Getting certified to teach English as a foreign language

While our friend Peter was here, he went into Guadalajara one day to check out a school where you can get accreditation to teach English as a foreign language. He's very interested in teaching English in a Spanish speaking country sometime, and his research had indicated that having some form of certification is very helpful in getting jobs.

I showed him an ad in the local Guadalajara English-language weekly newspaper for what turns out to be a highly regarded school in Guadalajara. They teach a four week course and hand you a certificate at the end that all but assures you a low paying but adequate job in the exploding global industry of English teaching. In fact, the ad says, "Guaranteed paid job placement in Mexico and direct employment contacts worldwide."

Peter commented, "Today's main activity was visiting the place, a two story office and classroom storefront in the heart of downtown. I asked many questions, sat through a four hour class, and had lunch with a couple of students. I was sold even before one of the students was pulled out of class for a phone call, only to come back a few minutes later with a job on the Yucatan Peninsula."

He said the cost was about $1400 US for the month-long course and that there were student apartments nearby at low cost, I think he said around $400 for the month, and I don't know if that was for sharing an apartment or not. I asked him how the $1400 compared with other places' prices, as he had done a good bit of research already at daveseslcafe.com and other places. He thought it was a reasonable price. He said that most of the two dozen or so students in the group he observed were American, while three were Mexican and a few were other nationalities. Most were his age ( early 20s) but at least one was in her 50s.

The school's website is www.teflcertificatecourses.com and its toll-free number from the US and Canada is 1-866-514-7479. Looking at the website, I noticed that this is part of a school in Boston.