Getting certified: Part V—How about Bridge-Linguatec?

The Bridge-Linguatec online TEFL certificate already has a couple things going for it in my book. First, it has a professional and easy- to-navigate website. I think that when signing up for an online education program, this is something very important to examine. It is highly likely that the appearance and usability of the website will reflect those of the online learning tools you'll have to interact with for at least 40 hours. So, you should probably make sure you find the site appealing.

Second, when I called to clarify the price of adding on the “Young Learners” and “Business English” endorsements, the representative simply answered my question. She didn’t pounce on me, throwing out offers and desperate attempts to win my business like the i-to-i rep did.

My confidence in Bridge-Linguatec is also bolstered by the fact that Cambridge has certified it to offer the highly esteemed, onsite Cambridge CELTA.

Bridge-Linguatec has a satisfactory Better Business Bureau record, with 0 complaints filed within the last 36 months. Unlike my experience with i-to-i (which changed from having an unsatisfactory to a satisfactory record within a matter of weeks), I found the exact same report on Bridge-Linguatec when I checked a few weeks ago.

Accreditation

Bridge-Linguatec is accredited by ACCET, the Accrediting Council for Continuing Education & Training. The i-to-i program is also accredited, but by the Open and Distance Learning Council (ODLQC).

It’s hard to say whether one type of accreditation is better than another, but I found a blog on ”TESL Accrediting Bodies” that offers some useful information. The author points out that while the ODLQC visits the applying school (a bonus), it “accredits everything else under the sun besides TESL courses from ‘Acupressure & Acupuncture’ to ‘Zen for Modern Living.’” He or she also notes that ODLQC charges an annual fee for accreditation, so it obviously has vested interests. The same blog unfortunately does not discuss ACCET, Bridge-Linguatec's accrediting body. However, ACCET outlines its extensive accreditation process online.

I’ve also learned throughout this process, from the blog mentioned above and from a Dave’s ESL Cafe post, that some TEFL certificate providers will actually start accreditation programs in order to accredit themselves. Another thing to beware of.

Conclusions

From my research, I’ve personally deduced that Bridge-Linguatec is stable, usable and likeable—altogether able as a certificate provider. Tomorrow we’ll see how a couple other competitors measure up.