I am writing this blog simply to warn as many people away from Oxford Seminars as possible. Oxford Seminars is a TEFL certification course. It is 60 hours of teacher training. Unfortunately 60 hours is half the minimum requirement most schools are looking for. Oxford seminars also doesn't give you any real teaching experience which pretty much every ESL employer is looking for.
There are many different options in regards to ESL certification courses and you shouldn't go with Oxford Seminars. Their instructors are horrible, they essentially charge you $1000 for nothing but a waste of your time. Also Oxford seminars offers teacher placement after you complete your training. This service is almost as much bullshit as the course itself. The people who work in the teacher placement service can take a few weeks to get back to you and mostly give you bullshit advise instead of sending you information onto ESL schools.
That is because they have hardly any schools to send your information to. I wanted a job in "Latin America" which can be considered to include every country Mexico and south of Mexico. They had about 4 schools they could send my info to in regards to a whole continent and a half. And they don't have long established or even close relationships with these schools, they simply send your information along as you could do yourself. After losing faith in Latin America I asked for my info to be sent to Korea and all they could do was send it to a recruiting agency in Korea. I could have contacted a recruiting agency on my own
But any way Oxford Seminars is a scam, save yourself the time, money and the bother and go with a more respectable TEFL certification course, one that properly trains you
In regards to the hours put into the course, you were most likely NOT PAYING ATTENTION when they said that the in-class portion is 60 hours, and once you finish the in-class portion, you will be sent an e-mail giving you access to the 40-hour online portion. They mention this in the first day of class, as well as at the info session and on their website. It is your responsibility to check your e-mail the Monday (or whatever the teacher says) following your last class to see if you got the e-mail regarding your access to the online portion. It is also your responsibility to finish said 40-hour online portion to receive the full 100-hour certificate by mail. Since mail may take a few days, you will be sent a PDF version so that you can start applying right after you finish the 40hrs.
ReplyDeleteAs for the second part, I can see that it was disappointing for you to not get into the country of your choice, but do understand that some countries most likely aren't able to afford foreign teachers. This also depends on the hiring season - if you decided to send your resume and cover letter late, chances are you won't get into the country you wanted. Overseas teaching is a competitive field (something that is also mentioned on the first day of class and I'm sure every teacher mentions this). I'm sure you can use more than one recruiting agency - my friend has used both Oxford Seminars and 2 other agencies at the same time just to be on the safe side.
My advice to you is to do your homework and don't simply reply on people to do the job searching for you. Just because the job is overseas doesn't mean you can slack off. There are a number of resources online that allows you to do the job searching yourself if you're unsure of the recruiting agency's ability in locating work for you.
I got rip off. Do not use your money for this fake company! They make it so complex that you end up loose your money. Wendy Shervey was a pay scam artist
ReplyDeleteFour years ago I took the Oxford Seminars course. Prior to taking the course, I did my research. I saw the various people posting that it was a scam and I too felt that it was too good to be true. I was in a place in my life that I had few options and needed to find a new course of work in my life. Although I felt it was a scam, my research and by attending the informational meeting, I decided it was worth a chance. Perhaps my last chance before financial ruin in my life. The course changed my life.
ReplyDeleteAs to the complaint that it is only a 60 hour certification, Nikki N's response is correct. It is a 100 hour course that includes 60 hours of classroom study and 40 hours of an online component.
As for the Oxford's job placement services, I can sympathize with Ted. I too did not feel that I received full value from their services. But, this service should never have been the end all of the resources Ted should se to achieve his goals. There are countless resources on the internet for ESL teachers to acquire jobs in the world. As for job recruiters, this is very common in finding jobs in ESL teaching. You do have to be cautious when using such recruiters, but overall, they are the best source of jobs.
It has been four years since I took the Oxford Seminars course. I could have spent much more time and money taking a course in a university. Or, I could have taken a cheap. impersonal online certification course. In my opinion, Oxford Seminars was the best option. I was able to get certified in a short period of time for an amount of money that was reasonable.
Do not be mistaken. It is just a course for certification. The hard work of finding a job, procuring your visa and other documentation, and getting yourself on location is all on you. I am not sure what Ted's real purpose for calling Oxford Seminar's a scam was, but his claims are largely unfounded. Of course, I am writing this response seven years after Ted wrote his review. Oxford Seminars is still in business and has expanded to more courses throughout America. ESL teaching is still a viable career option and teachers are needed all over the world.
If you are interested in ESL teaching and Oxford Seminars, do your own thorough research and make your own determination. Attend an informational meeting session that all Oxford Seminars classes prior to beginning. Ask to speak to former graduates of the course, such as myself. Research, research, research.