Can anyone tell me why they are so expensive compared to the others. I would love hear others experience in dealing with them compared to the restin obtaining their CELTA, their reputuation in the community and any help they might provide to find available work along with associated wages.
I will be moving to Warsaw late next year. BC came highly recommended to get my CELTA even though I can get it at Bell and International House.
I'm taking the CELTA course currently in Krakow, Poland. It's a very intensive 4 week course and I've heard nothing but the best from it. So far so good, no complaints here.
There are a few reasons to get your CELTA one place instead of another (in no particular order):
Price - You're on a budget and absolutely don't have any more than a set amount to spend on your training.While you may not get the best possible program you got the best you could afford and that was it. Sometimes, of course, you get what you pay for.
Quality - Some schools have a better teaching staff than another school. The problem is that not many people take the course more than once so who can say one is better than another. Maybe reviews from staffers who have worked at more than one might be relevant or possibly a place might become "known" as having particularly poor teachers over another place.
Location - You can have a strategy that getting your CELTA in the first city you wish to work in or possibly even at that particular school might affect your decision of where to take the class. Some people may believe (and possibly even be correct in that belief) that a CELTA from an IH or BC school gives you an edge when applying to work at another location with the same name.
Associated Expenses of a School - A combination of Location and Price could be that you cannot afford to travel to take the class in a particular location no matter how good it is reputed to be due to the cost of travel and the living expenses associated with the area. A trusted friend might tell you that Honk Kong has a top-notch CELTA program but the air fare and living expenses in HK may be prohibitive.
In the end though, the CELTA is supposed to be a defined program with standards adhered to across the board from locations authorized to grant the certificate. For better or worse, some employers will only hire CELTA cert holders and they may, or may not, value oit enough to offer a pay differential.
BC has a good reputation but so do Bell and IH and many other porgrams. There may be variations based upon the franchise owner or the staff.
I have been here in Poland 7 years did my CELTA at IH in Krakow where it is now done at BC. It's all about how good your lecturers are. I highly recommend doing it in Krakow then moving to Warsaw as there is an abundance of jobs here unlike Krakow where I go to play on weekend instead :)
I understand that BC offers the CELTA in Warsaw. I was thinking of taking it there. I do realize the instructors are what make the difference in the end. Does anyone know if the BC in Warsaw is just as good as the one Krakow? As much as I would like to take the BC course in Krakow it just might be feasible but I will look into it.
I would like to thank everyone for their input as it is extremely helpful. If anyone else has any further interesting comments to add, please do as people in the future will reading what has been written .
