There are plenty of TEFL courses of around 100 to 150 hours’ duration that have not been rubber-stamped by Cambridge or Trinity. Many schools that provide TEFL courses feel they know enough about running their TEFL programmes and that they don’t need external quality control. Others prefer not to have to pay the exam board registration fee, which can rise to well over £100 per course participant. This can help them to pass on a lower price to you, the customer.
These courses are largely based on the original 4 week course model, with 2 to 3 hours of input sessions and 2 to 3 hours of teaching practice each day. They may well be taught by tutors with very good qualifications and years of experience. Some providers also have their own internal validation process.
These courses are generally very well viewed in their local context, and are often an excellent alternative for would-be teachers who intend to get a few years' teaching experience in a particular location. It can be argued that after a few years' as a teacher, the actual TEFL course you followed at the beginning of your TEFL journey is much less important than the teaching experience itself.
