Program Reviews

I completed the TEFL certification in Paris in 2018 and returned in the summer of 2019 to volunteer to assist teacher trainees in teaching English to students. Students in Paris are invited to be taught English by TEFL teacher trainees and for the students it is free from any fees. I was able to further expand my own skills and thoroughly enjoyed working with the trainees and students. Steven Jacobson, our master teacher trainer, created a learning environment that was both safe and stimulating to trainees and students. Students worked daily to overcome common stumbling blocks in learning English as a Second Language, and the trainees were stretched using new skills to best instruct and help students get the best results. I am going back to volunteer again in 2020. I learn a tremendous amount from Steven regarding the psychology of learning and how to get the utmost out of students, while providing a fantastic experience for trainees.

This was a great course! Was very interesting and the professor is AMAZING! Honestly, I would recommend taking this course just for the teacher, Steven Jacobson. He is incredible. He helped me get several jobs just within the time frame of the class. I had a great group, we laughed and learned lots, I miss going every day.

Sometimes communicating with the head office in New York is discouraging; however, don't be discouraged. Once you reach Paris and once you reach Steven, you won't have any regrets!

Steven helped us get daily teaching practice, and the students are wonderful. The Paris TEFL program has students of all ages: kids, adolescents, young adult, and adult. So if you want to improve any type of teaching practice, you will have the opportunity here.

Would recommend!

I have enjoyed the iTTi course in August 2018. The trainees had a lot of practice as we taught every day. We had the occasion to work with different students and develop strong teaching relationships with them. The course focuses on teaching practice, and there is very little theory on the program. What I enjoyed most was the excellent atmosphere among the group of trainees. The school provides little career support and the program is not as intensive as advertised.

I would overall recommend taking the course if you're considering settling in Paris.

I signed up and paid for a 50 hour online TEFL specializing in teaching young learners. I may well have spent 50 hours emailing the staff and Program Co-ordinator asking for the various modules to be sent to me. Despite my best efforts I am into the second year of this 50 hour TEFL and I can't even get responses to my mails. Weeks and months go by without reply and I'm still waiting for Module 7! They refuse to refund the course fee. I'm waiting a year to complete this course. Its been the biggest waste of time and money I have ever encountered. Save yourself a lot of disappointment and choose a different provider.

Before deciding to enroll ITTI's Paris program, I scoured the internet for weeks diligently investigating the TEFL programs available. After countless hours in front of the computer, I decided to go with ITTI, and I couldn't be happier I did.

Firstly, ITTI's instructors are top self, they truly care about their student and want them to succeed. The classes are small enough that you are able to get the critical one-on-one time needed while becoming a TEFL teacher. Also, you would not believe the support that you get from this program and the people involved with it. At all times of the day (as well as late at night), they were available and would bend over backward to help you in any way they could. When I made the short-sighted mistake of not having a permanent residence to stay at while in Paris, ITTI was there to help! They even called in a several favors with local universities to try to find a dorm for me!

Since this course, I've been sought after by dozens of TEFL organizations looking for teachers. Within a month of receiving my certification, I had received calls from schools in China, Japan, Colombia, and more! I'm currently working with American English Online, setting my own schedule and teaching students in Sozhou, China. What really stands out with this program is the in-class teaching experience it gives you. Not going to lie, it feels really good to write "English teach in Paris, France" on your resume!

And finally, the course is in Paris! Constantly you're surrounded by historic architecture, delicious food and, some of the most fun-loving people you'd ever meet. Also, Paris is just a train ride away from London, Brussels, Barcelona, and dozens of other unique and magnificent cities. I implore you, consider this course, I wouldn't trade my experience with it for the world.

Hello there,
I am writing this review to address an issue here with the course.
Before enrolling for the course I asked multiple times through different E-mails to the course administrator Julie Clement and Andrew if there is job assistance for non-native speakers and if they would help with securing a job after the completion of the course and what are the possibilities of this course for non-native speakers.
They seemed very positive then and said they will be helpful and even their website said "life long job assistance".
I am afraid that I did not get any assistance other than a list of schools in Paris where I need to figure out on my own to get a job.

We were a bit apprehensive upon entering this small classroom but that all disappeared the moment our instructor came into the room. She was an absolute delight and so incredibly knowledgeable. The students were so motivated that I really felt at ease with the training. I learned some very valuable skills through the teaching practice and would gladly go through the program again just for that additional real life experience.

Some parts were more difficult than I had anticipated so you really need to study hard and commit to the program 100%. It can be pretty intense for some, especially people who have poor study habits (ahem, me) so if you don't take it upon yourself to also study the materials that aren't covered in class, you will definitely fail. I ended up cramming the 3 days before finals. Not a fun experience as there was a LOT to cover.

Self-motivation is key here. The first week of teaching practice, be prepared to put in a lot of long nights writing lesson plans, creating materials, and rehearsing. Learn your synonyms because you will need them when introducing new vocabulary.

The workload might wear you out but if you put in the effort upfront and try to get it right as early as possible, it will pay off handsomely. All of the interviews and applications I've had so far have asked me to deliver sample lessons so it really helped to already have a few great ones on hand.

Word to the wise, your co-teacher/partner might have a non-native accent. Get used to it quickly because you'll have the same situation when teaching abroad.

The TEFL certificate is very valuable to have in all countries if you wish to teach English. I am glad that I have the certification but I feel as though I was severely overcharged for a 4 week course that I think could have been 2 weeks. I expected to learn a lot but the teaching seemed scattered and we learned very important information at the end of the course. Although I have loved living in Paris this month, I would have saved SO much more money to have taken the certification online. I feel as though I have been very ripped off. I recommend the online course if you are interested in teaching.

The course was very fun, it was a great experience especially since the school is so well located. My only criticism is that the course is much less intensive than it is advertised to be. This could be a good thing, but personally I was expecting something much more demanding. Also, while the teaching practice was great, I personally want to teach children in the future. Knowing how to teach adults is important but we should have been given the opportunity to learn how to teach children or teenagers, for instance. That could have made the course more demanding, which I think would be good!

The Tefl course was great. Yana was a wonderful instructor. She was firm but warm and i really appreciated all of her different insights into teaching English as a foreign language. I also value how the course throws you right into teaching so that students are able to get first hand experience right away. The methodology and grammar instruction was also valuable. As I am speech language pathologist, I also found it useful to compare and contrast the way I teach speech and language to my clients and students vs that to adults and also from a teacher of a foreign language perspective.