www.costaricatesol.com - ITA Costa Rica

FAQ Conversation

Below is a frank FAQ session with Luke Panek, the founder of INTERNATIONAL TEFL ACADEMY COSTA RICA. Luke has been living in Costa Rica for over ten years, is married with two children and is quite knowledgeable about the TEFL world.

Is it really important to get an internationally recognized accredited TESOL certificate?


It depends on what kind of job you are going to want. My answer is: why risk it? If you only plan to work in Costa Rica then a certificate from other Costa Rica TEFL schools should be enough. But what happens if you change your mind and end up wanting to work in Germany, Korea, Singapore or some other country? I received my TEFL certificate from an unrecognized school in Prague, and although I had no problems with it in Prague, I was rejected on 2 different occasions in other countries. It was extremely upsetting. This is why we take accreditation seriously, and so should you!

I’m worried about finding a job.


We know that this is probably your #1 concern about moving to a new country. It was definitely mine. We can’t guarantee 100% that you will find a job, but we CAN guarantee that we WILL make the extra effort to find you the job you want. Most TEFL schools have a list of phone numbers and emails, which they print off for their grads and say, “Here you go. Good luck.” We have strong relationships with many schools throughout Costa Rica, and we will find out which of them are hiring, and put you in contact with them. Plus our own ESL school, Idiomas Mundiales, has 3 locations, and we need teachers. We WANT our grads to work for us and will use the one month course to prepare you to work for us directly saving you the necessity to look elsewhere for a job.

If I take a course at INTERNATIONAL TEFL ACADEMY Costa Rica, am I guaranteed a job at Idiomas Mundiales? 


The answer, unfortunately, is no. There are too many factors for us to 100% guarantee we will need to hire teachers when you finish your course. However, I will reiterate that we do whatever we can to hire our own graduates, and train them so they are ready to work at our school, and if we can’t supply them with hours, for whatever reason, we will work 100% to find them hours at other schools.


Idiomas Mundiales Website: http://idiomasmundiales.com/

Where else can I find a job?


Luckily for our students, we are located within 20kms of 90% of the English schools in Costa Rica. Making contacts, scouting out schools, getting established before you graduate, meeting teachers, and seeing early where you’d like to live and work WHILE taking your TEFL course gives you a leg up on landing a job after you graduate. Use our central location to your advantage!

What makes us different?


What makes our TESOL training school the best place to study, is the same reason that our English school is a great place to work. It’s the fact that we are owned and operated by real English teachers, who know firsthand what it’s like to be in your position. English teachers who have themselves experienced the amazing things that ESL teaching provides, as well as the negative aspects. We understand your excitement and enthusiasm, as well as your worries, fears and doubts, and we go the extra mile to address them all.

Is Costa Rica a safe country?


Heredia and the community where the school is located are extremely safe, and there are always families and people of all ages strolling about well after dark. I feel much safer walking around at night here than I have in any of the cities where I’ve taught.


If you choose to work in SJ you do have to be more careful. Parts of downtown and San Pedro have more tourists and more crime, so precautions are necessary. It is a capital city and like all capitals, there is a higher crime rate. However, again it’s not as bad as other big cities in the US or Europe

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Is it easy to get around Costa Rica?


Because a large portion of the population uses public transportation, the CR bus system is much more efficient than those found in the US and Canada. Buses run frequently, usually passing every 5 or 10 minutes, so unlike in Canada, missing a bus does not mean waiting 35/ 40 minutes for the next one. A trip from our school to downtown Heredia takes about 10 minutes and costs 35cents. Taxis are also a cheap convenient way to travel especially at night. Also at Intesol we provide phone numbers of taxi drivers who work directly with the school, are very friendly, and can be trusted to give teachers excellent service. Prearranged pick ups can also be set up through the school. We also provide the service of borrowing a bicycle free from the school for your time here, if you prefer that way of getting around.

Will INTERNATIONAL TEFL ACADEMY continue to help me after I complete the course?


Absolutely, and it’s very important that our grads realize this and remember this. Not only will we help you in the immediate days following your graduation, with housing and jobs, but our help and advice continues months and years later as you go through your ESL career. Your questions or doubts are never in any way an imposition, and answering them is something that I take very seriously, even after you leave our school. Perhaps you’re not comfortable asking the director at your new school grammar questions or personal questions (I had several directors like that). If that’s the case you can always drop by and I will help the best I can. Whatever you want to ask or talk about, my door is open, 5 days after you graduate or 5 years.