Page 24 - ELG2202 Feb Issue 479

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SUMMER SCHOOLS

The r
eal deal
The real deal

If you want a university experience don’t settle for anything less, says Melanie Butler

he appeal of summer courses branded
as a ‘university experience’ and held
in an ivy-clad Oxbridge college or
T other ancient-looking UK campus
is easy to understand. What is less obvious PHOTO WIKIMEDIA COMMONS
is why so many students choose to go to one
run by a language school or other private
sector education group, good as some of these
are, when – if you’re looking for a university
experience – you could perfectly easily go to
one run by a university.
Oxford, the UK’s oldest university, runs
its very own residential summer school for
adults (18+) exploring a different academic
area every week. For 16-18 year olds, St
Andrews, the oldest university in Scotland,
runs a Summer Academic Experience Course;
while Aberystwyth, the oldest in Wales, runs a
University Experience Course covering British
culture and English language.
These kinds of courses are not only likely to
be more authentic, they are also more likely Oxford offers a real university experience, from classroom to location
to feature teachers who actually work at the
university, rather than undergraduates trained likely to be impressed by the fact that you For courses focused on academic English, all
in the subject but not in how to teach it or attended a course about university life run three of the Gazette’s top-ranking university
English language teachers who took a first by the Bloggins School of English or by the language centres – Manchester, Sheffield and
degree in the subject at some other university fact your course was run by an actual world- Edge Hill – offer summer schools, as does
several years ago. famous university? our top-ranking Scottish centre at Perth
The university-run course isn’t likely to be For those with a high enough level College, which is part of the University of
any more expensive – the university doesn’t of English, there is a range of academic the Highlands and Islands. When it comes to
need to rent rooms in its own buildings, nor subjects on offer: science and engineering at learning the English you need for university,
is profit the main motive for running the Manchester, fashion at Regent’s University it should be no surprise to learn that it’s the
course – universities use them primarily to in London or research skills at Keele’s School universities who excel at teaching it, not least
attract future students, either from their of Medicine. Those who need to polish their because they attract the most qualified and
summer intake or from the students’ peer English can sign up for an English language experienced teachers.
groups back home. course at the same universities and spend their All things considered, if you’re looking for a
Most important of all is its effect on a summer alongside international students from university experience, you might as well go to
student’s CV. Are future employers more across the world. one run by a university.

Immerse yourself in Monterey

One US university is turning the tables by launching its own language school

hile English language schools are in partnership with highly respected fellow
launching university experience Vermont college Bennington, have enrolled
programmes, a US university has a total of 58,000 students year-round since
Wlaunched its own English language their inception.
school. Middlebury College is opening its new The new English language school is based PHOTO WIKIMEDIA COMMONS
California-based language school this summer at the Middlebury Institute for International
with the first session beginning 27 June. Studies in Monterey, California, which
Middlebury, a liberal arts college with its was acquired by Middlebury in 2010. The
main campus in Vermont, is rated as the English Language School, which will adopt
40th best university in the US in this year’s Middleybury’s signature immersion method,
TES University Rankings. Long highly is accredited by CE and will offer courses year
rated for its foreign language programmes, round in eight- and 16-week sessions, as well
it’s been offering foreign language summer as an eight-week summer course.
schools since 2015, when it launched its The English language school’s director, Middlebury Monterey may be the only
German Language School. It now offers Rogers Walker, explains Middlebury students university English language school in the
schools in 12 languages ranging from Arabic must take “...the Language Pledge to USA, but it joins a small if elite club, including
and French to Abenaki, an endangered communicate only in the language they’re Dublin City University’s centre and Malta
indigenous North American language. The studying. This time-tested immersive approach University Language School, which is now
Middlebury language schools, some operated results in rapid progress for our students.” 50 years old.
24 February 2022