The TEFL course industry is saturated with TEFL course providers claiming to offer the best TEFL courses out there, but unfortunately, not all of these TEFL companies can be trusted. It can be hard to distinguish what makes a TEFL course provider reputable or dodgy when you don’t know what to keep an eye out for. This is why we have compiled a list of things you should look for in a TEFL course provider when selecting what company to do your TEFL course with.

Is their website legitimate?

Nowadays, anyone can make a basic website and claim to sell the ‘Best TEFL courses’ out there for an unbelievably low price. It can be easy to get sucked into this charade; however, it’s important to keep in mind that the devil is in the details when selecting a TEFL course provider. Examining a potential TEFL course provider’s website can give you the best insight into whether this company can be trusted or not. 

When looking at their website, it’s important to ask yourself a few questions:

◾ Does their website look professional?
◾ Is the website littered with spelling mistakes and grammatical errors?
◾ Are there suspicious pop-up ads constantly making an appearance?
◾ Does it have a contact page with a phone number and email that works?
◾ Does it have a secure web address?
◾ Do the internal links on the website work? Or do they bring you to non-existent pages?
◾ Does the company have a social media presence?

These are the little details you need to look out for. No legitimate TEFL course provider will have a difficult website to manoeuvre and is full of spelling mistakes, broken links and false contact information. A reputable TEFL course provider knows the importance of having a trustworthy and functioning website because first impressions count, and it’s how they sell and promote their business to customers. If you find yourself on a TEFL company’s page that advertises extremely cheap TEFL courses and lacks a working website, you can bet that their offer and their ‘legitimacy’ is too good to be true. 

Are they getting good reviews online?

Online reviews are one of the most reliable ways for you to gauge whether a TEFL course provider is trustworthy and reputable. Not only do reviews from past and current students give an insight into their experience working with the TEFL company, but they also give you a chance to learn about the different courses and what they entail from people who actually did them.

The best thing about online reviews is that TEFL companies can not control what their customer’s write about their courses, the support they provide and their services. If their courses are not fulfilling their student’s needs or failing to support them, you can be certain that it will be written in the review section. So if the TEFL course provider you are looking into seems to be getting a steady stream of negative reviews online, you should avoid it at all costs. Listen to your peers; it may save you a lot of time and money. 

On the other hand, if the TEFL course provider receives lots of praise online, you can more than likely trust them. The TEFL Institute of Ireland, click here to see what our past students have to say about their experience with us.

Do they offer you support?

A good TEFL course provider will always offer their students and potential students support throughout their TEFL experience. Even before you purchase a course with a particular company, they should always be willing to offer you advice on starting your career and answer any questions you may have regarding their courses. 

◾ Do you want to do an online TEFL course or a course that takes place in a classroom?
◾ Do you want to do the standard 120 hour TEFL course or a more in-depth Level 5 Master’s course?
◾ Do you want to teach online or in a classroom?
◾ Do you want to teach children or adults?

These might be just some of the questions swirling around your head before you start your TEFL course. Legitimate and trustworthy TEFL course providers understand this. They get how daunting this can be, hence why it is their duty to help you discover what course is best suited to you and your desires. If they don’t offer this guidance and support to you at the beginning of your TEFL journey, they most definitely will not provide you with any extra support during and after your course. It is something to keep an eye on.

Here at The TEFL Institute, we are always here to help. You can contact one of our team members (who have over 20 years of TEFL experience between them) by phone, through email, or by simply popping a question into our question box on our website. We are ready to answer any of your questions regarding our courses, future job opportunities, our Internship programs, or to get a brochure! Make sure to contact us today.

Are the TEFL Providers courses accredited?

When selecting the right TEFL course provider to study with, you must select a company that will provide you with a qualification that is both globally recognised and accredited. However, as we have already mentioned, it is not uncommon for dodgy TEFL course providers to claim their courses are both of these things when they aren’t. Therefore, you must do extra research into the legitimacy of a course’s recognition and accreditation. 

Unfortunately, there is not one standard accreditation body for TEFL courses; several can be a bit confusing. With that in mind, always look for a TEFL course provider whose courses are accredited by a well-established and widely recognized external body such as ACDL. External bodies like ADCL (Accreditation Council for Distance Learning) ensure your course has passed a rigorous evaluation process and provides a high standard of learning and training. At the TEFL Institute of Ireland, we offer ACDL and LEVEL 5 Ofqual UK government-regulated courses (assessed to be the same difficulty level as a CELTA qualification and Trinity CERT TESOL). Deciding whether you want to do an ACDL or Level 5 Ofqual assessed course depends on the standard of qualification and training you want to receive. 

Remember always to research the accreditation of the TEFL course provided by a TEFL course company. This will show you if you can trust that TEFL course provider and if their courses are worth the time and money you plan to invest into them.

Do they provide you with job assistance? 

Most TEFL course providers won’t guarantee that you will walk straight into an English teaching job once you finish their course. However, a good TEFL company will always provide you with support and advice on starting your TEFL career, both during and after your TEFL program. 

If your TEFL course provider is committed to providing its students with job assistance, then you know they can be trusted. This shows that their main concern is creating the TEFL educators of tomorrow, not making a quick buck. 

For instance, our weekly blogs provided tips on writing a killer TEFL CV, nailing a job interview, and providing guides for different TEFL teaching destinations such as South Korea or Taiwan. In our monthly webinars, we delve into these topics in more detail. Plus, you get the opportunity to ask our expert staff members and past students about their experiences and for advice regarding the interview process or working as a TEFL teacher. We also have a jobs page where we post the latest job opportunities available for TEFL teachers across the globe. 

However, even with all this information,  we understand that creating a new CV and finding a TEFL job can be difficult while doing one of our courses. It can be overwhelming. This is why our staff provides a tailored CV service to help maximize your chances of securing an interview and a job offer. Not only will this 7-day service leave you with an excellent CV, but it will elevate a little bit of stress associated with the job process. 

If you want to avoid the stress of finding a job abroad and everything else that entails entirely, why not look into one of our Internship programs? Located throughout Europe and Asia, our TEFL Internships provide our students with a job, accommodation, a visa, and help with legal paperwork. What more could you want? 

To ensure that you begin your TEFL career on the best footing, make sure to look out for these signs when selecting the TEFL course provider you will study with.