I am a 32 year old woman with a few years of university professional experience under my belt. I did not need a TEFL certificate, but I was excited about the professional development and alternative doors that could open.

This experience was by far one of the the most beautiful surprises - it has changed me (for the better) as a person, professional aside. I grew into a more whole human being through this program, my instructors, and my peers. I am not sure all programs are like this, but there was magic within our group throughout.

For starters, this program is intense. There are high expectations and you end up learning SO MUCH. If you are not ready for that, then don't come until you are. You need to have a level of maturity or drive to sustain the intensity. That said, this program attracted people who were ready and wanting this challenge. We were a diverse group in many of our identities, yet we all left our egos at home. We flourished day in and day out - there was no competition within the group, just support, love, and everyone giving it their best selves. I have never felt so good about being myself and confident in who I am when working with a group and I think many of my peers would echo this feeling.

This tone was set by our instructors, lead instructor Karen Wilke and support instructor Courtney Miville. These two are literally born to do this work and it shows - they are creative, passionate, wise, fun, and literally give us 200% every day of the week. If you have a chance to work with them, do it. Your life will be better because of this decision.

As for the program itself, the Maximo Nivel staff who work in MA are fabulous. They are calm, cool, collected, supportive, and always go out of their way for all of us despite the many demands of their job. The amount of logistics they coordinate behind the scenes paired with the needs of all their students in real-time, is astounding. I suppose the astounding part is you would never know. They don't complain and they are so top-notch and calm.

I do not usually review, but I couldn't not review this experience.

Thank you,
Kayleen

Stop thinking about it. Do it! Get TEFL certified! Now, wherever my global travel takes me, I can teach! My host family, TEFL teacher extraordinaire, Audra, and my ESL students inspired me to give 100% to this effort every day. This program requires commitment, tenacity and passion for the work and students. The location was a short ride to beaches and public parks. Public transportation was easy and frequent. Housing accommodations were amazing. Everyone on staff was an absolute rock star! The school is hot, but if your TEFL class is small, the lessons are held in an air-conditioned room. The one area for improvement is assistance with job placement. Use the resources provided to do some research on your own. You will find your perfect TEFL job fit!

From exploring the jungle to experiencing the culture and meeting many new people, these last four weeks have been incredible. I came into this program somewhat blinded and hoped for the best. I quit my job back home in order to travel and the TEFL Certification was the first stop along the way. The little expectation I did have was completely blown out of the water. I have enjoyed every bit of the experience here in Manuel Antonio. Audra is a magnificent TEFL Trainer as well as a good-hearted person. Yes, these days in the classroom are intensive, (don't underestimate these comments) but Audra is not your average teacher. She brings her dynamic personality every day and it allows for easy engagement in every lesson. I never saw myself as a teacher, but I thought why not try it. Now, I can confidently say that I have the knowledge to do so and I can't wait to teach more. I am thankful for the key Maximo has provided me to unlock more opportunities in other's lives.

TEFL Time is what we called our regular classes at COSI with our amazing instructor, Audra. I so looked forward to TEFL Time every day because I knew I was going to learn more and have fun doing it. Outside of class, there was lots of homework, but none of it useless. The program was crafted to build EFL teachers, and it built them well. I have a MA in Bilingual Ed, but I never felt ready or excited about teaching English till now. Despite the main goal, getting that TEFL Certificate, I was also encouraged and supported to go out and explore...hiking to Nauyaca falls and along the RetoMAE, sea kayaking and snorkeling, looking for sloths and other animals on the many trails of the National Park, etc.

I recommend staying with a host family (with WiFi) and having a room of your own, and bring your laptop and cell phone--you'll use them every day and late into the night. Having a host family to take care of you, preparing meals, washing your clothes, helping you figure stuff out, speaking Spanish with you, and maybe even allowing you to practice teaching English lessons on them is priceless. The ties you make will make it hard for you to leave, and the skills you learn will open the door for you to go anywhere. Welcome to TEFL Time!

I got my TEFL certification in Manuel Antonio with Audra Wooldridge and it was an amazing experience. If you are taking this program be prepared to work but also be prepared to learn and have some fun along the way doing it. The program is very intensive but also very effective, by the end I truly felt prepared to teach wherever my path takes me. Audra had a way of making the course quite fun as well and I’m sure other TEFL trainers will be similar, I cannot count how many times I heard or saw either myself or my fellow TEFLers smile or laugh. A couple of suggestion is first to bring a laptop, you will for sure need one as otherwise you’ll have to do all your work at Maximo nivel when with a laptop you could be working anywhere you felt like. Also don’t be afraid to have fun, the program is very intensive but don’t let that keep you from having fun on the weekends or evenings every now and again, Manuel Antonio/Quepos have a lot of fun things to do, don’t miss out on them completely!

I am a certified teacher from the United States. I lead a group of high school students to Costa Rica and fell in love with the country. I have a passion for education and learning so I was interested in the program. In the program I learned effective methods for teaching adult English learners. Some of the methodologies are different so I started to discern if I wanted to finish. The staff is amazing and our instructor, Audra Wooldridge, is very passionate. The experience pushed me out of my comfort zone, taught me more than I can possibly describe and was life changing.

Also, Manuel Antonio and Quepos are very nice places. I am from Michigan and not familiar to public transportation. The bus system in Quepos is very efficient and the people are very friendly. I was also nervous about my basic level of Spanish. The locals are very kind and many places even accept US currency.

I came as a certified language teacher, confident in my teaching style and methods. However, this course, specifically the director, Audra Wooldridge, pushed me to improve my skills and eventually I was able to get my students to talk for 80% of class time! I know that has never happened in one of my lessons in the US. She is an absolute queen. She had me cracking up every single day, she had invaluable information about everything from classroom management to where you should go on your weekend getaways while in Costa Rica. You should definitely take this course if you have ANY interest in teaching English in the future. I adored my host family, the support staff and my location in Manuel Antonio! I would suggest bringing a laptop if you have one.

This was my first time studying abroad, and I'm really glad I went through Maximo Nivel to complete my TEFL certification. From the initial communication, to the course material, to the job finding assistance, I felt that it was a complete and personalized experience. The school is located in Manuel Antonio, Costa Rica, a 10-minute bus ride from gorgeous beaches. In the surrounding area are shops and great restaurants to choose from. My program included housing with an authentic Costa Rican family, which meant that I had support getting to the know the area and culture. My favorite part of the TEFL course was actually getting hands-on training by teaching real students for my last week. By the time I was done, I had 2 job offers, so my intensive 4-work course helped me to get to the next adventure in my life!