Program Reviews

Mackenzie was a quality teacher. He made each lesson interesting and enjoyable but most importantly he teaches you using the TEFL teaching methods. This means that by the time you get up in front of students you have seen hours of the methods in practice. I would 100% recommend this course to anyone. All the teachers very friendly and will give you all the advice you will ever need. Maximo Nivel also provide all the resources that you will need both for the program itself and for your teaching in the future.

I took private one-on-one Spanish language classes 4 hours/4 days/4 weeks at Maximo Nivel Costa Rica (Curridabat location) in Feb 2023. The school administration is very well organized, from the online inquiry stage before I registered, through registration, arrival and orientation, and departure. The admin team is very friendly and professional; I felt they were there to support my learning and also my stay in Costa Rica. They switched my teachers 3 times in 3 days (I'm assuming because of their personal situations), but I understand things happen with people's schedules. Luckily the changes happened all in the beginning. The instructor was great; she tried to tailor the sessions per my interests, focusing on conversation and reinforcing with grammar/practices. She took the time and energy to bring in material we could discuss, based on our conversations in class. In addition, the school offers various activities that are included with the class price--weekly salsa dancing class, weekly cooking class, and tandem conversations (they pair up an Eng-learner and Spanish-learner and they split 1 hour speaking in each language. Great practice). The cafe was awesome to have coffee/tea (free!) and snacks (for purchase--you'll smell them baking brownies). Great value to have all these included with the class price. Location is outside the main San Jose downtown area, near a university, so it's still busy but less hectic than downtown--it's walking distance to train/bus stops, many restaurants, grocery stores. The school is also linked with a small travel agency, so it was really easy to book day trips on the weekends. Highly recommended.

From the moment I came out of the airport, till it was time to go home I felt very welcomed and secure! Maximo does a great job with the orientation and making sure you are comfortable and know that help is always available. Special mention to Ashleigh and Ashanti for being very welcoming and informative staff, as well as friendly! My host house felt like it was my own home, everyone was very welcoming, and the food was delicious! The accommodation overall was very clean and nice! Overall i had a great time here in costa rica and enjoyed my program at the school. The children were very fun and entertaining to work with!

great experience for learning different cultures and being able to meet a diverse set of people. There is a very good staff when it comes to questions. In the healthcare project, I was able to involved and take vitals of patients. It was nice to be a part of a project where I was able to see the same people everyday. It was difficult to find my way around the city at first but Uber is easy to use here. I recommend having a basic understanding of spanish before coming because you will need to find your way to your project from your homestay.

I had an amazing time doing the Spanish Immersion at Maximo Nivel. My teachers were amazing and the staff were very welcoming and helpful. There were lots of fun activities to do after class and it was very easy to meet and get to know other students.
I've been very impressed with how organized Maximo Nivel is, from airport pickups, to picking amazing host families, to organizing classes. My host family was incredible, I would love to stay with them again. I felt very safe at the San Jose campus even travelling alone as a young female.
Thanks for everything Maximo Nivel!

I absolutely loved my TEFL course with Maximo Nivel. The company makes arriving in Costa Rica very stress free as they help you get to Manuel Antonio and find accommodation, perfect for first time or solo travelers. Taking this course in Manuel Antonio was a wonderful experience as it is truly one of the most beautiful places that I have ever been. No shortage of beautiful hikes, as well as a lovely beach. The TEFL trainer Jackie was absolutely wonderful, she brought so much energy to the classroom, always working hard to find fun and creative way to teach. She was always available to answer any questions that we had whether it was about grammar, jobs, or just life in Costa Rica. She was incredibly helpful and I am so grateful for her support. I cannot recommend this course enough, I feel very prepared to teach English.

My experience abroad was an unforgettable one. I was able to stay with a local that took care of me and showed me their culture. It was amazing and interesting at the same time. I high recommend anyone planning to travel abroad to go without hesitation. It will be humbling but also an eye opening experience. You will meet many people while you are here and make life long friendships. You will also have an opportunity to help out the community and make an impact. No matter how big or small you are changing someones day for the better.

I am so happy that I decided to come to Antigua, Guatemala for my TEFL course. There's always a small part in each of us that's fearful of trying something new, but I can honestly say this was one of the best decisions I've ever made. The environment is incredible and my instructor left me truly feeling prepared to start teaching. He not only taught us by using the methods that we ourselves should use in the future, but he showed us that he really cares for our success by always making as much time as he could for us. I would recommend this to anyone!! If you are scared to try, don't be, because I promise it is worth it!

I had the pleasure of spending one month in Antigua, Guatemala getting TEFL certified through Maximo Nivel. I joined the program having no previous experience and left the course confident in my abilities.

Thank you, Mackenzie for being such a wonderful TEFL instructor. Mackenzie provided timely feedback, quality support, and professional insight.

I definitely would recommend this program to anyone who is interested in TEFL as this is the best place to be with the best training. Thank you so much!

Mackenzie is the best TEFL instructor you could ask for with a course like this. He has been an English teacher and lived in Latin America so he has a ton of experience when it comes to the course. Even with a large group of students he managed to make time for all of us to make sure we had everything we needed to succeed. Not only did he give us all the techniques we needed to teach English but he also gave us several resources for job finding and offered his own personal support and connections. Getting to actually get up and teach the students before even being certified was an incredible experience and helped us learn how to do it with support before doing it on our own. Overall an amazing course and instructor! I highly highly reccomend!