10 Reasons Why International TEFL Academy Offers the Best TEFL Certification in 2027

International TEFL Academy (ITA) offers accredited TEFL certification courses with a live practicum, university-level instructors, and offers lifetime job search guidance with an expert-led Student Affairs team. Here are 10 reasons students rank it among the best TEFL courses, and how to judge any provider yourself.

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1. The "Total Experience" Approach to TEFL Certification & Teaching English Abroad 

There's more to achieving your TEFL Certification than picking the quickest and lowest cost course. 

Our take? We believe helping our students achieve their goals of teaching English abroad and online requires more than just providing great TEFL certification courses. We aren't a diploma mill. If you're looking to invest in a TEFL certification school that will provide you with the training, guidance, and resources you need to successfully reach your goals for teaching English abroad and teaching English online, you’ve come to the right place. Here are the four main pillars of our holistic approach:

1. Pre-Enrollment Guidance & Comprehensive Information: ITA provides aspiring English teachers with one-on-one support from experienced Admissions Advisors, all of whom have taught and lived abroad. You’ll also gain access to extensive research resources covering certification paths, hiring markets, and what to expect when teaching English worldwide. Our goal is to ensure you feel informed and confident, ready to pursue your teaching goals before you enroll.
   
   
2. TEFL Certification Courses: Any top TEFL school must offer high-quality, accredited courses designed to equip students with the necessary skills, confidence, and a recognized and accredited qualification to ensure you can successfully gain employment worldwide.
   
   
3. Job Search Guidance: Getting an English teaching job in Peru is not the same as in Japan, and international job markets can be treacherous to navigate, no matter how well-trained you are. From ITA, you will receive lifetime, personalized guidance from professional experts to help you successfully navigate international job markets and get a great teaching job abroad.
   
   
4. Alumni Community & Engagement: ITA provides an international network to facilitate conversations, engagement, and mutual support among all students and graduates.

The vast majority of other TEFL schools rarely deliver on more than one or two of these points.  Frankly, that's why most of them offer much cheaper courses as they have cut some corners.

Everyone on the ITA team, from our Admissions Advisors to our Student Affairs team and TEFL class instructors, has lived and traveled overseas extensively. We want YOU to have a life-changing experience getting TEFL certified and teaching English overseas, just like we all did.

The ITA Commitment:

To provide our students with the training and guidance that will enable them to travel the world while teaching English and provide a quality educational experience abroad as trained English teachers.

Learn more about International TEFL Academy and who we are by reading our Mission Statement.

2. A Commitment to Top Quality Training & Service

ITA was founded on the premise that language education offers English speakers from all backgrounds the opportunity of a lifetime to experience other cultures and build relationships abroad while providing a worthy service to others. We are committed to complete transparency and integrity in representing who we are, what we do, and what we stand for.

We Believe: 

• All students have a fundamental right to receive instruction from a trained professional teacher.
• All teachers have a responsibility to their students to provide them with the best possible educational experience, which requires professional-level training.
• English language education enables millions of global citizens to enhance their lives by learning English, and makes our world a better place by promoting tolerance and mutual understanding through cultural exchange.
• Teaching English as a Foreign Language provides English speakers from all walks of life with one of the greatest vehicles and most realistic opportunities to live an extraordinary life abroad.

As an ITA student and graduate, we understand that students around the globe will depend on you to receive the training they need and deserve. We intend to provide you with the quality training you need to ensure that happens.

3. Alumni Community, Networking & Support

While many providers showcase their graduation and student totals, not many can give you access to that community as a networking resource. 

Our 50,000+ graduates are the heart and soul of ITA. You join the International TEFL Academy family the day you enroll in your TEFL class! Your time with ITA does not end when you complete your course, and our goal is to create and nurture traveling and teaching communities for all ITA students & graduates.

Here are Some of Our Top Alumni Resources:

- Country-Specific Facebook Groups: If you don’t know anyone who has taught English overseas or online, don’t worry; you’re going to have many opportunities to connect with ITA and fellow alumni! These groups are the best for sharing travel tips, making new friends, asking questions to fellow alumni, finding roommates, and much more.

- ITA’s Instagram (@IntTEFLAcademy) and TikTok (@intteflacademy): If you’re looking for some serious travel inspiration and a glimpse into what it’s really like teaching and living overseas, then follow us on Instagram and TikTok! Along with top tips, we feature day-in-the-life videos from our alumni all over the world so you can see this adventure through the eyes of an ITA graduate.

- ITA’s Alumni Video Library: We have hundreds of videos from our alumni all over the world!

- Alumni Stories: Check out hundreds of articles, Q&As, and videos from ITA grads teaching in more than 60 countries worldwide. 

4. Job Search Guidance That Serves Your Needs

At the end of the day, getting a TEFL certification should be a pathway to a new job and career. However, doing an ESL job seach on your own can be daunting, tedious, and time-consuming. 

At International TEFL Academy, we want our students to not only gain employment, but feel confident they have assistance no matter their path. Whether you take our Online TEFL class or an In-Person TEFL Class, all ITA students and graduates receive lifetime job search guidance. We do not just email you job boards and general information and wish you the best. You can also use it whenever you wish, from right after your course to years later if you decide to wait or come back after an ESL teaching hiatus. 

We have an experienced team of full-time Student Affairs Advisors who guide and assist our graduates in finding paid work teaching English overseas or online. Every ITA graduate has access to Student Affairs advisor who will work with you one-on-one throughout your job search and save you time. Your job search advisor will assist you with everything from creating your resume/CV and cover letter to coaching you on the interview process and helping you evaluate job offers and contracts.

Highlights of ITA’s Job Search Guidance:

- The ITA Alumni Corner: This dedicated alumni platform offers a space for our students, past and present, to gain valuable insights and stay informed about the latest job opportunities, visa procedures, international job boards, and more in the world of teaching English abroad. Featuring in-depth country profiles and resource pages, this is the only TEFL resource of its kind. 

- ESL Worldwide School Directory: We will send you a directory of tens of thousands of schools worldwide, broken down by country & city that you can contact directly regarding employment opportunities. We will also highlight our top preferred employers!

- Job Search Guidance For Life: Maybe you plan on teaching English abroad for 1 year and coming home to teach English online. Perhaps you want to country-hop from South Korea to Spain to Costa Rica. Well, we’ve got your back throughout your entire ESL teaching career! If you ever need us, don’t hesitate to get in touch, and we’re always ready to help you. 

- Guaranteed Job Placement Programs in Asia & Costa Rica: For those willing to invest extra for additional levels of support and guarantee a high-quality English teaching job in Japan, South Korea, Vietnam, Thailand, Cambodia, or Costa Rica, ITA offers our Guaranteed Job Placement Programs for Teaching English. 

Check out a comprehensive overview of Job Search Guidance at International TEFL Academy.

5. Comprehensive Pre-Enrollment Guidance From Expert Admissions Advisors

There can be a lot of confusion around the TEFL industry and what a TEFL certification entails, such as that it immediately leads to jobs or you can teach wherever you dream of going. Enrolling without talking to anyone limits your ability to know what exactly you're agreeing to. 

It’s our policy and belief that every person who wishes to teach English abroad or online must speak with an Admissions Advisor when enrolling in any of our TEFL classes. Why? Because we want to ensure that every single one of our students is fully informed about what their realistic opportunities will be for teaching English abroad and online. We also want to ensure everyone understands how the TEFL certification process works before committing time and money to enroll in a course at our academy.

Our highly trained Admissions Advisors have all lived, worked, traveled, and taught abroad. They have experienced firsthand the challenges and rewards of living & teaching English abroad.

All ITA staff members receive extensive, ongoing training to keep up with the latest developments relating to teaching abroad. Your Admissions Advisor is available to discuss all aspects of teaching abroad, including hiring & visa procedures, salaries, benefits, top country options, and much more!

• Meet our team of expert Admissions Advisors here
• 8 Ways Speaking with an International TEFL Academy Advisor Can Help You Achieve Your Goal of Teaching English Abroad

6. TEFL Instruction Provided by University-Level Instructors

Especially if you are coming into this field without any teaching experience, you want to make sure you gain expert-level guidance in your TEFL training. 

It's extremely important to us that courses are run by highly qualified university-level instructors provide instruction with extensive experience teaching English as a foreign language. All our TEFL course instructors must meet or exceed the following standards: 

• Hold a Master's in Education or TESOL (Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages) or higher; a high percentage of instructors will also hold a PhD.
• Have at least one year of overseas teaching experience. Professors will share their personal experiences and insights with their students.
• Hold professional experience in online education, including the use of advanced platforms and applications such as Moodle and WebEx.

Read more: Meet our Instructors

7. A Diverse Offering of Accredited TEFL Course Options

The TEFL field includes teachers with various backgrounds, situations, and who have differing ideas on how they want to teach overseas and online and get certified. 

Understanding this, International TEFL Academy offers internationally accredited TEFL / TESOL certification courses in 20+ locations around the world, in addition to the state-of-the-art 170-Hour Online TEFL Certification. In Spain and Italy, we also offer student visa programs in Barcelona, Madrid, and Rome. 

We are proud that all of our courses meet or exceed professional international standards:

• International accreditation from leading independent bodies in the field, including a Level 5 Ofqual rating through TQUK, the College of Teachers, and others.
• Requirement of at least 100 hours of academic work and 6-20 hours of live practice teaching, observation, and/or tutoring.
• Highly qualified university-level professors provide instruction with extensive experience teaching English as a foreign language.
• Limited class sizes to ensure individual attention from instructors and an interactive, hands-on learning environment.

Each course is designed to provide students with the skills and confidence to become professional English teachers abroad. The quality and accreditation of our courses enable our students to successfully gain employment in schools and language institutes around the world.

Quality Assurance

ITA issues its awards through TQUK, one of the leading accrediting bodies for TEFL certification in the world, which is sanctioned & recognized by the British Government. The certification is lifetime and qualifies our graduates to work in any country with an English teaching market worldwide.

Read more: Accreditations for TEFL

8. Continuing Education Opportunities

Embracing the "forever a student"mentality, you should be able to further hone your skills as an ESL teacher and have the assurance to specialize in a niche part of the field. 

With this in mind,  International TEFL Academy offers the chance to enhance your teaching skill set and resume by taking additional Advanced TEFL Specialty classes.

Your standard Online or In-Person TEFL course is a great foundation and first step to becoming a successful English teacher. These specialty classes are a means to boost your confidence and ultimately give you a competitive edge over other job applicants.

ITA's Specialty Courses:

• Teaching English Online
• Teaching Business English
• Teaching English to Young Learners
• Fundamentals of English Grammar
• Tutoring English
• Teaching Test Prep Skills
• Digital Nomad Essentials 

9. TEFL Certification Classes are Award-Winning and Internationally Recognized

If you're going to invest your time, money, and energy into getting TEFL certified and moving to a foreign country to teach English abroad, you want to get a certification from an institution that is respected and recognized by international employers. 

Over the past decade, ITA has developed a reputation as the world leader in TEFL certification for teaching English abroad. Many schools and teaching programs specifically approach us asking to hire our students because they know from experience that ITA graduates are well-trained and prepared. 

 ITA staff, students, and alumni are proud that ITA has also received multiple awards & widespread recognition as one of the best TEFL schools in the world for offering TEFL certification for teaching English abroad & teaching English online.

First in 2018, and then yearly since 2021 (six years in a row!),  ITA has won the People's Choice Award for Best International Education Organization at the GoAbroad Awards for Innovation in Meaningful Travel.

Since the beginning of 2019, ITA has also been named the #1 TEFL school by GoAbroad.com and GoOverseas.com across a range of award categories for TEFL certification, including #1 Best Online TEFL Course by GoAbroad.com. ITA's Online TEFL Class also received recognition as the top-ranked Online TEFL class in several categories of the GoOverseas.com Community Choice Awards for TEFL Certification as well.

In addition, the International TEFL Academy has an A+ rating from the Better Business Bureau (BBB). 

To learn more and to check out press mentions, please read International TEFL Academy's Awards & Recognition page.

10. Read the Reviews

While you are doing your research on TEFL providers and who to chose, it is a great idea to take a look at the experience of other individuals.

We can talk up our pillars and goals, but the reviews of ITA Alumni and course participants are just as important. We review student surveys regularly and look to outside feedback to help make International TEFL Academy even better for the next student. 

Here's what one ITA graduate, Madeleine, stated on GoOverseas.com:

"I felt like I learned so much in a month while also having so much fun the whole time, and it made me really excited to teach! By the end of it, I felt prepared to confidently step into any classroom, knowing I had the tools to plan and teach a good English lesson to any level or age. The ITA tools helped me find a job right after graduating from the course, and I am planning on using them in many more places in the future! I know it’s a bit more expensive than some other TEFL programs out there, but in my opinion, it is totally worth it."

Check out the following links to read more than 4,000 candid reviews of ITA from actual students and graduates on external 3rd-party websites:

• GoAbroad.com Reviews | 4.7 rating (out of 5)  - 3,800+ reviews
• GoOverseas.com Reviews | 4.81 rating (out of 5) - 370+ reviews
• Google Reviews | 4.6 rating (out of 5) - 340+ reviews
• Facebook Reviews | 92% recommend - 60+ reviews

Frequently Asked Questions About ITA

Are International TEFL Academy TEFL courses as good as a CELTA?

CELTA is a premier "gold standard" of TEFL training provided specifically by Cambridge University. International TEFL Academy's flagship 170-hour Online TEFL Course has the equivalent Level 5 Ofqual rating as CELTA courses, and both enjoy worldwide reputations for excellence in training. Being "as good" is dependent on what you want out of your TEFL career. While CELTA is great for those who want to teach adults specifically or in a university setting, ITA courses are more flexible, and include lifetime job search guidance for all students and graduates, which is not the case for all CELTA Courses.

What are the requirements to enroll with International TEFL Academy?

• A minimum of a High School Diploma or GED;
• Fluent and proficient English skills;
• Non-native speakers will be required to write a brief essay and interview over the phone to verify their English skills prior to enrollment.
• Ability to complete a university-level course that incorporates extensive reading, homework, papers, quizzes, tests, lesson plans, and student teaching/observation (practicum). All work is graded, and each student must pass the class and fulfill the practicum requirement to earn their certification.
• Those without a 4-year degree can enroll in our Online TEFL Course.
• Anyone 18 years old and above. Are you 18 and under? You will need to submit a young teacher's essay and speak to an admissions advisor before enrolling.
• Requirements and admissions policies for Onsite TEFL Courses vary from course to course, and non-native English speakers or native speakers without a four-year degree will be considered on a case-by-case basis and may be required to write an essay and/or interview. 

Why is ITA more expensive than other TEFL courses?

With ITA's holistic approach to TEFL certification, you receive more than just a TEFL course. The higher cost of an ITA TEFL Course covers comprehensive enrollment guidance from an expert advisor, Level 5, government-regulated accreditation, instruction from university-level trainers, mandatory live practice teaching, exclusive access to a 50K-strong alumni community, and lifetime job search guidance, guaranteeing professional success and advising that cheap courses cannot offer.

Read More: International TEFL Academy vs TEFL.org: What You Need to Know

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As of Oct 14, 2026
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