intesol international dip. tesol worthwhile?

[jphillipson]

After nearly 10 years teaching on the strength of my Trinity cert TESOL I am thinking of doing a Diploma course prior to applying for jobs in the Middle East in order to max out my earnings.

Having a family to support, I can't afford to take time off work so I need to look at distance learning options. Obviously the Trinity Dip TESOL is a mighty serious contender, but it's expensive and the Distance learning course involves a 2 week residential course in Edinburgh - logistically difficult as we live in Spain, and, again, expensive.

Another option that I've started looking at is INTESOL international's Diploma in TESOL. This also looks like a good, well-accredited course, it's much cheaper than Trinity and it's done entirely remotely - no face-to-face element, no final exam.

But of course the essential question is - do employers take this qualification seriously? Does anyone have any experience of this course either as a teacher/student or as an employer?

[Alex Case]

It can be complicated with initial teaching qualifications, but with diplomas it is quite simple - most employers will only accept Cambridge and Trinity. Even university diploma courses are far less accepted. Much more info here:
http://www.tefl.net/tefl-courses/faq-tefl-diploma.htm

It is possible to do the Cambridge Delta entirely online through Bell.