Sat, 20 March 2010
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Speaking German at a professional level will increase the number of open doors in many areas of expat life. There are many language learning outlets to chose from, but as we argue this week, don’t forget the obvious. |
University language learning centres are never very heavily advertised |
It is of course a question of if the shoe fits, but one way of combining value and validity is to consider one never very heavily advertised option, namely university language learning centres.
Most European higher educational establishments attracting international students will have a facility to allow learners to tighten up their knowledge of the local language and offer the opportunity to pick up more.
And in Berlin at least the Humboldt University is happy to offer spare places to outside students once all those full-time interns have been signed up, and at a snip of a price – EUR 60 for a whole semester comprising 15 weeks, a four-hour session in each one.
'Gasthörer' learners who are complete or basically newcomers to German have to pay more as additional teachers are brought in, but at EUR 300 I wouldn’t think there was much to complain there.
It’s all a bit of a secret, even the 'Sprachenzentrum' is keen to keep it quiet, so my advice is to make contact with the appropriate language head in advance to ensure your name is first up for any spare places.
I have been lucky enough to find myself a seat in the 'Deutsch als Fremdsprache' class, the 'Mittelstufe' level which, at the pace we appear to be going, is expected to set me up for the top-level 'Oberstufe' class after February. My goal is fluency by June.
But it’s not just German on offer. For those considered already fluent but who want to branch out further, the current list of languages offered includes also French, Italian, Polish, Russian, Spanish and Czech.
Trying to size up the education system is one of the hardest things facing those embarking on a foreign posting. We set out what you should know about German schools and daycare.
Want to move to Germany but haven’t figured out the details? Check out Expatica’s overview of the German visa and citizenship system.
In part one of our two part series, we cover the driving culture in Berlin, where to park and buy gas and, most importantly, the laws.
Our comprehensive overview of the ins and outs of employment in Germany, including information on how to find work, recruitment agencies, employment contracts and labour law.
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