To apply for the course both you and us need to follow a procedure set out by the Cambridge University.

• Entry requirements
• The application form
• The pre-interview task
• The interview
• After the interview
• How to prepare for the course

Candidates must be at least 18 years old at the start of the course. (It is generally recommended that candidates should be aged 20 or over, but candidates aged between 18 and 20 can be accepted at the centre’s discretion.) They must have a standard of education which would allow entrance to higher education in their country. They must have an awareness of language, and a competence in English, both written and spoken, that enables them to undertake the course and prepare for teaching a range of levels. They must also have the potential to develop into effective teachers.

To apply for the course you will need to complete an application with a pre-interview task and send it to celta@ihfrankfurt.de. You can also apply online and submit online. Upon submitting, please add celta@ihfrankfurt.de to your allowed emailing list to prevent email responses from being filtered to your Junk Mail folder.

What we need to know are the typical things, such as:

• Personal details (name, address etc.)
• Nationality and country of residence
• Native language and other languages
• Qualifications
• Present occupation and work experience

We have a reputation for excellent response to applications, so if you do not hear from us within 48 hours of emailing us, please telephone +49 (0)69 133 888 0

The pre-interview task is meant to give both you and us a first impression if the CELTA is a suitable course for you. The kinds of things that are tested in the pre-interview task are:

• Meaning and form of language
• Describing language
• Contextualising language
• Lexis and phonology

Getting a really low mark for your pre-interview task will prevent you from being accepted on the course, however, places on the course are not offered based solely on this task.

Once your task has been approved, you will be invited for an interview, preferably face to face but it is possible to take the interview by phone or Skype as well.

The interviewer will be interested in your fluency and language learning background, as well as your motivation to take the course, and how you will cope with giving and, of course, getting feedback. Assuming you are applying for the full-time course, we will also want to know if you have cleared your agenda for the full month of the course.

Moreover, the interview is meant to clear any questions that you may have.

We will inform you at the end of the interview if you are accepted for the course and give you tips on how to prepare.

To secure a place on the course once you have been accepted, you are expected to pay a €200 deposit. The full fee needs to be paid at least four weeks before the start of the course. Applicants applying less than six weeks before the course are required to pay the fees on acceptance. We will accept late applications if there are still places on the course.

Please note: Wherever possible, correspondence with prospective course candidates is carried out by email.

Please note: We will accept the application form and pre-interview task you may already have completed for a CELTA course at another Cambridge approved CELTA centre. We would like to have a brief chat with you but a second application and interview will not be necessary, provided that another approved CELTA centre has accepted you and you send us your application and the letter of acceptance.

Once you have been accepted, we will provide you with a pre-course task. This task will introduce you to and prepare you for all the topics that will be introduced on the course and will take you about 8-10 hours to complete. It is advisable to do the task in the last two weeks before the start of the course so everything is fresh in your mind. You will not be graded for your answers but the preparation will help you a lot during your course, especially if you are following a full-time CELTA course with little time for extensive reading.

Be aware that the CELTA course itself is NOT a grammar course. We focus, among others, on how to teach grammar. If you feel you need to brush-up your language awareness, or have been advised to do so during the interview, we will give you free access to an online grammar course from the University of Cambridge, which has been specially designed for starting teachers and CELTA candidates who need to brush-up their language awareness. With a bit of effort, you will be well prepared before your course starts. This is an ideal course to prepare for the CELTA. During the course we have language analysis input sessions to help you. Otherwise there are many books on the market to help you improve your language awareness.

The ELT campus has developed an introductory course, which will give you a basic grounding in English language teaching concepts and core principles that will be introduced on the CELTA course. You will find this course at: http://eltcampus.com/product/tefl-preparation-course/

Other resources

Once you have been accepted for the course, you will need to buy a grammar book and a book about methodology, which you will both need on the course.

However, there is some free online reading to prepare for your CELTA course available as well.

“Success on your Certificate Course in English Language Teaching.” This book, which you view almost in its entirety on Google Books, covers a lot of areas, not just the course. Definitely worth a read.

“Grammar for teachers.” You can read this book freely on Google books. This is not a grammar book for learners but for people who are teaching or want to prepare for the CELTA course.