Program Reviews

The staff was very nice and helped me a lot to feel comfortable and to get to know the area. The teacher was really good and the lessons helped me improve my Spanish very quickly. Although I only took three weeks of classes, I felt like it was a very rewarding experience. First, I had one to one lessons, but later, anoter student joined us and the three of us talked a lot, which was really important for me. The service of Maximo was amazing, the Wifi was very good, I got coffee and water for free and I met a lot of amazing, nice people, which was really helpful considering I did not know anyone when I arrived. Also, I loved the extracurricular activities like cooking classes! I wished I could have continued taking classes, but for a longer period of time, I could not afford the costs. Nevertheless, I had an amazing experience with Maximo.

So I waited a whole month before writing my review- I wanted to come down from the euphoria and whirlwind that this course has brought into my mind. You might be reading this first sentence thinking no way it could be true. But let me start off by telling you a little about myself- I’m 29; have a good, well paying job in finance; and l live in Los Angeles- so if I ever saw myself as an outsider I’d probably think “she’s got it pretty made.” But as an insider of my life- my job burns me out, I’m almost 30 and I don’t enjoy what I do nor do I wake up everyday excited to walk into an office where everyone is out for themselves and will conquer all to get to the top. That’s not my personality and the exhaustion from being at war with the attempt to survive each passing day has caused me to think of “what’s next?” Quite frankly I didn’t know what’s next- so I took a three month sabbatical, traveled with my sister, visited my parents and decided to try something new- something completely outside of my expertise- teaching. I’ve always loved Latin America (obviously you have the food, but also the culture, the people, the music, the happiness I’ve know Every Latino to possess, even when they are faced with some of the most unimaginable hardships) I love talking, and I enjoy helping people and meeting new people. So I thought- why not try teaching in Costa Rica, who knows I just might love it. Day one in the classroom Audra enters, all 12 of us these doe eyed students looking at each other unsure of who this looney is that had just entered the room. She was a wrecking ball- full of energy from the minute her little red scooter pulled in till the rains came and her little red scooter left. Over a four week period she has given us a look into how she had good things going her way and she left it all to explore herself and the world that lays in front of each of us. Going into this I did not know I was a teacher at heart- but from the first day I stood in front of that classroom teaching a “HowTo - 20 minute mini lesson” she helped shaped me and bring my natural Goofyness out. Audra is an inspiration as a teacher as she wants you to feel the pizzazz that comes with standing up in front of a room of limited English speakers and talking. She will goof off and let you see that it’s okay to eff up, or to look like a fool and not always have perfect teaching days. But for each of those moments where you feel you did terrible, shell lift you up by finding something good in you. That’s not to say she’s an easy teacher/grader. Oh no, you’ll want to toss her into the floods outside on numerous occasions- but it’s so worth it. The experience I had at Maximo Nivel has brought me 12 amazing new friends, amazing new mentors as I embark on a frightening yet exciting career change, and numerous lifelong friends across Costa Rica. I so very highly recommend this course for those of you who are in my shoes, or those of you deciding between courses- this is it, it’s the one that will change your views.

Maximo Nivel has an awesome program in San Jose where you can teach English to refugees at Fundacion Mujer. I had a great time. My students were awesome and I gained teaching experience. I started the volunteer program in the beginning of August. My third day into it, I learned that I loved teaching English and I decided to get my TEFL certification through Maximo Nivel in Manuel Antonio. My first time volunteering in San Jose was for three weeks. Then I had to leave and get my TEFL certification then I came back for a week after my TEFL certification to volunteer teach and gain more experience.

The experience was awesome. My last day volunteering was September 27th. I am going to return again about a month to volunteer some more. I got a job teaching English. I was training and tomorrow I will be starting my new job so I cannot volunteer just yet. I think Maximo Nivel really helps you get ready for your volunteer project and you have a field manager that will take you to your project and guide you along the way.

Here is an example of what I teach in the classroom. This was this past Friday's lesson:

Friday’s Lessons at Fundacion Mujer September 27, 2019

This past Friday at Fundacion Mujer during my volunteer duty teaching English, my students learned about describing different processes in passive voice. Then we worked on some worksheets that I copied from my business English book. The worksheet was about how to inform clients using the present continuous tense. Then we learned about perfect progressive. I had copied a page from one of the English books I had gotten during my TEFL course. Afterward, we worked on present perfect progressive exercises.

We then worked on more exercises from the business English book. Afterward, we looked at the different verb tenses. I copied the pages from my Maximo Nivel TEFL book, which had the different verb forms. We learned about regular and irregular verbs.

I highly suggest this volunteer program. If you give it a try I know you will end up wanting your TEFL certificate so you can teach English for a living.

The TEFL certification course was well organized and interesting. Our TEFL Trainer, Karen Wilke was full of energy and great knowledge and experience. She recognized our strengths and worked towards that rhythm. Initially, I was very nervous as I was going back to study after decades. But within a week I was very comfortable and looking forward to this new adventure. It was well balanced with the assignments and lots of examples and demonstrations were shown before we went into practical teaching. We made some good friends during this course and met people from different cultures and beliefs. In the end, we became very comfortable and I partly wished this never ended. The practical teaching on the first day was nerve wrecking, but very quickly I felt at ease. The Students were very friendly and warm. I enjoyed the course and would recommend it to anyone looking to get this certificate.

This course blew my expectations out of the water! The course is back-heavy which makes a great opportunity to get to bond with classmates at the start, and then work-together as the course progresses. My TEFL classmates were amazing people. Hence why we formed a tight-knit group with countless memories and stories to share by the end. From having nerdy conversations about the proper order of adjectives during a night out on the town, to doing worthwhile group activities in class, this is a great way to meet new people and expand your world-view. Our instructor, the lovely Audra, was also a massive part of what made the course so worthwhile. It's obvious she loves what she does and that attitude inspires students to want to be the best teachers they can!

This was a completely fantastic experience. The teacher, Audra, is a complete legend, and I can't imagine anybody more qualified to be teaching teachers how to teach. If you think TEFL Certification isn't necessary, wait until you teach your first class. You'll be an awkward weirdo and have no way to keep your class engaged. If, on the other hand, you decide to come live in a fantastic tropical paradise for a few weeks while meeting incredible people and enjoying your life to the highest degree imaginable, you'll be able to develop unrivaled confidence and techniques that will make you a wiz in the classroom. The school is gorgeous and the atmosphere is off the charts. Don't just sit there, sign up for this program immediately when you finish reading this review.

Ready, set.....GO

First of all, don't think of Antigua, Guatemala as a place to avoid. It is a beautiful colonial city in a developing country. Everywhere in the world has dangerous pockets and safe pockets and Antigua is definitely one of the best spots in Guatemala. Of course, take precautions when it comes to your safety but you should do that anywhere. Plus, Guatemala has Lake Atitlan and Tikal to check plus a bunch of other things that I would check out if I had more time.

Karen is a very experienced trainer that will help you out through this process. The program spends a week covering teaching theory and philosophy, a week of English grammar, a week putting this together, and then a week teaching an actual class. Before I took this course I had heard from many people to avoid a lower hour number course and I'm glad I listened to that advice because I don't know how I would feel prepared to teach with much less training plus I have noticed on many job postings from Asia that they will not accept TEFL certifications below a certain hour number or without actual teaching. I definitely recommend this course specifically but if you choose a different course make sure you choose a higher hour number course or you will be wishing you had.

My goal before this course started was to begin my teaching English career. I had gotten a TESOL certificate online in 2014 and I had never done anything with it. I had gotten a Master of Science degree online with Full Sail University and I had not done anything with that degree too. Finally, in July, I had decided to try to volunteer teach abroad. I thought the first thing I needed was to volunteer teach to see if I liked teaching English and I would also be able to gain teaching experience.

I signed up for a volunteer teach English program with IVHQ in San Jose, Costa Rica. A little bit before I arrived in Costa Rica, I learned that IVHQ partners up with Maximo Nivel to deliver their volunteer programs. I learned that Maximo Nivel would be putting me in a volunteer position and would be taking care of my housing. I was very excited. I found out that Maximo Nivel was awesome right from the get go because everything about my arrival to Costa Rica went smoothly. Once I started my volunteer teach program with Fundacion Mujer, I had a field manager who told me about the Cost Maximo Nivel Manuel Antonio TEFL program. On my third day of volunteer teaching, I decided to sign up for the TEFL program with Cost Maximo Nivel in Manuel Antonio.

With my online TEFL program certificate, I could teach English, but I did not have the experience and I felt uncomfortable teaching with very little teaching experience. Once I started my volunteer teach English program in San Jose, I knew I needed more training from an onsite TEFL program. This program has been perfect for me because I am getting first hand teaching with basic English students and with my teacher guiding me. When I was teaching at Fundacion Mujer, I gained a lot of experience, but it was with advanced English learners and I could teach mostly from a provided model. I made articles using Wikipedia articles to hand out to the class, have them read it, and then after go over the vocabulary.

I learned once I started this TEFl course and got to teach the basic English students that a pulled and provided model works best. I learned how to use the EPA model into my teaching. I also learned to create many CCQ questions. I think this experience has been very valuable and I hope to be able to teach in San Jose, Costa Rica in the future.

I really enjoyed my TEFL course at máximo nivel the location at Manuel Antonio is fantastic with amazing beaches and great food and restaurants etc. The staff at máximo were really helpful (Karen, Frances and Abby) and knowledgeable of the ESL industry and were willing to share information internally with maximo and externally throughout other countries. The course had great balance and structure and i learnt a lot more than I anticipated. Our instructor Audra is fantastic with an outgoing personality and passion for her work and life, I gained a lot of confidence and experience from the course and can highly recommend the experienced to anyone thinking about doing the TEFL. It was also a great place to learn Spanish and i was lucky enough to have a great teacher in Frances who helped me learn a lot easier than than I thought it would be

The whole team at Maximo Nivel was amazing, and for the sake of time I will just say this: any positive superlative (a subject I presented on in Maximo's TEFL program) you could think might apply to an international TEFL program applies to Maximo. They are truly great!

Karen Wilke, our TEFL instructor, was amazing and gave so much of herself in helping everyone in the class put forth their best work. She's knowledgable, makes the material relatable, and does it in a way where class was often fun and funny. Not something I expected from a TEFL program.

I left this program feeling like a better teacher, and would highly recommend it to anyone who is interested in become a better teacher, getting a TEFL certificate, and experiencing a new country.