TEFL INTL I am worried about them

[lincoln]

I am in Beijing on the speicial project program for TEFL INTL. I am really worried. I saw this link should I just leave the country. TEFL International Beijing Scam: WARNING! - China School & Recruiter Review - Teach in China

They tell me it is not problem to work on this visa but after I saw this what should I do.

This link basically shows an overall feedback written by our previous trainees since TEFL INT'L Beijing Office was set up in 2007. Beijing has the one of the best feedbacks around different locations in the world. The Olympic Games did give us some minor problems, but it was over. I'm sure some of the students did get frustrated sometimes. But we always try our best to give everyone a good experience while they are here. We know that it is impossible to satisfy everyone, but do have a look at our feedback page, we would be glad to help.

TEFL International - Student's Feedback

To all readers:

My name is Bruce Veldhuisen and I am the Chief Executive Officer of TEFL International.

It is my understanding that, mainly due to changes in government policy leading up to the Olympics, our center in Beijing ran into some troubles. it is also my understanding that the former managers of the center did not handle the problems well. For this reason TEFL International chose to move in a new direction with new management in Beijing.

As the largest course provider in the world, with 27 active locations, there are bound to be occasional glitches. And even though I am based in Thailand, I am ultimately responsible for them all--that's the responsibility of a CEO.

If any course participant feels they were treated unfairly or somehow cheated, please contact me directly at brucev@teflintl.com. I will do anything within my power to resolve the problem fairly.

If you still feel unsatisfied, please contact the Better Business Bureau. As members in good standing, we are obligated to resolve disputes in a fair and equitable manner.

For those wondering about our overall course feedback, just check online at TEFL International Alumni Portal. you will find that.overall, our courses are very well thought of by our participants.

Be careful dealing with Bruce Veldhuisen and TEFL International... get a CELTA or Trinity and don't waste your time and money!!!

The websites I am speaking of are:
TEFL Courses , TESOL Courses , TEFL Certificate , TESOL Certification
TEFL International
TEFL / TESOL Course Thailand - Phuket, Chiang Mai, Pattaya
TEFL Course, TEFL TESOL Course, Online TEFL TESOL Certification, English Teaching Jobs, Teach English Abroad Jobs - Best School Teach English Abroad

Please see my BBB dispute polls on Dave's ESL:
Job Discussion Forums :: View topic - TEFL International BBB Dispute

and on Thai VISA:
My Bbb Dispute With Tefl International And Bruce Veldhuisen - Thailand Forum

My BBB complaint is still open and judge for yourself if you consider my dispute handled in a "in a fair and equitable manner." to quote Bruce.

- QueenMac / Ann

My name is Henry, I work at TEFL INTL Beijing Office, I would like to clarify some of the visa issues here to everyone, I also helped some of my former colleagues sort out their visa problems. Basically there are mainly four types of visas in China. They are: Student Visas, Business Visas, Tourist Visas and Work Visas. Below is from the best of my knowledge, please correct me if I'm wrong.

Student Visas (this is the type of visa that is given to foreign students who study at any Chinese public universities): Only Chinese universities are entitled to issue Student Visas, this visa is valid for a year.

Business Visas: This visa applies to people who plan to come to China for a short business visit, such as seminars, trainings (a TESOL program, Mandarin Classes, Cultural Exchange programs etc), internships, this visa has to be applied with an Invitation Letter issued by any legally-registered organization (Domestic, Joint Venture or foreign companies). The length of this visa varies from 1 month up to a year.

Work Visas: Any legally-registered organization (Domestic, Joint Venture or Foreign companies) can sign an agreement of employment with a foreigner, and then with a permit of the Department of Labor of PRC, the applicant can get a year-long work visa.

Tourist Visas: People who come to China to travel need to get a Tourist Visa.

Now let's talk about our own training center, we run 2 projects here. One is called "Intensive TESOL Certification Program", which is a four-week course; the other one is "TEFL Internship Program/Special China Project", this is a three-month program where trainees come to Beijing to complete an internship with the us and some of our affiliated ESL schools where they practice teaching and get observed periodically, at the end they that come to take these two programs have to get a Business Visa. TEFL INT'L Beijing is a training institute that is registered and approved by the Department of Education, we are entitled to issue invitation letters to people who come to take our courses. For the past two years, we have gained good reputation and helped approximately 200 applicants become better ESL teachers,some of our graduates are now working at some internationally renowned ESL schools like: EF, Berlitz and Wall Street Institute. Of course, we always do our best to satisfy our participants, because this is our job. I regret that I saw some negative feedbacks from some websites, we will definitely improve our service, we also welcome any well-founded advice, I'm glad that you shared your experience with us. Thank you all.

Listen henry you are not answering the questions. If you give a certificate of any kind you have to give the student a S visa. That is a fact. So are you saying tefl intl does not issue certs. If you just give some sort of lecture and do not give them a cert then you can get by on an F. The main problem is this if you the student get caught talking this course on an F you are responsible for yourself. Tefl Intl will not get in trouble.

For your slave camp project as I have heard you call it Henry. That is just 100 percent illegal. You are not allowed to take the salaries from the students. This is very clear in Chinese law. So the Beijing special project is 100 percent illegal. Again you the worker are responsible for yourself. As henry did before when a lot of people got in trouble he ran away and turned off his phone and blamed everyone else.

The projects for TI make no sense. You are just better of going to china and doing it yourself. It is really easy to do and you will not have the trouble of dealing with people that have no interest in helping you.

For all reading this keep in mind I really gain nothing from informing you of the truth. However tefl intl has to lie to keep this scam going. I have talked to the PSB at length and said this kind of business practices are something to stay clear of. Feel free to contact the PSB like I did. Also the Embassy in your country can inform you on the current laws. China is another world guys and can be tricky please do your homework before making an investment
Also I got all my information from the public security bureau in Beijing china. Also know as the PSB. which is the department that handles foreigners visa regulations. I would think the department that makes rules would be the best place to go and when they tell me the rules it is fact. I know henry is Chinese so that means he knows all the laws of china. Ha Ha LOL. Seriously this is illegal and you will get caught. I did so I am trying to warn you guys.

If you plan to attend the course they need to get you a Student visa.

If you want to do the Beijing projects or whatever they want to call them. You have to have a working Visa. Also they can’t take your salaries legally and you cannot teach only watch.

The Business visa or F visa is very easy to get. Any person can write you a letter and you can get it But really you can’t do anything on this visa. I had this Visa and I had to prove I spent a hundred dollars a day in china or I would be fined and thrown out of the country. At this time I tried to contact henry but he turned of his phone and ran away from the problem. Leaving us to take the fall.

So Bruce the CEO is just not truthful in his posts. His says that they just got the docs from the govt to get visas for students but they give you the same visa. The fact that he makes an issue of it says a lot. Why would you log on and announce that you have solved the problem when you give the same visas?

If you look I took a long time to reply to this. This is because I wanted to make sure I was right. I Had several meetings with the officials in the PSB before posting this. They told me 100 percent this is not legal. I asked them why don’t they just shut them down? He said it is only a matter of time. He also made it clear that I should stay as far away from things like this as I can.

Please go to the PSB and ask them if you don’t think I am being truthful.

Henry will say ohh you ignorant that is because he cant say anything else. Ignorance comes from a lack of knowledge so yes guys dont be ignorant go to the psb and ask

Since Queen Mac is here posting, I thought we should show what happened in the end of her complaint.

NAME:

Rebecca Rohling
DAY PHONE:

251 473-6502
ADDRESS:

758 St. Michael St. #506 36602
Mobile, AL
EVE PHONE:

251 635-8647

EMAIL:

arohling@gmail.com


She complained to the BBB and the case was unresolved so it went to binding arbitration.

The arbitrator agreed completely with TEFL International. Ann received no refund.

There are occasions when TI screws up and we refund peoples money or give discounts. But just because someone complains does not mean their complaint is valid. But the BBB is independent and anyone who feels they have not received a fair deal from TI should contact them.

"So Bruce the CEO is just not truthful in his posts. His says that they just got the docs from the govt to get visas for students but they give you the same visa. The fact that he makes an issue of it says a lot. Why would you log on and announce that you have solved the problem when you give the same visas?"

If you could please show me where I made this claim I would be most interested. In fact I know nothing about the visa process in China and have never claimed that I do.

Not sure why this was not posted earlier but Queen Mac made a lot of claims about us. She also mentions her complaint to the BBB. An arbitrator reviewed the case and sided with TEFL International and denied all of Ann's requests and claims.

Justice is a wonderful thing. Hey, we screw up sometimes and when we do we usually own up to it.

I posted this link a few months ago when I was at the height of my frustration level, so I am having trouble locating all the links to post the BBB results. I apologize for the delay.

First of all, I understood fully from the beginning that my deposit was non-refundable based on the legal information displayed on their website. They were within their rights not refund/apply my deposit money regardless of the customer service issues I encountered. In the end, I know my reaction was fueled by stress factors outside of TEFL's control (my job, moving, etc.) and my reaction was a bit over the top. TEFL's management has answered all my concerns in a timely manner and as in all businesses, we cannot account for the quality of every single worker. It was unfair of me to blast the entire organization the way I did.

Secondly, after the hearing, the BBB did not agree in my favor. TEFL was not required by the BBB to give me a refund or apply my deposit to a future course.

To wrap things up, once TEFL and I were informed of the BBB decision, the management of TEFL International has been gracious enough to still offer the transfer of my deposit into a future course. I am currently registering for one of their on-site courses located in Europe this fall.

*** Additional Note ****
Please remove my personal information from this forum - that should not be posted for public display.