Program Reviews

If you want to learn to teach English as a Second Language, there is no better place. Intimate class size, individual attention, tough but exciting all describe Costa Rica TEFL.
Now place all this in the beautiful little beach town of Samara where you will make life long friends and you have a superior program. It changed my life. It could change yours.
With the teaching experience you get by giving classes to local children and adults you are ready for the classroom.
They were able to place several of us in an Institute in a town 2 hours away. We were there for a year and then scattered to the 4 corners all still keeping in touch.
One of us in China, one still in Costa Rica, one in Philadelphia and me in Oakland, California teaching young adults from all over the world the essential language of English.

I completed this program in 2017, and I am so happy I did! The staff here was supportive and ultimately helped me find a teaching job in Costa Rica. The course wasis engaging, and the teaching practicum was beyond helpful. The I carried the skills I learned here to my future teaching jobs, and I spent the last year working in a private language institute. All of the materials we needed were provided, and you are set up for success. I highly recommend this course to those who are interested in teaching English!

When I came across Costa Rica TEFL during my research and reached out with preliminary questions, I received a prompt and detailed response, making me immediately feel like I was in good hands. Choosing Costa Rica TEFL was easily one of the best decisions I've made. Leading up to the course, Marissa and Barbara were so helpful with travel, accommodations, and answering any and all of my questions. Once beginning the actual course, teacher trainers Vanessa and Jenn made every day so much fun. It honestly never felt like I was in class and I truly felt that Vanessa and Jenn wanted us all to succeed. Getting the hands-on teaching experience right away was a crucial element to the process and I'm so grateful to have learned such tangible and applicable skills right off the bat. Aside from the course itself, I made irreplaceable memories and lifelong friends. The location in the beach town of Samara is absolutely unbeatable. Mornings and weekends were spent at the beach and exploring the town, and evenings were spent at the local beachfront bars and restaurants. If you're still wondering if you should sign up for Costa Rica TEFL, stop wondering and sign up! You won't regret it.

If you are currently researching, or if you ever have researched TEFL programs, you’ve probably realized how overwhelming the process can be. With so many options, deciding which one is best for you can be a daunting task. I was in the same boat a few months ago, and after much indecisiveness, I finally decided to email a few different courses to introduce myself, and get some information. Within 24 hours, I had received a friendly and informative response from the administrative assistant. Over the next few weeks, I continued to correspond with her, and after consistently receiving prompt, personalized, and detailed emails in return, I decided to enroll in the November-December course in 2016. It was one of the best decisions I have ever made in my life.

Before I arrived in Samara, she had arranged my accommodations, as well as my transportation to and from the airport in Liberia. Samara itself is beautiful, and right on the beach. There are enough English speakers that I didn’t feel totally out of my comfort zone, but it is very much a small town that offers an authentic Costa Rican experience and lots of opportunities to practice Spanish. TEFL offers plenty of affordable accommodations for students that range from homestays, private studios and rooms in a 2 or 3 bedroom house. Although I had a tough time deciding between all of the appealing options, I eventually settled on a private room in a lovely 2 bedroom cottage. My roommate and I quickly became friends, and I could not have been happier with my living situation.

All this being said, the knowledge that I gained in the classroom was without a doubt the best takeaway from these 4 weeks. Within the first 10 minutes of class, the teacher trainers (Julia and Arin) had my classmates and I laughing and getting to know one another. Every day, they went above & beyond to ensure that the pedagogy was presented in a fun and engaging way, and even though the course was a lot of work, the days always flew by. They both took the time to get to know us, and were always supportive, enthusiastic and knowledgeable about subject matter. One thing that makes this course particularly unique is that it offers free classes to locals. These classes are not only a way for TEFL to give back to the community, but they provide hands-on teaching for teachers in comfortable, air-conditioned classrooms. Although they do provide resources like white boards and materials for teachers to use, we were taught how to prepare lessons when these recourse are scarce. By the end of the 4 weeks, my classmates and I had all completed over 16 hours of observed teaching practice, and we all felt comfortable teaching EFL students.

Not only is Julia one of the best teachers that I have ever encountered, she is a resume and cover letter queen. She spent time with each of us to individually fine-tune our resumes and help in our job searches. My classmates and I all had interviews and a few of us (including myself) even had jobs set up by the time we graduated. No matter where you are interested in teaching, the staff at TEFL will go above and beyond to help with job placement. Overall, I would recommend this program to anyone who is interested in teaching abroad. If you are still wondering if it's right for you, my advice would be to reach out to them, start packing, and prepare yourself for a life-changing experience.

Hi there! My name is Beatriz and I am a native Spanish speaker from Costa Rica. My experience in TEFL Costa Rica was stimulating in many different ways - one of them, being a learner, was the constant challenge everyday of not only learning the process of teaching, which in my opinion is the most effective approach to teaching, but also being able to learn so many new words and phrases, and all the different semantics notions of English, which helped me to improve my vocabulary tremendously. Costa Rica TEFL also gives the opportunity to students to live a real teaching experience due to their teaching program, and that was one of the most amazing experiences. You learn to build your lessons from scratch, your creativity evolves, and the thrill of teaching and getting good feedback from the students is a rewarding experience if you haven't taught before. The variety of tools to learn and practice and the very experienced trainers makes this program one of the best so far in Costa Rica, and perhaps around the world. I chose Costa Rica TEFL because Samara is my home, but more importantly because I was able to teach my own people another language, and I as a Spanish speaker fully understand the difficulties students have while learning English as a second language. I have not been able to experience learning in a different country or place where you are not familiar with anything, but I highly recommend Samara since it is a beach town where you can go relax at the beach between breaks, and also, it is a community where there is a need to learn English as a second language. The trainers are very professional and you can make it through the course smoothly with the right amount of work and effort. They are very creative and their aim is to teach you in a way that you can put it into practice in your own lessons. This procedure, learning and teaching, worked for me perfectly, and I was able to get gratifying and solid results.

My experience with Costa Rica TEFL was better than I ever imagined.

The teacher trainers, Barbara, Vanessa and Julia were extremely kind, caring, compassionate and patient with me. Each day I learned a small portion of teaching English as a foreign language and put my skills to use by teaching Costa Rican students. Each lesson I was given feedback that allowed me to improve as I gained more skills and confidence. By the second week, I felt very confident planning and teaching my lessons and each week after, I was able to fine tune my success in the classroom.

I feel very confident in my abilities as an EFL teacher and I am so grateful for the experience to work and learn from such an amazing team!

I would recommend Costa Rica TEFL to anyone considering a TEFL program. Not only was the team amazing, the town of Samara feels like home on the beach. I love it here and I am looking forward to the opportunity to work and live here.

The Costa Rica TEFL course was one of the best decisions I have made. I met the best group of teachers, students, and friends. I completed the course in July 2015. I have training and teaching prior to taking the course and I was able to learn so much more and practice the skills so I could be a more successful teacher in Costa Rica.
Everyday was exciting and challenging but the teachers were engaging and supportive of all the student’s needs. It was very effective that while training we were able to teach all different levels and skills so we could have experience teacher many types of students. Throughout the four weeks you learn methodologies, lesson planning, classroom management, and multiple activities that I use in my classroom today!
Samara is also the best location to take a month course. There are many activities to do in the town during the weekends or mornings when there are no classes. I was able to do surfing, kayaking, snorkel, horseback riding, and a lot of hiking. I still go back when I get the chance.
This experience has allowed me to get a dream job in Costa Rica teaching First grade in Santa Ana. I feel more prepared to teach my students now because of this class and all of the teachers that helped me get this job! I received so much support when looking for a job and the teachers were amazing taking the time to make sure I had interviews and resumes prepared to get job offers! I wouldn’t change a thing!!

Since the beginning the staff was very helpful and caring with everything. They help me to find a nice and incredible place to stay. Since first day instructions were given with a calendar to follow, this made the whole month well organized and enjoyable.
The course was intensive, well organize and very structure. We were able to learn while we were practicing and this help us a lot to improve.
After this month course and with the TEFL certificate I feel confident to teach. I was able to practice all we were leaning. I strongly recommend taking this course at Costa Rica TELF it is an amazing institution with a lot human warmth.
During a normal day I will wake up around 7 or 8 am, have some breakfast and ride my bike to the beach and have a quit swim in the ocean. At 10 am classes will started, we will have a lunch break at noon, where we can stay at the institution facilities to share lunch with the classmates or sometimes I bike to my place to lunch at home.
At 1 pm we will start again classes until 3pm. Then we will have time for a coffee break and then we had time to prepare ours classes as teacher. At 5 pm we will teach a class once or twice a week. The school day finish at 7 pm and usually I would go with some classmates or student for dinner, drinks or just go home to rest.

I attended the January 2015 class. I can, without a doubt, say that this was probably one of the best experiences of my life. Not only did I gain valuable information on how to teach English as a second language, I learned value information on non-traditional teaching (incorporation of kinesthetic, auditory, and visual aids/exercises), and also, I was able to learn from amazing teachers whilst growing and learning along with other amazing future-teachers. I learned so much about myself personally through this experience. I am forever grateful to the TEFL program and staff for blessing me with the opportunity to grow as a person and as a teacher.

Pura Vida!
Amanda

Costa Rica TEFL was an absolutely amazing experience. The curriculum was never boring and days flew by in the classroom. I loved the opportunity to teach local Costa Ricans of all proficiency levels--I truly feel prepared to enter any classroom environment and create lesson plans from nothing. The staff of Costa Rica TEFL was always helpful and friendly, whether it be with class-related things or every day life. I couldn't imagine a better place to get certified than Playa Samara. I would recommend this program to all of my family and friends! Thank you Barbara, Bill, Matt & Greg for everything!!