Vantage Siam (Vantage TEFL Certification)

I signed up for the Virtual Vantage course since I was not able to be in Thailand due to coronavirus restrictions. As I decided to start teaching online first—this course provided a strong foundation for online instruction—I went ahead and got certified now rather than wait for the world to open up.
The Virtual Vantage course is 100% online and it’s divided into two parts: theory and practice teaching.
The theory aspect of the course is delivered by Vantage’s partner iTTT which is a big name in the TEFL industry. The course book is 20 units which are all clear and relevant and quite interesting. Here I learnt a lot of theory and the information in these units taught me how to create my own lessons and to teach with the proper methodology. You have 6 months to finish the course book. I did it without any pressure at my own pace in about 3 months.
The online course gave me the flexibility to learn new teaching methods while I was still able to do my daily obligations. It was also really great that many resources were provided that I used to create lessons. For a new teacher, this was more than appreciated.
The observed teaching practice part of the course was delivered by Vantage. I really liked my practicum where I taught 6 classes each one on a different language point.
Before I even taught a class, I submitted all my lesson plans to Vantage’s trainers in advance and I got detail feedback on each one.
Then I was ready to try my hand at teaching. I had the opportunity to do 1 to 1 lesson as well as group classes. Vantage trainers Kevin and Chris were amazing, and they helped me and advised me every stage of the way from creating the lesson to delivering the lesson to a class.
After each class, they gave me detailed feedback which help me to improve my performance for the next lesson. I gained more confidence in myself and they shattered any doubts that I had.
I believe this part of the course was extremely beneficial. It’s important because you get to experience what it feels like to be in front of a group of students and you can see firsthand how your lesson plan actually worked. Again, this experience gave me more confidence and my new teaching skills will definitely be an asset whenever and to whomever I end up teaching.
Lastly, I was pleasantly surprised that not only Vantage guide you throughout the whole teaching training course, but they also provide valuable job support. I developed my own Power Resume with their help and got valuable advice in job hunting. This clearly show that Vantage really care about its students.
If you’re serious about starting a new career in teaching, these are the people to talk to.

Vantage’s In-Class TEFL is intensive and challenging, but I was always learning and eager to attend class each day.

Their trainers — Kevin, Chris and Ryan are topnotch coaches. More importantly, they are proper professionals driven to make you achieve to the best of your ability.

Lead trainer Chris is highly focused, and every class is well-prepared. Disciplined and deliberate, he makes a wealth of TELF material easy to understand and use.

The foreign language component is a great introduction to Thai culture and language in a way that is meaningful and relevant — particularly the do’s and don’ts for foreign teachers in a Thai school.

Kevin is Vantage’s Jobs Coach. He sat with me as we crafted my own individual Power Resume. He worked with me on interviewing skills and how to handle objections that could come up in meeting with a school.

Vantage’s TEFL service doesn’t end with the course. Having just completed the course, I’m now working with them in researching the best job opportunities that match my requirements and then securing interviews.

Vantage is ideal for those seeking a career move into education. They gave me not only the knowledge and skills I need to be a good teacher, but also the confidence to be an effective one.

My observed practice teaching included a range of students — including college students and very young learners. The feedback I got from the trainers after each session was invaluable in making me a better teacher after each class.

I came into this course unsure of my ability to teach, but came out confident I can teach anyone, anywhere.

I highly recommend Vantage. These are the people to work with for anyone considering a career in the classroom.

I completed the Hybrid or Combined Course, where I did the coursebook online, and then I did my observed teaching practices (OTPs) to real students in live classrooms.

The online course is organized into 20 units—you have to complete a test at the end of each unit to show you have mastered the content in order to move on.

For me, the grammar related units proved to be the more difficult, so I spent extra time on those sections relearning what I studied years ago in grade school. I then completed the Phase One’s summative essay (500 to 1,000 words).

Phase Two are the OTPs. The in-class teaching practices were great! The English proficiency level and ages of the students were shared with me in order to prepare my lesson plans. I got immediate assistance on my lesson planning, and I felt comfortable and ready to teach the class.

After each teaching session, I first did a self-evaluation using Vantage’s form to guide me in that process. Then I got invaluable feedback from their trainer’s ‘observation’ of my classes. I felt I really grew as a teacher during the OTP phase two.

Vantage were great in their job services as well. I was placed immediately with a prestigious school in Bangkok. I left my old job in the hospitality field on a Friday and I was a brand new teacher the next Monday!

Their partners also sorted out my visa problems as my old visa was converted over to my new school. No need to leave Thailand to get a new visa which is problematic during this coronavirus crisis. Vantage really offered the full service package.

So far, I’m really enjoying my new career as a teacher. Vantage will also share with you a lot of content on lesson planning, potential activities, tips and tricks—all that you can use in your future teaching career.

I highly recommend this TEFL course for anyone who wants to make a career change into education.

I arrived to Thailand a week or so before the Kingdom essentially shut down its borders. After some five months or so having a great time hanging out at the beach, I began to think about how I could reinvent my life. My career in the entertainment business had been pretty much wiped out overnight—at least for the foreseeable future.

Teaching English seemed like a great choice given the unstable demand for teachers and the face that I was a native English speaker. While I had no real classroom know-how, I wondered how my voice training and experience as a professional singer would make me a good language teacher.

The single best move I made was to discover the Vantage TEFL teaching course in Bangkok. It was a life-changing decision.

The four-week course of intensive training reigniting my life again. Their Lead Trainer has decades of experience and is one of the finest English language teachers in Thailand. He doesn’t lecture and instead uses a workshop style that always engages his trainees. A key strength is that he instructs with uncompromising attention to detail.

It was the observed teaching sessions that made this course so special. Theory and grammar is all very useful—indeed essential—but Vantage will also show you how to use grammar in context of teaching a language topic and not in isolation that is the hallmark of traditional language teaching.

We taught real-life lessons in schools, to students of various ages and abilities, and it was here that the knowledge we got from our course book was transformed into viable teaching skills we’ll need to be successful in the classroom.
I also got to work one-on-one with Vantage’s Jobs Coach. He help me with all my future career questions. His guidance in job searches, resume writing, and interview techniques was of great value.

His ‘Power Resume’ is as advertised—a highly effective marketing brochure that sparked an interest in a product—me! I had a job offer even before I graduated! And I was getting offers to interview to everyone I contacted.

This is a five-star course which gave me a whole new lease of life. Doing my TEFL at Vantage was one of the best decisions I’ve ever made.

Postscript update: In the two weeks since graduation, I’ve applied for five jobs and I got offered for all five positions.

Vantage’s Power Resumes really work! Indeed at a couple of interviews they mentioned how professional my job documentation was some of the best they’ve seen.

I’ve accepted a job as the Head of Music at a prestigious Bangkok school where I will be teaching theory & appreciation in English. Things couldn’t be rosier.

I’m a Canadian expat who has lived in Thailand for 30 some years. Covid dramatically affected my business in the hospitality industry, so I needed another income source and I looked at teaching English as a variable possibility. But I had never taught before and really didn’t even know how to get started until I found Vantage.

Vantage TEFL, with Chris and Kevin, is without doubt an invaluable asset that I would highly recommend.

In just four weeks, I learned from 2 professionals with a wealth of experience, what it takes to create and deliver a successful class. In effect, to become a “good” teacher.
I gained confidence with each practice lesson I taught, and the feedback I got guided and directed me to comfortable and confident with each subsequent class.

I’ve been taught methodologies how to teach that makes it engaging and fun for both the student and teacher. More importantly, it enabled my students to use English to speak in a second language.

I now have the confidence to teach anyone, anywhere.

The course has now ended, but the help does not. Kevin caters to what age, level, school, you might like to teach and guide you to several opportunities of interest.

If you need to start a new career as I did, these are the guys to be talking to.