Here you can find answers to your questions about our language courses.
The Language Centre mainly offers courses in German, Italian and English to support students in reaching the required language levels in the three languages of instruction according to their respective study program (C1, C1 and B2 for Bachelors and C1, C1 and B1 for trilingual Masters).
Depending on your starting levels in each language, you will follow different language learning paths to reach your target levels in each language.
The language model consists of a sequence of intensive courses (6 hours a day, 30 hours a week) which take place before, between, and after the semesters, and extensive courses during the semesters (40 hours, 4 or 8 hours a week).
The Language Centre also offers preparation courses for international language proficiency exams (CELI, TestDaF, Cambridge, IELTS) and courses in other languages (Spanish, French, Arabic, Chinese, Russian and Ladin).
The German, Italian and English courses are organized throughout the academic year and include extensive and intensive course modules organized into sequential learning paths:
Open the summary of when courses are offered throughout the academic year: As you can see, we do not offer courses for all levels all year round!
Courses in other languages are held exclusively during the semester, twice a week in the evening or on Saturday mornings.
You can enroll in language courses via my SNS (here)during official course enrolment periods if the next module in your learning path is offered during that particular course session.
In other words, during the course enrolment period, you will only be able to see those language courses that you can access based on the last course you have completed or the language level you have certified on my SNS.
If you have never attended a language course at the Language Centre and do not know your current language level, please contact us to receive a placement test or language advising. Based on a formal assessment of your current level, you will be placed in a language course accordingly.
The exact dates on which the language courses will be held and the relevant enrolment periods are constantly updated in the Study Guide under "German, Italian and English Courses".
If you are a student at the Conservatory, you will not be able to enroll in language courses via my SNS, but will need to get in touch with us.
You can visit us at the Infopoint during our opening hours or contact us at language.centre@unibz.it.
You can also find out about the dates of the language courses and enrolment deadlines by contacting the secretaries at the Conservatory.
The Language Centre’s language courses are not compulsory, but we strongly recommend that you attend them. Extensive experience and data demonstrate that it is very difficult to reach the required language levels without completing your learning path.
Please do not underestimate the importance of this!
If you enroll in a language course, this implies a commitment to regularly attend and actively participate.
If you attend at least 75% of the lessons, then you will be able to take the end-of-course test, which allows you to access the next course at the next level.
In practice, you can miss up to a maximum of 10 hours in a 40-hour extensive or intensive course, a maximum of 15 hours in a 60-hour intensive course (2 weeks) and a maximum of 22 hours in an intensive 90-hour course (intensive courses of 3 weeks for freshers).
N.B. Not all levels are offered all year round!
No, you do not have to complete any language course to take the exam.
However, it is strongly advised that you register for the exam only after completing the learning path that leads to that level (e.g., after completing the B1.2b course for the B1 level or the B2.2b course for the B2 level).
No, this is not enough in itself. Learning a language is a complex process and language courses are certainly essential if you want to improve your language skills.
However, it is essential to take advantage of all possibilities to engage with the target language outside of formal instruction to practice and improve your language skills.
Try to make the target language part of your daily life and "communicate" as much as you possibly can in that language!
The language learning model at unibz conceives five language course sessions per year.
The course system is modular and is based on 4 language learning paths.
All students are placed in one of these four learning paths based on their current level. If you consistently attend the language courses sequentially, you will always have the possibility to attend the next module in your path.
However, if you skip a course session, you may have to wait one or more course session before your next module is offered again. If you are a true beginner, or your next level is A2, you may have to wait one full year.
It is therefore extremely important not to skip a module during a semester or to skip an intensive course.
We advise that you devote the first year and a half of your studies at unibz to the acquisition of languages and reaching your required levels (if you do not yet have them). We therefore recommend that you attend all courses, both during the semesters and the intensive courses.
If (e.g., for health or work reasons) you are unable to attend a course during a course session, please contact us to try to find a suitable solution.
There can be many reasons for this:
You will only be able to attend the language course that best suits your current language proficiency.
If we do not have any information about your current level (because you do not have a language certificate or because you have not yet completed a course) you will have to contact us to take an online placement test or speak to one of our language advisers.
Based on the results of your placement test or consultation with a language adviser, you will be able to enroll in the language course that is most appropriate for you (if it is offered in that semester/period of the year).
Contact us to obtain a placement test: language.centre@unibz.it.
The results of the placement test will enable you to enroll in a language course that is most appropriate given your current level.
You can only repeat a course you have already attended if you have not yet certified the corresponding level (e.g., you have completed the B2.2b course, but have not yet passed the internal B2 exam). In this case registration is not possible via my SNS, but you will have to contact the Language Centre.
If you have already certified a certain level, but still wish to repeat a language course at that level, you can only do so if there are still places available.
Students who have not yet certified the level are given registration priority.
If you have certified the level, we will put you on a waiting list and you will receive confirmation at the end of the enrolment period whether you can repeat the course or not.
In the Study Guide, you will find the possible time slots for extensive/intensive language courses.
When you sign up on my SNS, you will see the exact times of the course you are interested in.
Once enrolments are closed, the language course timetable will be available on the online timetable (www.unibz.it > Services > Timetable > "Area" = "Language Centre" > search with keywords, e.g. Deutsch A2.1 + name of teacher).
N.B. At the moment, the course timetable cannot be displayed on my SNS and, therefore, it is not possible to add it to your Individual Timetable in the same way as the faculty courses.
All information on the language courses and textbooks used in the courses can be found in the "Syllabi" available in the Study Guide.
To enroll in the next course (i.e., module after the one you are currently attending), you must pass the end-of-course test with 60/100 points.
If you have not taken or failed the test, please contact the Language Centre's language coordinators to discuss possible options.
The end of course test usually takes place on the last day of the course. Please bear this in mind!
Yes, in this case please contact your teacher immediately, who will assess your request based on your language skills.
The Language Centre will only place you in another course if the teacher confirms that your level is appropriate for that course.
Autonomous learning is at least as important as attending language courses.
Autonomous learning can be very effective if it is carefully planned and carried out with the dedication required.
If you need support in drawing up an autonomous learning plan, you can make an appointment with a language advisor.
In the Study Guide you can find useful materials and resources for autonomous language learning.
You can also find additional language services offered by the Language Centre.
You can also practice the language with the Tandem programme.
No, it is not possible. The language curriculum of the Language Centre is very broad and follows a very precise structure.
Ad hoc courses cannot be activated outside the language learning model.
The courses offered on all three university campuses cannot be activated unless a minimum number of participants has been reached.
If in one location the minimum number of participants is not, we will contact you to invite you to participate in a course at the same level on one of the other campuses where the same course has been activated.