Is the Online CELTA Recognised? A Guide to Acceptance, Legitimacy, and Hiring

The shift to online CELTA delivery began out of necessity during the pandemic, but it has stayed because it works. Today, the CELTA delivered online is fully recognised by Cambridge and, crucially, is treated as a full CELTA by employers around the world. Yet thousands of candidates still search for the same reassurance every month: Is the online CELTA legitimate? Will employers accept it? Does the certificate look different?

This guide gives clear, factual answers based on Cambridge’s policies and our own experience running multiple online CELTA courses with graduates working worldwide.

1. Who recognises the online CELTA?

Cambridge awards every CELTA, whether completed online or face-to-face. Cambridge Assessment does not classify them as two distinct qualifications. There is no separate “online CELTA” certificate. There is only CELTA, the Cambridge Certificate in Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages.

2. Does the certificate say ‘online’?

No.The certificate is identical for all delivery formats. It does not reference online study, online teaching practice, or the mode of delivery. This alone answers most recognition questions: If Cambridge considered the online format different or lower in standard, they would not award the same certificate.

3. Are assessment and moderation the same?

Yes. Cambridge outlines the same 42 teaching criteria, the same assignment requirements, and the same external moderation system across online and face-to-face courses. External assessors review lessons, trainee portfolios, assignments, and course documentation exactly as they do for in-person courses. The result is that the academic and assessment standards are identical.

4. Is online Teaching Practice equivalent to classroom TP?

Cambridge treats them as fully equivalent. All requirements are the same:

• Real adult learners of English (not your colleagues on the course)

• A minimum of 6 hours of assessed teaching

• At least 8 assessed lessons

• At least two learner levels

• At least two hours teaching a level below intermediate

• Minimum class size and average class size rules identical to in-person CELTA

The expectations for planning, delivery, assessment, language analysis, and reflection are unchanged.

5. Do employers accept the online CELTA?

In practice, yes. Employers generally treat online CELTA and face-to-face CELTA as the same qualification, because they are the same qualification and the certificate does not identify the delivery mode.

Across our online courses, graduates have secured roles in:

• Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Morocco, and Egypt

• Italy, Spain, France, and the UK/Ireland

• Vietnam, South Korea, and wider East Asia

• Mexico and Central America

• Central Asia (Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan)

Large chains, British Council-associated centres, partner organisations, and private language schools have shown no systematic distinction in how they treat online graduates.

6. Are there regions where employers may ask extra questions?

There is occasional individual prejudice, especially in parts of the Middle East and North Africa, but this is not the same as a policy or national rule. Countries don't distinguish between online and face-to-face CELTA at official level. The common source of confusion is the phrase “online TEFL not accepted.” This usually refers to low-quality TEFL certificates that consist of reading some PDFs and watching some videos, not online CELTA. Online CELTA involves:

• real teaching practice

• real adult learners

• live tutor observation

• structured criteria

• external moderation

It is not comparable to those short online TEFL courses.

7. What does ‘online CELTA’ actually involve?

For us, an online CELTA means:

• Live input sessions with qualified tutors

• Live assessed teaching practice with real students

• Zoom-based delivery 

• Identical syllabus and content hours to face-to-face full-time CELTA

• A global tutor team (based in UK, Latvia, Spain, Mexico, Lebanon, Portugal, Cyprus, the US, Brazil)

• A global trainee cohort

For the part-time course, there is some structured self-study to allow weekly live meetings rather than multiple sessions per week. But the assessment, standards, TP, and outcomes remain the same.

8. Is an online CELTA right for everyone?

The qualification is equivalent. The hiring outcome is equivalent.But the experience is a little different.

Online CELTA suits you if:

• You are comfortable using technology

• You have access to a reliable computer and internet

• You prefer working from home or cannot travel

• You want experience of teaching online as well as in person

Face-to-face CELTA may be preferable if:

• You strongly dislike technology

• You find online environments tiring or frustrating

• You prefer in-person support and in-room motivation

These are personal learning-style considerations, not recognition issues.

9. Will online CELTA put me at a disadvantage when applying for jobs?

In most contexts, no. The certificate is identical, employers generally treat CELTA as CELTA, and there is no country-level difference in acceptance. If an individual employer queries delivery mode, the simplest factual reassurance is: Cambridge awards the same certificate and applies the same standards to all CELTA courses.

10. Summary: Is the online CELTA recognised?

Yes. Fully.Cambridge recognises online CELTA as equivalent to face-to-face CELTA in every meaningful respect:

• The same certificate

• The same assessment criteria

• The same moderation

• The same teaching practice requirements

• The same global recognition

Where individual prejudice exists, it is rare, employer-specific, and almost always rooted in confusion with low-quality online TEFL courses. Online CELTA is not one of those courses. It is CELTA.

To see upcoming dates, prices, and full course details, visit our Online CELTA page.

Online CELTA Details