Cambridge CELTA

Our Cambridge English CELTA (Certificate in English Language Teaching to Adults) course, which we currently offer on a full time five week online programme, and a part-time 12 week online programme basis, is perfect for you if you:

• hope to start a career in English language teaching abroad or in the UK.
• would like a qualification which is recognised worldwide as basic training for employment in EFL teaching.
• would like to join our database of job opportunities around the world.

You do not need previous experience, knowledge of teaching, or knowledge of a foreign language for this course. You do need a standard of general education that would allow you to apply for a university course. Of course, if you already have a degree, or are on a degree course, then this does not apply. You should note that some employers, in some destinations (but by no means all) prefer to employ graduates. The discipline is largely irrelevant, i.e. you would not need to have a language degree.

 To find out more about our CELTA courses, we will be offering online Open Evenings and see the Apply Now section for details.

There are various funding options available to help pay for CELTA courses, subject to you meeting the funding bodies' eligibility criteria. Please check our CELTA Funding page for more information.

All sessions take place in small groups. For input, the maximum course size is 18 trainees (12 trainees for the online course), but in the afternoon teaching sessions, this becomes a maximum group of six. We are fortunate to be able to recruit volunteer non-native speaker students at different levels of ability to form a real environment in which you can gain teaching experience. You are guaranteed six hours supervised and observed teaching with at least two levels of student ability. Co-trainees also observe all teaching sessions.

The CELTA course is a demanding programme whether taken full time, part time, or online. It will involve you in a significant amount of additional work outside of formal course time. This time is necessary to prepare satisfactory lessons, to complete assignments, and to generally keep up with the course. Whatever your personal circumstances, but especially if you are working elsewhere or studying additionally, please consider that the demands of the course are high, and that to maintain the integrity of the course and validate the award, we need to rigorously enforce standards of achievement and attendance.

ELTS at Swansea University works with the Swansea University disability unit and Cambridge Exceptions to ensure equality of access and opportunity for all, and given the opportunity to plan, will accommodate particular needs. Under such circumstances, it is very much in the interest of an applicant to notify ELTS at the point of application regarding any personal aspect that might affect course attendance, involvement, or completion, since later notification may affect our ability to fully plan effectively for needs or eventualities. Such needs will never affect our decision on an offer of a place, given otherwise acceptable suitability for the course.

The CELTA Course Online is based on the part-time model. You will do the input sessions online, working through multimedia materials, doing interactive tasks, discussing topics with other course participants and your tutor in forums, and collaborating with other course participants in a virtual classroom.  Teaching practice, feedback, supervised lesson planning, and live observation will require coming into the centre.

As a course participant, you will work with an orientation module and 30 units of online, interactive material based on the syllabus areas. Forum and "Live room" (virtual real-time classroom) tasks are integrated throughout the course.  This means that although the number of times you need to come into the centre is reduced, there are still appointments (virtual or real) that you need to attend. Course participants work independently or collaboratively depending on the task with tutor support, evaluation and comment.

Please note that the materials require participants to be online and cannot be downloaded or worked on off-line.  This is for security and to allow progress monitoring. 

Teaching practice will have a group format with each participant teaching for a total of 6 hours. When you are not teaching, you will watch your colleagues teach (peer observation). Participants will continue to interact with the online environment during the teaching practice phases. There will be a maximum of 12 course participants divided into 2 groups of 6 for teaching.

For the duration of the Cocid 19 emergency, Teaching Practice can be done online, in the same way as above, using the Zoom platform.

The benefits:

• You have more flexibility and self-paced learning when you complete the online component and can fit these around professional and personal commitments.
• You can work and study
• It is especially beneficial to those who live further away from the centre with lower costs.
• Access to material in the comfort of your own home.

The full-time programme is an intensive course which lasts four weeks, running from 9.00am to 5.00pm every weekday.

• The mornings are dedicated to providing you with supervised teaching practice. You are always observed by experienced teachers, and teaching sessions are followed by oral and written feedback sessions. These are framed to give the maximum help, advice, and encouragement to you in developing an efficient and effective classroom style.
• The afternoons are taken up with input sessions: lectures, seminars, and workshops. All of this is very practical and directed towards giving you the information and skills you need to operate effectively in the classroom.

Currently, Covid restrictions mean that this course is run over an extended FIVE week period and all content, including Teaching Practice, is online only.

The Online part-time programme is a semi-intensive course which lasts twelve weeks online, usually with a three-week TP block also running online. The online input programme can be timetabled to suit your own situation, apart from timetabled  weekly zoom meetings. The TP study block  will require timetabled attendance online daily with additional times for personal support sessions. These times vary by course selected, but are usually a full morning or a full afternoon.

The face-to-face part time programme is a semi intensive course which lasts 10 weeks and requires attendance on two days a week, usually from 1200 - 2000:

The first part of the afternoon is dedicated to providing you with supervised teaching practice. You are always observed by experienced teachers, and teaching sessions are followed by oral and written feedback sessions. These are framed to give the maximum help, advice, and encouragement to you in developing an efficient and effective classroom style

The second half of the day (usually 5pm-8pm) is taken up with input sessions: lectures, seminars, and workshops. All of this is very practical and directed towards giving you the information and skills you need to operate effectively in the classroom.

Assessment of the course is in two parts:

• 6 hours of observed classroom teaching
• 4 assignments which relate closely to your developing understanding of teaching and the English language. These are all take home assignments, and there is an opportunity to resubmit work if it is initially not to standard.

The 6 hours of observed classroom teaching relates to your practical classroom skills. You will be observed teaching at two different levels by at least two experienced trainers, who will also help you with writing lesson plans and developing your ability to identify your strengths and weaknesses in the classroom.

The 4 assignments reinforce the work you do in the classroom, and they have a practical focus. The Language Analysis assignment is divided into two parts which look at grammar and vocabulary. The Focus on the Learner requires you to interview a student and analyse their strengths and weaknesses as a learner of English. The Language Related Skills Task involves developing a series of language tasks based on a piece of authentic material, and the Lessons from the Classroom assignment, which is completed in four parts throughout the course, helps you to identify your own strengths and weaknesses as a classroom teacher and to set goals for development.

As an accredited Cambridge CELTA course, the CELTA run by ELTS follows the Cambridge CELTA syllabus used internationally in all CELTA centres.

At the end of the course, trainees receive a passing Grade at Pass, Pass B or Pass A levels. 

CELTA and Qualifications Frameworks (Level 5)

CELTA is recognised as a Level 5 qualification on the National Qualifications Framework (NQF) (England) / Qualifications and Credit Framework (Wales). Please see the following for further details:

The Register of Regulated Qualifications (CELTA) http://register.ofqual.gov.uk/Qualification/Details/501_1891_2 

Compare different qualifications 

https://www.gov.uk/what-different-qualification-levels-mean/compare-different-qualification-levels

We will review your application and contact you to arrange an interview. All suitable applicants are interviewed. Feedback is offered if we are unable to offer an interview.

The CELTA course is a demanding programme, whether taken full time, online or part time. It will involve you in a significant amount of additional work outside of formal course time. This time is necessary to prepare satisfactory lessons, to complete assignments, and to generally keep up with the course. Whatever your personal circumstances, but especially if you are working elsewhere or studying additionally, please consider that the demands of the course are high, and that to maintain the integrity of the course and validate the award, we need to rigorously enforce standards of achievement and attendance. Our decision on suitability for the course is final.

ELTS at Swansea University works with the Swansea University disability unit and Cambridge Exceptions to ensure equality of access and opportunity for all, and given the opportunity to plan, will accommodate particular needs. Under such circumstances, you must inform ELTS at the point of application regarding any personal aspect that might affect course attendance/involvement or completion, since later notification may affect our ability to fully plan effectively for needs or eventualities. Such needs will never affect our decision on an offer of a place, given otherwise acceptable suitability for the course.

The Interview Process

The interview is a very important aspect of the CELTA programme. It is an opportunity for you to meet us and ask any questions you have about the course, and for us to meet you and to assess your suitability for this demanding course.

Face-to-face interviews take place in Swansea, are run by a CELTA trainer, and are normally organised in small groups of applicants. The interview lasts between two and three hours. We can, in exceptional circumstances, arrange interview by Skype or telephone. References will be taken up in addition to the interview. 

Please note that after acceptance at interview, a formal offer letter will be sent by the university. A place on a course will only be reserved if you both formally accept the offer and pay the deposit that is detailed in the offer within a maximum of two weeks after the offer is issued.

We welcome applications from speakers of English whose first language is not English. If your first language is not English, you will need to demonstrate to us a language level of at least IELTS 7.5 in Reading, Writing, Listening, and Speaking (or equivalent). An additional task may be requested from you in these circumstances, and our decision is final.

Applications by Visa Nationals

• Students from outside the EEA who opt to study via the Short Term Student visa route will be permitted to study on the full-time, online, or part-time programmes.
• Any exceptions to the above will be taken on a case-by-case basis in accordance with any relevant regulations.
• Please contact International@CampusLife , +44 (0)1792 513300 with any detailed, personal enquiries regarding your visa status or permission to study in the UK for any of our CELTA programmes.

See our Dates and Fees page for relevant information. 

Course Coordinator: Peter Neville