground abroad in Asia!

How Do I Get Started?

Contact International TEFL Academy for your starter brochure or call us directly at 773-634-9900 & start working with your personal Admission Advisors. Your advisor will work with you one-on-one to answer your all of your questions, go over your options & set up your game plan to see the world. Your advisor will be happy to speak with you as many times as you need to go over job markets, hiring requirements, TEFL course options & much more.

Your journey begins now so let’s get in touch & let’s get started!

Program Reviews

4.68 Rating
based on 31 reviews
  • 5 rating 80.65%
  • 4 rating 12.9%
  • 3 rating 3.23%
  • 2 rating 0%
  • 1 rating 3.23%
  • Benefits 4.6
  • Support 4.9
  • Fun 3.75
  • Facilities 3.8
  • Safety 4.35
  • Instruction 4.35
  • Support 4.5
  • Value 4.35
  • Academic Rigor 3.2
  • Job Assistance 4.35
Showing 1 - 8 of 31 reviews
Volunteering in South Africa
Tamie
5/5
Yes, I recommend this program

International TEFL Academy (ITA) - Highly Recommended

I highly recommend the ITA TEFL program. I thoroughly researched which program and company would suit my needs and found ITA provided the most support before, during, and after the program. There is an exceptional level of guidance and support that ITA provides to every student. The community they've created is unsurpassed. The TEFL program with ITA gave me the opportunity to transform my career into teaching abroad, and I know for sure I would not have been able to do it without it. The ITA TEFL program is worth the investment- it will allow new opportunities to see the world.

What is your advice to future travelers on this program?
Don't be afraid to try something new. Don't let opportunities pass you by. Invest in your future.
42 people found this review helpful.
Default avatar
Taylor
5/5
Yes, I recommend this program

International TEFL Academy gives you the freedom to move

The summer before my senior year of college I was feeling very unsure of what I would like to do in the future. It was then that I turned to Go Overseas and discovered International TEFL Academy. I immediately filled out their request for more information and within a couple of minutes my admissions advisor, Tyler, reached out to me. Throughout the entire admissions process I had multiple phone calls and emails with my numerous questions answered in an very timely manner. I felt fully supported and this was even before I had committed to the program. I then began the course, which I was able to complete while having a full college course load, a job and being a college athlete, which is to say that this course is perfect for those that are employed or are still in school. The teacher that I had was timely, open and easy to reach with questions. I felt that the course was useful but did not overload me with busy assignments. Upon completion of the course I interviewed to work as a teacher's assistant in Isreal and have for the last year been in Israel with plans to teach English in Spain next year. All I can say is that International TEFL Academy gave me mobility and allowed me to have incredible life changing experiences. I would 100% and have 100% recommended it to anyone looking to teach abroad.

59 people found this review helpful.
Ryan
5/5
Yes, I recommend this program

Why ITA may be right for you.

When I was preparing myself to teach abroad, I had some obstacles I had to get through. I still had a full time job and personal responsibilities to attend to. I needed a program that would work around my busy schedule but I also wanted a quality program with great support as I started the process of living and teaching abroad. International TEFL Academy (ITA) was definitely that program for me. I looked into many programs, talked to many advisors and concluded that ITA checked all the boxes I was looking for when considering the right program. The staff was great during the processes of choosing a country and answering questions. The program had great materials to use when developing your teaching skills. The instructor did a great job communicating to me personally and the entire group. Lastly, the additional resources they provide were exactly what I needed to find a job in the country I wanted to go to. I have already referred the program to some of my friends.

What would you improve about this program?
I would like to see this programs have more video demonstration of what a classroom in a different country looks like and demonstration videos on how different teachers deliver instructions.
61 people found this review helpful.
Default avatar
Katie
5/5
Yes, I recommend this program

Awesome

I had a great experience with ITA. I like in person classes for accountability and they provided that in the Chicago class. I found the work in the class harder than any class I had taken in college. It was difficult but really rewarding. I ended up teaching in South Korea now for almost 2 years. I will be able to pay off my student loans. Yaay. I also discovered I want to be a kindergarten teacher. It changed my life and I am really happy.

What would you improve about this program?
I honestly think it's the best program out there.
I have some ideas
1. Have a private site for all alumni you can log in to forever. They have a private site during your time in the classroom but after it disappears. They could offer extended courses and I might pay for them.
2. Assistance after teaching: after having taught for a year and a half I knew I wanted to be a teacher in the USA. I didn't know how to go about getting qualified. No one I knew had done it and I didn't know what company to use. The company is right there along every step of the way with you. It would be nice if they could offer assistance with continuing my education. I could also make more money with a usa teaching certificate overseas.
61 people found this review helpful.
Default avatar
Tom
1/5
No, I don't recommend this program

Regret investing the money & time

I don't like posting negative reviews. Just like most people, I want to share positive news and experiences. But there's a dark problem in the TEFL/TESOL world that's not getting the attention it should and which is costing students lots of money and wasted time. I completed the ITA TEFL program with flying colors after an extended chat with their intake specialists about whether I would be a decent candidate for TEFL abroad. It was very uncomfortable having the conversation with them about race and age, but I'd done my research before and learned both from other TEFL instructors and from reading journal articles that there is gender, race, appearance, and age discrimination widely all over the world in the TEFL industry. I didn't want to invest over $1000 in schooling (after having spent tens of thousands on university education) if I wasn't going to be able to overcome discriminatory practices. ITA's staff was cooly encouraging, pointing out they had "many" successful graduates like me. I'd heard something similar from the administration where I did my graduate training and that didn't pan out, so I was nervous but decided to take the plunge.

The first problem I encountered was in the teaching material. It was dated and had the feel of a program from the 80's (graphics, layout...). And there were frequent errors throughout the material. And while I understand students need to practice to master concepts, the assignments felt like just busywork, with little rigor or actual teaching (from staff to us). Still, I completed the program with the praise of the teaching staff. Offered a chance to do a module on early childhood teaching, I couldn't bring myself to engage any more of the dated, dry learning modules so declined.

I had difficulty finding a community teaching practicum. Many of the contacts ITA provided were either dead or, when I contacted program managers, they told me they'd never heard of ITA. Finally, I arranged something awkward that satisfied (but really shouldn't have) the practicum requirements and I finished the program.

It took me over a year to get a job (China). Of course, I wanted a job with a decent enough pay for me to both survive AND keep paying my student loan bills back home. But despite my multiple degrees and lots of teaching experience in the US, I found nowhere was interested in me. I have an electronic folder full of over 200 different resumes and cover letters for many different types of teaching opportunities. I applied in Latin America, Europe, The Middle East, North Africa, and throughout Asia. Places that initially required JUST a resume contacted me the same day they got my resume to set up a Skype interview which I took very seriously, researching the company and their target audience and even renting a professional office space (day office), dressing professionally, and preparing a mock lesson. Invariably, within seconds of the interviews starting, these companies were visibly disappointed with who I am. I never heard back from any of them, though I kept (and continue) seeing their ads for instructors. I can't adequately express how demoralizing and humiliating that is.

Then there were the other ads that requested "a recent photo" or "your passport photo page." I even hired a resume company to help me craft my resume (a service ITA offers but I wanted a professional company to help me maximize my chances at getting a decent-pay job so went with a highly reviewed company that offers EFL resume help). After applying to literally hundreds of positions in Thailand, Taiwan, Japan, Vietnam, Laos... I was offered a position in the Middle East for less than half what other younger and inexperienced graduates were being offered with a company that had horrible Glassdoor reviews, including many employees' complaints about unethical treatment, contract abrogations, and payment failures. I finally got an offer from a company in Shanghai. The pay, for such an expensive city, was low, but I was just relieved to have found a job.

I accepted the Shanghai offer for one year but decided to return to the US. The management of the Shanghai company was abusive to all staff--Chinese and foreign, relying on screaming, humiliation, and other forms of abuse "to keep people in line," the words of the program director there. And they required instructors to falsify legal documents students were using to apply to US colleges. I felt very uncomfortable doing this so didn't renew my contract.

While I was in China, I applied to hundreds of teaching positions throughout the world. And until recently, I've done the same since returning home. I've even applied to teach in countries with unstable, even dangerous political situations. The evidence is irrefutable. If you're older (over 35, 40) and, I hate writing this, of African descent, especially if you're male (preference in Asia for female teachers), no matter how much experience, how many degrees, and what certification you have, you aren't likely to be a desirable candidate. Worse, because the job market for college graduates in the West is so abysmal that many graduates seek TEFL certificates simply to qualify for full-time work elsewhere while they wait for better opportunities back home, the market has been flooded with TEFL certificate graduates, both driving down salaries generally and making employers far more selective. Again, if you're the wrong type of teacher, many schools and companies have so many other candidates to choose from that you are likely to be out of luck.

I spent over $1000 for a TEFL certificate that's now worthless simply because of who I am. Never mind my experience teaching in public schools. This is a HUGE problem for the minority of TEFL certificate seekers who share my demographic. You can do the online search yourself for both popular recountings of these experiences and scholastic publications corroborating what I've shared here. TEFL certificate granting institutions should assume the ethical responsibility of having informed, frank discussions with students BEFORE we shell out money for knowledge we may never get to use due to widespread discrimination.

What would you improve about this program?
Follow your own teaching material advice and recognize that tomes of dry reading materials are INeffective pedagogy. Error-check your manuals more thoroughly. Hire teachers who WANT to interact with students, rather than toss one or two shallow sentences back on assignments as "feedback." Your program could be so much more effective at teaching HOW to teach (rather than how to regurgitate material) if YOU actually taught--the way you have us memorize how to teach.

Also, be honest with students before we commit to your program about major problems in the TEFL industry. It only undermines your credibility and community trust when graduates like me finish the program very successfully but then remain unemployed due to the issues I've outlined above.
80 people found this review helpful.
Default avatar
Mike
5/5
Yes, I recommend this program

Higher Priced but well worth it!

As someone who has no ESL teaching experience, ITA has done a great job teaching me what I need in order to succeed. I went into this program feeling a bit overwhelmed with the thought of jumping in front of a classroom full of people and teaching ESL. After learning how to manage a classroom, write lesson plans, and different strategies, I am more than prepared. I got my BS and MA degrees online and no instructor has given me the quality or amount of input that my ITA instructor has. She has been very thorough, giving long explanations whenever necessary, and has been extremely patient the entire time. ITA might cost more than some of the other TEFL programs out there, but you get what you pay for.

67 people found this review helpful.
Default avatar
Sarah
5/5
Yes, I recommend this program

Definitely Worth It

I attended the TEFL course in Chicago and it was a great experience. I learned a lot and felt prepared for my first teaching job in the Republic of Georgia. The instructors were amazing and always helpful. The curriculum was great and the practicum was a definite advantage to taking this course as opposed to taking it online. I have since taught English in South Korea, Myanmar, and Micronesia and I still use the Job Search Guidance Manual when thinking about my next destination.

57 people found this review helpful.
Default avatar
Gwen
5/5
Yes, I recommend this program

Wonderful program!

I had a wonderful experience with the International TEFL Academy! I took the in-classroom course in Chicago, and found that it was definitely worth the price. We taught four one-and-a-half hour classes to non-native English speakers from around the city (who were able to take the classes for free), using our own lesson plans. For each lesson plan, we were given extensive resources and feedback so that by the end we all had a good idea of our strengths and weaknesses as teachers. Our two instructors were fantastic, each bringing a variety of teaching experiences to the classroom. Months after graduating I am still in contact with ITA, who have been very helpful reading over job contracts and giving me advice on the whole overseas job-search process. I would highly recommend the International TEFL Academy to anyone who is seriously considering teaching overseas!

65 people found this review helpful.

Questions & Answers

Hi Alexandra, The majority of English language classes around the world are taught by non native English teachers, e.g. in Russia the majority teaching English are Russian. In China the majority teaching English are Chinese. Most countries want fluent English speakers ("native is also use") because many of the local English teachers don't have fluent English skills or American or British dialect...

Ages for people teaching English abroad varies country by country, some are set by the country for a work visa, some are cultural norms. Here's an article to give some insight but there are people 18 to 88 teaching English in different countries.