Easy Languages

Program

Destination

The sixth largest country in the world, this country-continent features some of the most unique landscapes in the world. Australia offers an immense variety of excursions, sports, and of course, opportunities to learn and perfect the English language. From the Great Barrier Reef in Queensland to the mystical rock formation of Uluru in the mid-region, the unique combination of the Australian lifestyle and landscape offers endless opportunities for an unforgettable experience.

Sydney is the largest city in Australia, with a population of over 4 million people, and it is the capital city of New South Wales. In the centre of the city lies the historic waterside Rocks area, where Sydney’s earliest settlers lived. The area offers many restaurants, bars, cafes and shops containing Australian souvenirs. Beside the Rocks is Sydney Harbor Bridge --- climb to the top and get a bird’s-eye view of the city, including Circular Quay where ferries leave for stops all round the harbor, and the stunning Opera House, Australia’s most famous building. A short stroll from the Opera House are the Botanic Gardens and the Art Gallery of NSW --- both well worth a visit.

Bondi, one of the most famous white sand beaches of Sydney, is located only 15 minutes away from the school, and other beaches are even closer.

School

Our partner school has three campuses in the Sydney Central Business District (CBD) which are a short walk from bus, train, and ferry transport systems. Thess campuses are conveniently located to provide students with easy access to local libraries, museums, galleries, shops and tourist attractions including the famous Sydney Harbour Bridge and Sydney Opera House. In addition, our partner school has a campus in Manly beach which is conveniently located near ferries and buses, shops, Manly Aquarium and other local tourist attractions. The beautiful blue waters of the Pacific ocean, surfing beaches, cafes, restaurants and shopping centres are all at our doorstep. You can easily reach the city centre by a 30 min ferry drive. Finally, there is a campus located in Bondi Beach.

Member of the association of officially recognized schools in Australia (English Language Intensive Courses for Overseas Students, ELICOS), our partner welcomes students coming from all over the world. Located in the city centre, it offers high quality English, business and IT courses. The port, beaches, restaurants, cafés and shops of Sydney are 30 minutes away by ferry. It also organises facultative activities and excursions on weekends.

Activities and Excursions

The school staff is happy to help students find activities and excursions to occupy their free time in the best possible way. The social programme includes sports and occasional visits during the week, as well as different excursions on the weekend: Canberra, Thredbo, Wollongong, Jelonan, Blue Mountains, Hunter Valley, etc.

Courses

Classes are given by experimented and graduated teachers, all natives. A placement test upon arrival will be organised for participants to be in the right group.

We offer two major programmes in our catalogue:

• General English: This course involves full time study with 20 hours of english course and 5 hours of complimentary option classes per week (conversation class, media club, writer’s workshop, IELTS preparation). This course is designed to enable students to learn to speak, understand and read and write English in a variety of communication situations. Emphasis is on speaking and listening with additional reading and writing. Our courses focus on improving student speaking and listening skills and encouraging them to ’think in English’ while learning to work independently and establish control over the direction of their studies.
  
  
• IELTS Exam Preparation: This four-week programme (extendable in increments of four weeks) allows students to prepare for the IELTS test. The programme includes 25 hours of courses. The course provides practical guidance in the development and application of linguistic skills relevant to the IELTS examination requirements including vocabulary, grammar, text production and analysis and listening and speaking. Weekly practice tests based on IELTS past papers provide an assessable framework to effectively measure student progress.

Accommodation

The school organises family home stay for students, in order to get to know the Australian way of life. Students will have a private room and half-board (2 meals a day) during the week and full-board on the weekends. All home stays are carefully selected by the Centre, to allow students to stay in a relaxed and comfortable environment where they can practice English on a daily basis.

Accommodation can be kept between the two school terms, or the student can choose to take a break and travel.

Prices & Dates

Dates 2012

Standard English Courses: Courses begin every Monday.

Holidays (if on a Monday, classes begin on a Tuesday): 2/01, 26/01, 5/03, 6/04, 9/04, 25/04, 4/06, 1/10, 21/12-3/1/13

IELTS start dates: 3/01; 31/01; 28/02; 28/03; 25/04; 23/05; 20/06; 18/07; 22/08; 19/09; 17/10; 14/11; 12/12

Prices include:

• Programme chosen by the student,
• Accommodation in a private room in a host family
• Half-board (2 meals a day) during the week and full-board on the weekends, if in a host family
  
• School facilities: language lab, computer lab, library, Internet
• Some of our sports and cultural activities
• All administration and enrolment fees
  
  

They do not include:

• Flights
• Airport pickup
• Fees for optional exams (IELTS, Cambridge FCE, Cambridge CAE, TOEFL)
  
• Optional excursions
• Student or Work and Travel visa if you are staying more than 12 weeks.
• Obligatory heath insurance for stays of more than 12 weeks (on a student visa)

Practical Info

Travel

• Airport and arrival station: Sydney
• (Payable) transfer from airport available (see price table)

If you wish, we can book your flights for you. Please make this clear when you enrol.

If you intend to arrange your own travel to Australia, try to arrive the Sunday before the start of your course and leave the saturday following its end.

VISA Information

For your stay in Australia, you will need a visa. The type of visa you require will depend on the length of your visit and your intentions:

• Tourist visa
  This type of visa (subclass 676) is required by visitors staying 3, 6, or 12 months in Australia. It allows you to visit the country and partake in classes for less than 3 months. During your stay you will not be allowed to work (excluding volunteer work). However you are free to leave the country and return, provided it is within the declared length of stay. The validity of the visa begins when you enter Australian territory. Visa application fees are 105AUD (around 71€)
  
  
• Student visa
  This type of visa (subclass 571) is required by visitors intending to study for a period of more than 3 months. It allows you to stay for up to 10 months in Australia. The validity of the visa begins when you enter Australian territory. Visa application fees are 540AUD (around 305€)

Warning! The visa application process for minors (-18 years) is long and requires a lot of additional forms and documents; please allow plenty of time when you begin your application.

The "Working Holiday Visa" Programme

Since 2004 the Working Holiday Visa allows French and Belgian nationals to go to Australia for up to one year, renewable once, in order to visit the country and work as means of covering costs. (Consult the website - http://www.immi.gov.au - for other nationalities)

Once in place, you will be able to work for the same employer for 6 months consecutively. You will also be able to partake in 17 weeks of classes during your stay. In addition, you will be able to request a different type of visa, such as the Student visa, if you intend to undertake studies in Australia. Please be aware that the reverse is not possible: you cannot transfer from another type of visa to the Working Holiday Visa.

Departures take place all year round. You are welcome, but not obligated, to stay the entire 12 months. In addition this visa is classed as multi-entry, which is to say that you are entitled to leave and return to Australian territory as frequently as you please during the validity of your visa. Australia has no visa quota, either, and so around 100,000 young people visit the country every year! Between June 2009 and May 2010, nearly 17,000 WHV were allocated to young French people.

Eligibility conditions for the Working Holiday Visa

• You must be aged between 18 and 30 at the time of application.
• The application must be made outside of Australian territory.
• The main purpose of the application must be tourism.
• You cannot have already taken part in this programme.
• You must have proof of sufficient funds (3000€) to subsist and to be able to return to your home country, or be in possession of a return ticket.
• You cannot be married, nor have dependents.