FAQ

Founded in 1968 in Switzerland, the company began as a small network of language schools and is now one of the global market leaders for language services.

Today, inlingua has more than 300 language centers worldwide and supports millions of language students with different backgrounds in the acquisition of a new language. inlingua relies on a solid network of local licensees who offer individual service locally.

inlingua Hamburg is certified to the highest international standards, such as ISO 29990 and other national and international quality standards. You benefit not only from our worldwide organization, but also from inlingua's outstanding method and expertise.

The inlingua Center in Hamburg is owner-managed. For you, this means short cuts for questions and problems. Above all, however, it means that we are committed to you with all our heart.

When you attend a course at inlingua, you will receive a meaningful certificate of participation at the end of the course. If you take an exam at inlingua, you will receive a qualifying certificate.

No, the inlingua teaching material is designed to enable a native-speaking trainer to work with you to develop new vocabulary, additional grammatical structures or additional functions. In the inlingua teaching material you will find a summary of the learning contents and a variety of exercises to consolidate them in the follow-up to the training and to prepare them for your own application through role plays and other activities.

Our courses are structured in accordance with the levels of the European Framework of Reference for Languages and each ends with a "Certificate of Achievement" as proof of the level achieved. If a level is not completed by an examination, your inlingua center will issue a certificate of attendance.

inlingua language training can be held at the inlingua Center, at your company or at locations of your choice, e.g. at a hotel. We offer a special company service for this purpose.

All programmes, regardless of whether they are carried out in the country of the language to be acquired or locally, draw their efficiency from the quantity and quality of the controlled and supervised exercise. Therefore, of course, the programmes in the target language country have the incomparable advantage of being able to practice monolingually without interruption for long periods of time. Since this takes place both in the structured environment of the language training and in the everyday situation based on spontaneous reaction, the deepening effect is certainly optimal. However, it must also be assumed here that particularly intensive training can only be successfully anchored in the long term if it is supplemented by follow-up measures. In any case, when booking training abroad, one should bear in mind that the time allocated must be reasonably enough to fulfil the desired success. Competent advice and the development of a tailor-made, individually coordinated and, if necessary, combined programme of foreign and domestic training should be considered, of course.

The success of the inlingua method lies in training with native-speaking trainers. For learners who wish to pay more attention to the grammar of the foreign language or who wish to realise other specific concerns, German foreign language trainers are also available on request.

If you have previous knowledge, you can join an ongoing course at any time. For beginners, inlingua regularly offers new courses.

This decision depends on various criteria. Our staff will be happy to advise you in detail.
Here are some tips:

Private lessons

You determine learning speed, start date, training time and location.
Your individual previous knowledge and the language goal set the framework precisely.
Ideal for targeted preparation for special communication situations such as contacts abroad, conferences, trade fairs, negotiations or presentations. 

Group lessons

You learn with and from others, efficiently and cost-effectively.
Simulations and role plays are more realistic.
Recommended if you also need the foreign language for private interests.

All the advantages and disadvantages of one-on-one lessons are, of course, also apparent in the crash program. In addition, however, there are further individual effects resulting from our general learning behaviour. In order to be efficient, any language acquisition must be based on the learner being given sufficient time to consolidate the practiced elements. This speaks in favour of programmes with a longer duration. However, a crash programme is a good choice if it is ensured that the learner is able to go straight into the practical application of the acquired knowledge at the end of the training phase. If this is not guaranteed, it can happen that the knowledge acquired at great expense very quickly silts up again. For this reason, crash programmes are particularly recommended as preparation for a direct deployment in the target area. Nevertheless, it is essential to aim for a less intensive follow-up programme over a longer period of time to consolidate the success of these programmes. In the case of highly time-intensive programmes, it will also be important to ensure that the learner does not have only one single trainer at his or her disposal, so that individual differences in mother-tongue competence (e.g. male or female voice or individual pronunciation colourings) can be made useful for the learner.

The trainer can concentrate completely on the problems of an individual learner in the individual training. Exercises can be controlled specifically, the learner has the majority of the training time for controlled exercises of own applications at his disposal. Consequently, learning progress is individually faster than in group training, in which the available training time must be divided between the group members. However, we do not only learn from the mistakes we make ourselves, but also from the mistakes others make, especially when we are involved in error correction ourselves. In this respect, group training has the advantage of greater variability in methodology. In addition, there is the positive effect of the "sense of togetherness" and the turning away from the same trainer-learner situation towards the most diverse forms of togetherness. On the other hand, group training has the disadvantage of inflexible timing, as all group members have to agree on a common training date. Individual training, on the other hand, can take into account the learner's schedule as much as possible and at the same time adjust the training intensity to his needs.

individual training

Free time management and individual content, for all languages and at every level. You are a doctor and want to participate successfully at international conferences? Or do you want to be a sales manager on the international stage? You book your training according to your schedule. The training will be tailored to your needs: For example, refreshing, expanding or developing subject-specific and job-oriented content.

Crash Intensity Program (CIP®)

The high-intensity course in daily individual training of several hours with an individually tailored programme. For all those who want to achieve an individual learning goal in the shortest possible time. A team of trainers will take care of you in a fixed rhythm. In this way you have a maximum of speaking time, practice opportunity and input in a constant dialogue. Daily between 4 to 10 training units, in addition also a common working lunch with a trainer if desired.

inlingua trainers are without exception native speakers and predominantly employed. They are academically trained and regularly take part in further training courses in methodology and didactics.

Some inlingua centers offer training courses with state qualifications or prepare their students for IHK examinations, e.g. as state-certified foreign language correspondents specializing in business. You can find open positions here.

inlingua offers training in all living languages. For English, German as a foreign language, French, Spanish and Italian you will find a wide range of training offers in all inlingua centers. For less common languages, individual training is always the right choice. In many inlingua centers you will also find small groups, e.g. in Russian, Portuguese, Croatian, Turkish, Japanese, Arabic ...

inlingua offers German courses for all levels. As intensive day classes with up to 25 hours per week in a group or as evening training one, two or more times per week. Also individual training according to your time constraints and individual objectives. In addition to the general programs, the inlingua centers also offer subsidized vocational German courses as well as German for business and specialist seminars. These business courses are specially designed for participants who use German in their daily work. In small groups you will deepen your knowledge and increase your communication skills. inlingua Hamburg is also an approved sponsor for BAMF integration courses.

General group courses

You will learn step by step how to express yourself fluently and confidently in the foreign language. The training focuses on oral expression and listening comprehension. For everyone who wants to use a foreign language with joy and fun, especially for private interests.

Intensive Clubs

Intensive and compact training in the lively atmosphere of a small group. Ideal for participants with or without previous knowledge who want to learn or refresh a language at short notice. During the day, in the evening or on Saturdays in the core languages.

Business Clubs English

Professional English training in a small group according to the Accelerated Professional Program, with maximum practical relevance. Following the basic modules, you can select specific topics as required: Banking English, Marketing and Sales, Meetings, etc.

Compact Seminar Business English

Here you train briefly and concisely typical job-related communication situations in English. Usually on Fridays and Saturdays all day. Topics: Telephoning, Business Correspondence, Socializing Across Cultures, Meetings, Presentations, Negotiating.

Children's Language Club

In a small cheerful group with lots of fun: children go on a journey of discovery and make friends with the most important languages of the world. Singing, painting, writing, laughing - this is how children experience that foreign languages are almost as easy to learn as their mother tongue.

School courses

Difficulties with English, German or French at school? In the school holiday courses, students repeat and consolidate the structures they have developed in school, practising vocabulary and grammar. Above all, however, we promote oral language and thus the joy of working with foreign languages.

First you should take a placement test and tell us what your specific learning goal is and how available you are. On the basis of this information, inlingua will work out your personal schedule for you, which includes the volume of lessons, frequency and form of training.

From the beginner to the almost native language level you will need about 1,000 training units. In between there are many levels, so that already after 120 training units quite good language skills are attainable.