Hi Hypiereon,
In answer to your query regarding "internationally recognised" TEFL certificates - employers/institutes offering IELTS tend to mean those certificates accredited by Cambridge University or Trinity College London i.e. the CELTA or Trinity Cert. TESOL. These were the original certificates formulated in the 70s and therefore set the standard.
This is a slightly traditional view as many providers like
SIT TESOL,
LADO,
TEFL International and of course
EF's TEFL Certificate Training offer excellent courses which employers deem as internationally recognised because they contain the minimum 6 hours observed teaching practice with overseas students (as does the Level 4 Cert in TESOL offered by many providers in Australia - see Geo_star's entry).
So basically the "internationally recognised" bit refers more to the content of the course rather than the provider of it.
I hope this helps clear things up from an employer’s prospective.
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