brain Vs wallet

[mr.adrok]

I am looking into taking a tesol course to teach over seas. I haven't taught before and have only my high school diploma.

My question is:

Should i bother taking the 5 day in class + 60hr internet course for $1050,
when there is a 100hr internet course for $250??

Would I be limiting myself if I took the cheap route? Or do i have equal opportunities??

[I'm With Stupid]

As always you get what you pay for. But tbh, I'd worry about either of these courses. Any job that specifies teaching qualifications will almost always want a course that offers practical classroom experience, and always a minimum of 100 or 120 hours. Basically, they want a CELTA or Trinity qualification. Personally, I would spend 6 months working to save up enough money to do one of these. I think this is even more important for you, since you don't have a degree, so your options are already limited. Personally, I would suggest that you save up to do a CELTA or Trinity qualification in the country you are planning on working in. In many cases they are cheaper, especially given that they often charge in $US, which many other currencies compare favourably to at the moment. I've never seen an ESL job advertised on the internet that doesn't require a degree, and yet I've heard of many reports of people without degrees finding work once they're inside a country. CELTAs don't usually require a degree, and they will allow you 4 weeks to get to know a country and look for jobs advertised locally.

[mr.adrok]

Six months saving for a course? I clear 9 grand a month so maybe it wont take that long. eh? Appreciate your reply and will look into the options you mentioned.
thanks

[ICAL_Pete]

Online courses are a good option particularly if you have a limited budget to further your studies or if you have other work and/or family commitments that restrict the amount of time you have available to study. Given that you already have some teaching experience, a TESL/TEFL course would be a useful addition to your resume.

CELTA is undoubtedly a popular qualification especially in Europe, but has far less clout in other parts of the world like Asia, for example. It is also a fairly intensive certificate program in terms of finance, workload and commitment, and a bit of an overkill unless your intention is to remain within the ESL industry and build a career for yourself in this field.

In most places the basic requirements for entry level teaching positions are a degree plus a TESL/TEFL certificate - not necessarily a CELTA. And in countries where a degree is a part of the visa requirements, I’m afraid not even a CELTA is ever going to be accepted in lieu of a degree.

Of course it really depends on where you want to teach and at what level. But there are many good schools around the world that will happily accept TESL/TEFL Certificates issued by reputable organizations other than Cambridge, so you can shop around. See the ICAL courses to start with.