5 Reasons to Get a CELTA to Teach English Abroad
In 2012, I hit early retirement.
If only.
Wait, what I mean is, I was hanging out with my aunt down in Florida, having just quit my job without any plan for further action. Everything I owned was in the back of my minivan that I had driven down from Michigan, and I was trying to decide if I’d join thousands of other hopeless souls in Los Angeles or make my escape abroad. One involved the delights of low-key adventuring and the creative stimulus of different world perspectives. The other offered $8 soy matcha lattes and the slow death of answering someone else’s phone for three quarters of my waking hours. It was painfully clear to me that I wanted to travel more than I wanted to move to LA.
I just wasn’t sure how to pull my vanishing act off.
I thought about au pairing again, though the lack of sustainability and career made it unattractive. I didn’t really have the tech-savvy skills that could support me as a digital nomad. I hadn’t even thought about freelance writing at that point or built up a portfolio that could draw clients.
And then, at some point I realized – I could teach English.
I loved the language, I enjoyed working with people, and I had the resources to invest in re-training for a new career. After doing some research, I decided to get a CELTA versus other TEFL certificates. If you’re looking for a way to work and travel, if you love language and fostering communication, and if you’re interested in building a real career overseas, it might be worthwhile to consider getting a CELTA to teach English abroad.
Um, what is a CELTA?
The CELTA is a pre-service TESOL certificate course designed by Cambridge University. CELTA stands for “Certificate for English Language Teaching for Adults.”
It is a 120-hour course with 6 hours of assessed teaching practice, designed for the inexperienced trainee who intends to work internationally. It is only run in approved centers, and each course is assessed by an external assessor to ensure the center is reaching Cambridge’s standards.
Why should you get a CELTA?
There are many courses that offer a TEFL certificate (Teaching English as a Foreign Language). The CELTA may not be for everyone – more on that later – but in my opinion, there are several reasons to get a CELTA instead of an alternative certificate.
1. The CELTA is considered a gold standard English teaching certificates.
It makes me blush to admit it now, but I almost bought a TEFL certificate course on Groupon. Luckily, I did a little research first and discovered that the company was a total sham. I didn’t even know about the CELTA when I first decided to pursue teaching English abroad, but I wanted to teach in Turkey and I noticed that nearly all the job listings required a CELTA. When I started comparing different certificates, I noticed how many teachers recommended the CELTA and how many schools requested it.
As an internationally recognized TESOL certificate, it opens the doors for you all over the worlds. Because the CELTA is an assessed program, with the possibility that you can fail, employers are fairly confident you’ll be competent in the classroom. There are a few other top-tier certificates (the Trinity CertrTESOL is also highly respected), but I found the CELTA to be most accessible.
2. The CELTA requires you to teach on the second day.
One of the benefits of the CELTA, and one of the reasons why employers like it so much, is that you have assessed teaching practice. In fact, trainees start teaching on the second day of the course. This is a little bit terrifying, but it is also instrumental in your development as a teacher. You get feedback on your classes from both your trainer and your fellow trainees, and you get to see what works and doesn’t work in their classes as well. And yes, there’s the possibility that you can fail – which is intended to keep the quality of the CELTA up to a certain, respectable standard.
3. The CELTA grounds you in methodology.
You don’t just learn how to entertain a classroom. You learn how to structure a lesson, how to teach receptive skills, how to promote communication over passive knowledge. You get to see language learning (and teaching) in a whole new way. And that’s just the launch pad for your continued development as a teacher.
But listen, the CELTA doesn’t teach you the English language. It teaches you how to teach. Please understand that you’re going to have to plan and research – even if you’re a native speaker. You owe it to your students to know your stuff. And you owe it to the rest of us TEFL industry professionals to not be a jerk. I have to fight enough stereotypes of clueless English speakers running around the world teaching bogus English classes. And there are plenty of qualified and experienced teachers out there that could have your job. Know the methodology. Do good work.
4. The CELTA is intellectually challenging.
With my foundation in methodology from my CELTA course, I feel confident and motivated to get into engaging conversations about teaching English with my colleagues. I love going to teaching conferences, reading methodology articles, grappling with how technology is changing language learning, and putting together my own training sessions for my coworkers. And as a constantly evolving industry, there’s always something to learn and new ideas to suggest.
5. You learn to be a lazy teacher (in a good way).
With what I learned on the CELTA, I can easily whip up a lesson plan based on anything – a textbook, a news article, a TED talk. You learn how to plan smarter, so you can plan in less time.
Also, crucially, you have an auto-pilot function for bad days. Teaching requires a lot, and there are some days when you have little to give. It could be any reason – you’re sick, you’re struggling with being away from home, you’re going through a tough time personally. Whenever I hit one of these low times, I’m so relieved that I have my CELTA training (and subsequent experience) to lean on. My students will have an engaging and instructive lesson regardless of what is going on with me.
Now, to be fair, I have some caveats. The CELTA may not be for everyone.
What are the biggest concerns about getting a CELTA?
The CELTA is a great foundation for people looking to have a career in TEFL. It will get you in the door at reputable English language schools. However, it’s also an expensive and time-consuming course. So, if you’re just looking for a way to travel for a year with no intention of career in teaching English, and you don’t mind teaching at a cowboy school, a CELTA may not be the most cost-efficient path. It might be better to find a solid alternative TEFL certificate course. Just make sure you do your research, find out where its attendees get jobs, and ensure it has teaching practice.
The other is the reminder that this is just a pre-service course. It’s meant to give you the crash-course basics for teaching English as a foreign language. Even if you get a Pass A on the CELTA, the highest mark, you still have a lot to learn from the experienced teachers who will be your colleagues. Continuing professional development is key, as is surrounding yourself with inquisitive and professional coworkers.
It is focused on teaching adults, and all your teaching practices are with adult learners. So if you’re hoping to teach children, it might not be the most practical choice. (However, to my knowledge there are few stand-alone young learner TESOL courses. Many are extensions that you can take after a ground-level certificate. If you know of any, feel free to mention it in the comments!)
Also, the TESOL industry in the US in general isn’t very lucrative for teachers. I was making a little less than $20/hour at my first job in New York City, and there weren’t a ton of opportunities for advancement. However, with additional experience and study, you can have a sustainable TESOL career in the States.
Think you might get a CELTA? A few parting words…
When deciding where to get a CELTA, there are a few things to consider. One is location. There aren’t many CELTA centers in the States. I got mine at Teaching House New York, under the tutelage of inspiring and highly-capable trainers. Some people choose to get their certificates in countries where they’d like to work. That’s one option, though it’s a bit risky – and typically requires you to pay for accommodation.
The other aspect I’d recommend considering is the trainers themselves. Your trainers will have just as much of an impact on your career as the course itself. If you know of trainers who are knowledgeable, motivating, honest (but gentle) instructors, it might be worthwhile to chase them down. For example, if you have a chance to study with Christina Cipriani, Svitlana Bulkina, or Amir Landa, either at their center CCI English in Tel Aviv or elsewhere, you’ll be learning under stellar trainers.
Teaching English abroad has been an unbelievable opportunity for me. And, amazingly, it’s been a job that doesn’t suck out my soul (I know that doesn’t sound like a glowing recommendation, but it is. I have a very low tolerance for sucky jobs). And because I decided to get a CELTA instead of any random certificate, I’ve been able to capitalize on teaching abroad to the highest degree, getting the best opportunities possible and turning this job into a career – one that will keep me traveling for years.
Have questions about teaching English abroad? Whether or not you should get a CELTA? Ask me anything in the comments, and I’ll do my best to answer! And if you’ve gotten your CELTA, feel free to leave your advice for potential trainees too!
27 Comments
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Lauren
Love this! I’ve been researching the CELTA a ton lately and am officially moving to Bangkok in March to get certified. 🙂 great post!
Amy
Wow, that’s super exciting, Lauren! SEA is a great place to do your CELTA if you want to start teaching in the area. Best of luck! Let me know if you have any questions. 🙂
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Chris
Thanks for the great post. I taught ESL in Korea for a year and feel like needing extra training with adults, so I decided to take CELTA. My problem is I can’t decide where to go for the course. I read many saying that location doesn’t matter. But also I heard it’s better to take in the country where you want to teach. What do you think? Any advice is welcome.
Amy
Hey Chris! The CELTA is standardized around the world, and each course is externally assessed to make sure it’s keeping standards up, so technically where you do it doesn’t matter. There are some benefits of doing it where you want to teach — you start to adjust to the culture, you get to know the classroom culture and how the students work, and you can start building contacts while you’re still training. It’s no guarantee of getting a job straight out of your CELTA (I don’t think any CELTA center offers job placements), but if you’re very confident about where you want to teach, it’s definitely something to consider. Cons: you have to pay for your way out there (as opposed to maybe getting a job to do it for you), you might have to leave the country anyway to get your visa paperwork, and you’ll have to adjust to a new culture while teaching.
I chose to do mine in New York because I was still in the States, could stay rent-free with family, and wasn’t super sure where I wanted to teach afterwards. So that worked great for me, but if I had been 100% sure I wanted to teach in Mexico, I might have considered a CELTA there, for example. So there are multiple factors to consider. Good luck! 🙂
(BTW, I’m thinking of teaching in Korea next!)
Amy
Hi, I have my CELTA interview next week. I currently teach young learners but am looking to teach older learners. Thanks for the post, very useful!
Amy
I’ve never taught young learners (younger than teenagers, at least), but it’s something I’d like to try soon! Good luck with the interview! With enthusiasm and openness, I’m sure you’ll knock it out of the park. 🙂
Monika
Are all CELTA courses treated equally by employers, or are there preferred locations? Is there a bias in the industry? Thanks!
Amy
Hi Monika!
All Cambridge-approved CELTA courses are treated equally and maintained to the same standards. Just an idea of what that means — before opening, a center has to be approved by Cambridge to run the course. Then, *every* course is assessed by an external Cambridge assessor (someone who has nothing to do with the center). They come to the center, observe the course, look through the candidates’ portfolios, chat with the candidates, and then write a report back to Cambridge. They’re checking to make sure that the tutors and center are running the course to the Cambridge standards.
I’ve never come across any bias in the industry, and I would be shocked if there were, because Cambridge is rigorous in making sure the course is standardized. Some courses might be more well-known — just because they’ve been running longer or are at more well known schools — but a CELTA certificate is a CELTA certificate. Hope that helps!
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Manimegkalai
Hy.. I am planning to do CELTA. But I don’t have a bachelor’s degree. Will this narrow my options to teach English abroad?
Amy
Hi there!
Unfortunately, there’s no quick and easy answer to that. In some places yes, in some places no. While the schools themselves may not care, for a lot of countries you need a bachelor’s degree to apply for the visa. I recommend doing some research into the countries you are most interested in going to and seeing what requirements both schools and governments have. ESLcafe.com has a great international jobs board. Just browse there and see what requirements are generally listed.
Good luck!
Amy
Mini Bharanikumar
Hi if I take a Celta training in India Chennai will I get an opportunity to work in Canada or USA…Will this course help me get a visa or work permit..please let me know
Amy
Hi Mini! These countries are difficult to get work visas in anyway. I don’t think a Celta would help you much, to be honest. It’s the same problem for me (an US citizen) trying to work in the EU. The EU has very strict laws about hiring foreigners, so it doesn’t really matter how well qualified I am — it’s unlikely I will get a job in Italy or Poland etc. unless there are entrepreneur or freelance visa options. And even these are difficult to get.
Silvia
Hi Amy, I am not an English native speaker and I am thinking about taking a CELTA course. I have language teaching experience though. I have a question that I consider to be a relevant one: do you think that non-native speakers are discriminated in the job market, even if they hold a CELTA degree? I mean, no matter how good your pronunciation and grammar are, if you are not a native, there are features and subtleties of the language that you just don’t master because you were not raised in that language. Why would employers hire a non-native when they can have natives? I am just afraid of spending money on this course and then being disregarded in favor of a native. Thanks!
Amy
Hi Silvia,
This is such a hot topic right now in TEFL, and you will find a range of people who have had a myriad of different experiences. It’s difficult for me to talk about, but I can say with 100% certainty — it really depends.
Not a satisfying answer at all, I know. I would say the biggest factor is where you want to teach and what kind of institutions are there. Every place where I’ve taught has had its own internal market rules that shape hiring practices, whether they are right or wrong.
For instance, in the EU I’ve found that you need the right to work, independently of the employer. I may be a CELTA-qualified (soon Delta-qualified) native-speaker teacher with five years of experience — but I will struggle to find a school in France, for example, that would be willing to hire me, all because I don’t independently have the right to work there. In Ukraine the local teachers were fluent and exceptionally well-qualified and would be able to give anyone a run for their money in the classroom, but I believe a fair amount of native-speakerism still existed. In Tbilisi I was worried there was a fair amount of native-speakerism, but I recently heard from a reader who I’ve been communicating with that he secured a job at the British Council. And sometimes the market just wants a foreigner. Perhaps local talent hasn’t — as a whole — reached a level of fluency or education that the industry wants. I’ve worked in countries where CELTAs are very expensive (um, it was expensive for me too), making it an almost prohibitive hurdle for local teachers.
That being said– I have known Polish teachers who have taught in Italy and Saudi Arabia, Brazilian teachers who have taught in Ukraine, and Ukrainians who have taught in Vietnam. Do I think the CELTA is a valuable teaching qualification? Yes. Is it a guaranteed key into global job placement? No, not even for ‘native speakers.’ The entire reason I learned about the CELTA is because I wanted to work in Istanbul and every single job advert I saw requested a CELTA, so it all really comes down to knowing what the local market is looking for.
I hope you find that helpful, and I wish you the best of luck!
hajar
hello amy hope you re doing good ! well, i m interested in doing Celta because i aways dream of having a job abroad and move from a country to another, discover new cultures and new people so i think that this certificate may get me in that, well my first qst is that do u agree with what ive said , and second qst is that i chose to do the Celta in germany because it has the cheapest Celta course among all the countries that i would love to do in like chiang mai and china but they re expensive than germany and the cost of living too, i ve never traelled ouside morocco well i am moroccan and i m really still confused about the location what do u advice me thank you so much
Khadija
Hi Amy, I am looking into doing the CELTA course in Dubai UAE. I don’t hold a bachelors degree and I’m not looking to teach abroad. Currently I’m working as a learning support assistant in a secondary school and I wanted to know if it will be worth my time and money doing the celta course or do you suggest I go for TESOL? I’m interested in teaching English as a second language in secondary schools in Dubai. Do you think I’ll be able to do this with only a CELTA qualification?
Amy
Hi Khadija,
Hmm, I’m not sure about all the requirements in Dubai. My suggestion is to start looking at jobs now and see what they require. I scanned some job listings in the UAE previously, and if I remember correctly they wanted a candidate with a Bachelor’s. To be honest, if you have the time and opportunity, I would recommend getting a university degree before a CELTA. But again — I recommend doing some research on the job you want and seeing what employers are actually requesting. Best of luck!
Virginia
Thank you for this great article. How does one find a CELTA teaching facility? I am currently in Cambodia. Thank you!
Amy
Hi Virginia! Cambridge’s website lists all the places where the CELTA is offered: https://www.cambridgeenglish.org/find-a-centre/find-a-teaching-centre/ . However, it may not be the most up-to-date list, as some centers decide on a year-by-year basis when they will offer the course. You can also check here: https://www.celtadelta.com/ .
I’m not sure if there are any in Cambodia, but you can definitely find CELTA-offering centers in Thailand and Vietnam.
Summaya Syed
Hi Amy,
I am not a native speaker and I want to do my CELTA course. I have been teaching English since past 15 years in my country. I have taught grade 7 and grade 8. Would the course help me further in my professional career? Is CELTA helpful for ecperienced teachets too? Would that help me teaching the same level students?
I have searched the jobs posted in different countries for TESOL teachers but they mostly require native speakers, since I am not a native speaket so doing the course would help me seek the job abroad?
Amy
Hi Summaya,
The CELTA is definitely useful for experienced teachers, but to be honest it’s not geared towards primary/secondary educational contexts. If you want to stay within the school system, I’m not sure a CELTA is really the best use of your time/money. Even though it’s geared towards teaching adults, it can definitely help you get a job teaching children or teens — but typically in language centers (like after-school classes) or pre-primary/secondary years.
When it comes to the native speaker/non native speaker question, there are a lot of factors that can influence your ability to get a job abroad. Some times, it’s just a legal thing. Like in China, visas are only available to citizens of certain countries (I think not even South Africans are included). In other areas, the local population has a lot of experienced, qualified teachers, so it’s more difficult for foreigners in general to get a job. For instance, it would be really tough for me to get a job in Switzerland. There is a lot of discrimination, so if a job advert says “native speaker” instead of “native level speaker,” then I would be wary of that employer. However, if an advert says “native level speaker” it demonstrates they are willing to hire a diverse team. While there is a lot of frustration from non native teachers about getting jobs abroad, I’ve also known lots of ‘non native’ speakers who have taught abroad — Polish teachers in Italy, Ukrainian teachers in Vietnam, Turkish teachers in Georgia.
But for your situation, I think the first thing to consider is if you want to keep teaching in primary/secondary education. If the answer is yes, I would say put your efforts towards another qualification.
Best of luck!
Mahmud Chowdhury
I’m living in Bangladesh. I’m a university graduate and working as a lecturer. Now I want to do Celta but where should I do it?