TEFL - Teaching English as a Foreign Language

Why apply for your teacher training course with Cactus TEFL?

Here at Cactus TEFL, our aim is to help raise the profile of the TEFL industry, with the objective of promoting high quality courses which are professionally delivered, and provide the participant with a solid platform, prior to embarking on a teaching career. Our independent online admissions service is designed to make the process of choosing the right TEFL course, completing an application, and planning for an interview as simple as possible.

The Benefits of using Cactus TEFL: Free Advisory Service The service is completely free to use! The course fees listed on our website are identical to the fees charged by the training centres we work with worldwide, so applicants don't pay a penny extra for expert, impartial advice, and an easy-to-use online portal through which applications can be managed. Pay Nothing In Advance Applicants through Cactus TEFL also do not have to pay anything until they have been interviewed for a course, and have been offered a place. Only then do we request a deposit in order to hold a place on the course for you. Innovative Online Preparation Courses We also provide our very own award-winning (British Council Innovation Award) online courses which provide a perfect way for applicants to prepare for their training course. Significant discounts are available for trainees using the Cactus TEFL admissions service. Experience & Expertise Finally, with Cactus, you are in safe hands. Since 1998, we have been a leading language training company and agency, offering expert advice and helping thousands of students each year complete their teacher training or learn a foreign language, at home or abroad

The most frequent question we are asked by our applicants is this:

What is the difference between TEFL, CELTA and TESOL?

If this question is on your mind, then you are right to ask, as this is by far the most important thing for you to know and understand before beginning to search for the right TEFL course for you!

Firstly, it is very important to understand that TEFL is the name of the industry you would be training and working in as a teacher of English - Teaching English as a Foreign Language.

TEFL is an umbrella term for the whole industry, and is not the name for a specific course or qualification.

In order to break into the industry of TEFL as a teacher, there are two key qualifications which stand out as being quite special in terms of their international recognition - and these are the Cambridge CELTA (Certificate of English Language Teaching to Adults) and the Trinity CertTESOL (Certificate in Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages). These certificates continue to be the most highly sought-after by employers, and are an essential part of a prospective EFL teacher's CV, especially if they are considering teaching in areas where competition for jobs can be a bit more intense (such as in the U.K. and other Western European countries).

Both the CELTA and CertTESOL courses are types of TEFL courses, usually delivered intensively over a 4-week period, but they can also be taken on a part-time basis in selected location.

You will also see that there are other 4-week TEFL courses available to apply for via our website which are not Cambridge CELTA or Trinity TESOL courses. Please note that these are usually validated only by the school which offers them, but this does not mean it is not a quality course - it just means that it does not carry the same global recognition as the Cambridge & Trinity programmes, and is often more suited to trainees who want to teach for a shorter time, or in a specific country. We happily recommend all of the courses listed on Cactus TEFL because of the quality feedback we have received from previous trainees over the years.

More questions? We have an extensive FAQs section on our website, which you can view here!

If your question is not answered, please feel free to e-mail us via our contact form.