TEFL Course: Full-Time Or Part-Time?

Many TEFL trainees immediately go for the full-time intensive TEFL course – generally four weeks long – and there are plenty of advantages to this: you only need to pay for one month’s housing, you could well be out of the “earning race” for only a month, and you’re really thrown into the thick of it: you use what you learn right away. The pace at which you have to plan and deliver – for the next day usually – often mirrors the situation in the real world.

But the ESL Base TEFL Course Diaries made me reconsider the value of part-time courses – often done over three months or so. Yes, you do have to pay for housing for the length of the course, which, depending on the location, can in fact add up…but you may well have more of a chance to absorb what you are trying to take in. If you already have some experience, and are just doing the course to improve your skills – or if you’re already working a job in another field – you may be able to do the part time course and keep working.

I did an intensive course and I think it certainly does keep you on your toes; this is valuable. But it’s still training, and I don’t think it’s necessarily bad if it’s not at the same intensity as a full-time job.

One final benefit to doing a part time course is that it may give you a better chance to enjoy the locale – most intensive course trainees seem to agree that the full time program leaves little time for sightseeing. Of course ultimately, you are still in charge of your time and may choose to manage it differently, but full-time courses definitely have a reputation for being time consuming.