Program Reviews

I already had a job as a mandarin teacher. I took a TEFL, which many see only as an English teaching qualification, as I wanted to be a better language teacher in both Mandarin and in English.

When I met the trainers at Vantage, they told me how their ESA teaching methodology can be applied to any language and that they had already trained Mandarin, French and Spanish language instructors who were now teaching to great success.

The course was very well structured with teaching theories, methodologies, and teaching approaches But to really learn to teach using the communicative approach, we actually had to teach in front of real non-English speaking students.

I wasn’t too confident at first to stand in front of a live class and teach in a language that was not my own. My first teaching lesson was (I think) OK, but not a good as I wanted. However, the professional feedback I got from Vantage really jump started me in my second session—and I got subsequently better with each of the observed classes I taught.

I’m now completely confident. I can design a professional, effective lesson plan and successfully deliver a class—not just in my native Mandarin, but also in English.

I highly recommend Vantage. These guys are professional-class trainers and they gave me the foundation to be a professional language teacher.

I took Vantage’s Combined Course where I did the 20 unit course book online. I then showed up at the Bangkok training center to do my observed teaching practices. The trainers invited me to sit in on any of the In-Class course sessions I wanted. I ended up sitting on the whole course again. Online I just read the book, but attending a class with a lead trainer that has some 25 years of experience is a whole different story. He added a lot of insight that went well beyond the course book.

Vantage also employs a workshop style to their training that facilities a lot of discussion and role-playing. And they’ve added superb supplementary materials that they’ve developed that adds another dimension to the course.

It was my six observed teaching practices where that knowledge turned into skills I could use in a classroom. After each teaching session, I first had to reflect on what I did and after only after that did I then get a private consultation on what went well (more than I thought) and what they wanted to see in my next time in the classroom.

The bottom line is that I’m now totally confident to teach. I’d like to apply my new teaching skills to my nursing background and teach medical English to hospital staff.

I chose this course as I believed that teaching in a live classroom was essential for developing effective and successful teaching skills. I also had a good friend who took the course about a year earlier and he couldn’t say enough good things about it.

Vantage’s training team was incredible. The lead teacher was able to answer every ‘teacher’ question I asked. So I ended up with additional answers that I wouldn’t have known if I had done an online-only class.

Vantage advertise their TEFL is given in a workshop style (as opposed to a lecture format) and I see how I really benefited from all the discussion and feedback I got—training that went well beyond the material in the course book.

They also have their own dedicated “Jobs Coach.” I sat with him and revitalised my old resume into what he called a professional Power Resume. Something must have worked as I got multiple job offers within days of finishing the course.

What really impressed me about Vantage was their strong support in landing me a teaching position and all the visa and pre-course information that was given to me.

If you want to teach professionally, this is the training team you should call. I’m really glad these guys ended up as my first choice.

In researching for the best TEFL courses in Bangkok, I discovered that there was really only one choice. And, after I made my short list, I learned that Vantage had just won the 2018 an award as the best overall TEFL program in the world.

The lead trainer taught in a workshop style so there’s lots of discussion and personal attention given. He was super knowledgeable about the different concepts of the English and could answer any question we put to him.
Vantage teaches what they call the ‘communicative approach’ to teaching a language. I was later to learn that this method is now be taught to thousands of Thai English teachers in colleges around Thailand.

In our observed practice teaching sessions, I first learned how to engage the students as a way of introducing a particular language topic for that class.

This program has its own Jobs Coach who will sit with you and create an individual Power Resume. He also coached us on how to be effective in interviews. Through their partner network of schools, I already scheduled my first interviews before I even graduated.

I was guided and encouraged each step of the way of becoming a truly professional teacher. Their quality of Vantage’s training far exceeded even my high expectations. You won’t be left unattended with these guys—they do whatever it takes to ensure you will succeed.

I chose this course as I believed that teaching in a live classroom was essential for developing effective and successful teaching skills. I also had a good friend who took the course about a year earlier and he couldn’t say enough good things about it.

Vantage’s training team was incredible. The lead teacher was able to answer every ‘teacher’ question I asked. So I ended up with additional answers that I wouldn’t have known if I had done an online-only class.

Vantage advertise their TEFL is given in a workshop style (as opposed to a lecture format) and I see how I really benefited from all the discussion and feedback I got—training that went well beyond the material in the course book.

They also have their own dedicated “Jobs Coach.” I sat with him and revitalised my old resume into what he called a professional Power Resume. Something must have worked as I got multiple job offers within days of finishing the course.

What really impressed me about Vantage was their strong support in landing me a teaching position and all the visa and pre-course information that was given to me.

If you want to teach professionally, this is the training team you should call. I’m really glad these guys ended up as my first choice.

I had accepted a position teaching chemistry in a Thai high school and the school that hired me—as I had no teaching experience—wanted me to do a TEFL certification course beforehand. They recommended Vantage as they had a number of teachers who were trained there and they were all subsequently highly successful in their client schools.
As advertised, this TEFL course was intensive. Having said that, the lead trainer made it interesting and fun and the time just flew by.

We were introduced to the communicative approach to language teaching and I soon was eliciting responses and praising my students constantly, creating more of a workshop environment instead of a lecture type classroom.

This part of the course was the observed teaching practices where I learned from hands-on experience. Each lesson was on a different language topic and my classes varied from small groups of 8 or so to a large class of 52, which help round me into a more professional teacher who’s versatile in any classroom.

But before I even stepped into a classroom, I first learned how to formulate detailed lesson plans each covering a specific language topic. Each plan was first evaluated by the lead trainer where I had to show my teaching aims, learner objectives, and anticipated problems with the actions to remedy them.

I found myself improving with every practice class—both from the expert feedback I got, but also my self-evaluations. Over time, this helped me spot problems myself. That allowed me to think about what I could improve first, leading to quicker responses which resulted in a more improved teacher for the next session.

Vantage also includes a foreign language experience, where the trainer taught the cultural norms of Thailand and the different expectations and teaching techniques that are used compared to western classrooms. He also taught some lessons on Thai language which demonstrated difficulties in language learning as we ‘sat on the other side of the desk’ and got a valuable perspective of what a language learner is going through.

The bottom line is that I’m now ready to teach! I’m more than confident I can teach a successful class!

Hats off to the training team at Vantage! I read a number of their reviews before I enrolled and I really think that’s it’s their high level of training expertise backed by decades of experience that’s the secret in their sauce.

I came into this program seeking a career change from a professional athlete to a qualified teacher.

The training I got was second to none. Not only was the curriculum great and I learned a lot of theory and techniques, but it was also the combination of the observed practice teaching sessions where my newly gained knowledge became teaching skills I could use in a classroom. We started off learning how to complete full lessons plans for which is essential in providing you with a plan of action in the six hours of student teaching in an actual classroom.

Vantage cares about you as an individual, as well not just as a body to fill seats in the course. They want you to succeed. They run small class sizes so the personal attention I got started on day one and went right through to graduation.

Overall I give this school 5 stars thank you very much for a memorable and enjoyable learning experience. I highly recommend this school to anyone who is thinking about a career in education.

As I was working full time, I couldn’t afford the full 4 weeks of a standard In-Class course at Vantage full time. So I opted for their Combined Class, where I did the course book online and then came to Bangkok for a fortnight to do my observed practice teaching sessions.

I worked my way through the 20 modules over about a 7 week period. I had no difficulty doing the work online and the programme was well organized and everything worked effectively. I also got support from an online tutor and I received prompt replies within a day or so.

After I completed the online portion, I came to Bangkok for my practicum where I taught six classes over two weeks. I first thought it would be pretty easy to do that over two weeks but I soon realized that the formulation of lesson plans—and many revisions—did take significantly more time than I originally planned.

The feedback I got from Vantage’s trainers was focused, highly targeted and very useful. Even though I was an experienced educator, I was relatively new to teaching non-English speaking students and I found the communicative approach I was now using highly effective. I saw myself getting better at it with each practice session. We also had to observe the trainers do their ‘expert demonstration” session as well as other trainees practice classes and learn from their experiences as part of our overall practicum experience.

I have thoroughly enjoyed doing my TEFL at Vantage and I would recommend these guys without hesitation. They go the extra mile to ensure you come out ready to teach

Vantage was great!

The observed teaching practices were both a lot of fun and an incredible learning experience. This is where I really acquired my new teaching skills. I found myself getting better with every practice session aide by the expert advice provided by the course instructors. After every assessment, I was always given a new challenge work in my next observed class. It was here that my teaching knowledge from the course book morphed into teaching skills.

I should back up a bit here. Before I even step into a classroom I first learned how to formulate a viable lesson plan so I could successfully teach to non-English speaking students. That meant I had to be aware of my student’s English levels. Vantage showed me how to do this. These guys are also an authorized Cambridge exam centre so teach about testing and how to measure language proficiency something I believe other TEFL centers don’t even cover.

As hard as this was in the beginning, with each succeeding lesson plan I seem to get better and faster so that by the course’s end I pretty much had this under control.

A truly great class with awesome instructors. You can’t go wrong with these guys.

I was quite worried about getting a job as an English teacher, even though I’m proficient, I’m a non-native English speaker. I’ve heard too many stories about how non-native speakers need not apply!

Vantage quickly put me at ease. They have their own dedicated jobs coach. Not only did the help me in creating a Power Resume, but I was also coached on interviewing techniques and specifically how to handle the NNES objection. They also reached into their network and I secured an interview and hired with a short time after graduation. The good news got better as this school isn’t far from my home.

The entire Vantage training team is highly professional. Their expertise was more than helpful in turning my initial hesitation about teaching English into a budding self-confidence.

I lot of this was developed ‘on stage’ in a real classroom. I had 7 hours of observed teaching to non-English speaking students. The feedback I got after each teaching session was crucial in building my confidence so I could live to teach another day.
My classroom experience was a huge component in the development of my teaching skills

I can’t say enough about my experience at Vantage. If you’re looking to learn how to teach at a highly successful level, you’ve found the right place.