Our courses	Our groups	Placement test	From our students
Our teachers	Our fees	Certificate of completion	Medellin and its surroundings
Our methodology	Our schedule	Other services	Contacts

Our courses

• Spanish language and culture courses

We offer you a full 16-module course in Spanish language and living culture:

Each level is a 40-hour course. You can study at your own speed and according to your personal needs. Choose between an intensive course (20 hours per week) and a semi-intensive course (10 hours per week).

Besides, you can choose from a whole range of other courses.

• Special courses in: Spanish for business, Latin-American literature, writing, pronunciation, grammar (basic, intermediate, advanced).

• Humanistic formation courses in: Different manifestations of culture: art, cinema, history, religions of the world.

• Academic extension courses in:  Folkloric dances, tropical dancing (salsa, merengue, etc.), literary creation, typical food, culture and society, Colombia today, initiation to theater.

Our teachers

Our teachers are all native speakers and experienced professionals in teaching a foreign language. They are very nice and friendly, and they have been specially trained to meet the needs of our students both in and out of the classroom. At our Language Center you will always have someone who speaks your language: English, French, Italian, German, Portuguese, or Japanese.

Our methodology

In our Language Center we believe that the best methodology for learning a foreign language is by mixing a wide variety of tasks and activities in order to achieve our primary goal: international communication. Of course, you will study grammar and you will learn how to speak, read and write the language, but also you will be given insight into how to behave culturally in order to interact better with Latin-American societies.

Our groups

In order to achieve your goals more effectively each of our groups will have no more than 10 students.

Course modalities and fees for 2009:

- GROUP CLASS (4 to 10 students): 14,000 pesos per hour.

- SEMI-INDIVIDUAL CLASS (1 to 3 students): 27,000 pesos per hour.

- PRIVATE LESSON: 38,000 pesos per hour.

Our schedule

Our schedule is very flexible. You can study in the morning, at noon, in the afternoon, or in the evening. Typical schedules are as follows:

Morning	Noon	Afternoon	Evening
8 to 10 / 10 to 12	12 to 2	2 to 4 / 4 to 6	6 to 8

If you wish, we can also arrange private lessons at different hours that accommodate to your needs. NOTE: special fees are applied.

Placement test

If you already know some Spanish, then you will be asked to take a placement test before the beginning of the course. This test includes a short interview with one of our teachers.

 Certificate of completion

After completing the whole course you will receive a certificate of completion if you have attended at least 80% of the lessons.

 Other services

Thanks to an agreement with a local exchange company, we are in the position of offering you the following services:

• Housing: there are three housing options: you can stay with family in an individual or a shared room, ‚ you can choose to live in a fully furbished apartment, ƒ or you can stay at an apartment hotel near our campus.
• Airport pick-up:  you may be picked up at the airport upon your arrival and guided to your new housing.
• Health services: Integrated Assistance Insurance covering the full period of your stay.
• Visa: assistance in getting a proper visa.

Plus:

• Tutor: you will have the opportunity to be accompanied by a university student as a tutor. This will help you to feel more comfortable and accepted while in campus.
• Access to multimedia laboratory: as a regular student of the university, you are allowed to use our multimedia room for the purpose of learning or practicing the language.
• Extracurricular activities: the Language Center organizes outings with the students to museums and places of interest both in and around the city of Medellín. The UPB also plans a wide range of musical and sports events usually free of charge that the students are encouraged to attend.

From our students

“I had the opportunity to study at the UPB and I can say that it is a life experience both as a student and as a person”. Marcio, from Brazil

 

“I think the teachers I had were really good and helpful with everything, even things that were not connected to the course”. Elad, from Israel

 

“Although the course was very short I learned a lot from it.　The teachers were very good and so was the rest of the staff”. Oz, from Israel

About Medellín and its surroundings

Medellín is a modern city of more than 3 million inhabitants. It has an average climate of 24°C (75°F) all year round. The city lies in a valley surrounded by high mountains at an altitude of 1,538 meters over the sea level. Medellín is the first industrial center of Colombia and the first fashion center in Latin America. It is home to worldwide known artist Fernando Botero. It is also home to the Flower Festival, a huge event that takes place in late July and early August. Medellín has a metropolitan transportation system unique in Colombia. By living in Medellín you have a chance to experience different climates (from very cold to very hot) in its surrounding towns and locations. Medellín is a strong city in different sports like soccer, cycling, swimming, skating, and others.

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