How to become fluent in English while living in Brighton: 5 Alternative Tips
Here are a handful of tips you might like, and that you might not have expected, to boost your fluency whilst you're living and studying English in Brighton, UK.
English courses in England How to choose
If you’re looking for an English course in England, then this might help you to choose the best option for you.
General English courses are the most popular option
The majority of our students choose a General English course at one of our 3 schools in Eastbourne, Chester and Brighton. These courses are available year round, start every Monday and you can study anything from 2 weeks to 6 months or more in international classes of up to 12 students. The minimum age is 16 with the average age typically university age 20-26 but as we are serious schools we do have students in their 30s, 40s, 50s and older who successfully study on our General English course.
General English for work and professional life, for over 25s
If you are 25 or older, have a very limited amount of time to study, want to study in smaller groups or with more mature students, the 25+ course at ELC Chester might be the best option. You can study from 1 to 6 weeks in international classes of up to 6 students all aged 25+.
Lessons are tailored to the needs of the students in the class and will develop your English language skills in general and, if requested, work-related contexts. If you have a specific area that you additionally wish to focus on you could choose one of our 25+ combination courses which give you a mixture of group and individual classes.
Business English courses in Brighton
If you are working and you need specifically to develop certain English Language skills for your job in a short time, then one of our Business English courses at ELC Brighton are probably the best option. Lessons take place in a dedicated Business Centre so you will have opportunities to mingle with other business course students away from the rest of the school.
If you have a B1 level of English or higher, our Business English Mini-Group with maximum 4 students will help you develop skills like giving presentations, negotiating, contributing effectively in meetings and corresponding effectively in written English. Alternatively, if you work in a particular field, you could choose one of our specialised English courses – English for Engineers or English for Personal Assistants. If your level of English is A2 and you need to both improve your general level of English as well as your business English, you could choose our General English plus Business English course. This is a very intensive course - you will join the General English course in the mornings with up to 11 other students in a class at your level, then in the afternoons have small group classes with up to 5 other students focussed on English for your job.
50 years or older?
If you are 50 years old or over, perhaps retired, and want to have a more relaxing experience for 2 to 4 weeks, combining some English classes with excursions and other social activities, our 50+ English courses in Chester or Eastbourne are ideal. These courses take place in spring and early autumn when the weather is better but outside the peak summer months so the places you visit are less crowded, and more accommodation options are available in local hotels and guest houses. You will have lessons Monday to Fridays in the mornings in classes at your level with other mature learners. As well heling you develop your confidence in speaking, lessons will explore aspects of UK life and culture. The afternoon activities and weekend excursions will introduce you to some of the most historic and beautiful places in the UK.
Study for longer
If you want to make significant progress in your English, have 6 to 11 months to do so and are 16 or over, you should choose our Study Year Programme in Brighton, Chester or Eastbourne. You may be a university student taking a gap year or intending to go onto further study at a UK university. You could be in your 30s or 40s and need to improve your English for a career change. Whatever the case, this is our most flexible and economic option for long-term study and allows you to study on a variety of general English and examination courses. Tuition fees include 1 x free airport transfer on arrival and 1 x free external exam such as IELTS or Cambridge First, Advanced or Proficiency.
Prepare and take an English exam
If you specifically require official certification of your level of English, then you can take an English exam preparation course. At all 3 schools we offer dedicated preparation courses for paper-based academic IELTS and Cambridge B2 First and C1 Advanced. We also offer Cambridge C2 Proficiency courses in Brighton.
Cambridge exams test your English at specific levels while IELTS is open to students at all levels. If your plan is to study at a UK university, you will normally need to achieve a specific score between 4.0 in academic IELTS for a foundation course and 7.5 for a masters’ course. IELTS results are available within 2 weeks of taking the exam and are valid for 2 years whereas Cambridge results are available 4-6 weeks after the exam and are valid for life.
English for teachers of English
If you are a teacher of English and want to refresh/develop your English language skills as well as get lots of practical teaching ideas that you can use immediately in your teaching, then choose one of the courses for teachers of English that we run at ELC Brighton. These courses are scheduled for school holidays; Easter, summer and autumn half-term.
Feeling active?
If you need to improve your English but you really love horse riding, watersports, tennis, golf or yoga, then our Eastbourne school has special programmes which combine morning English classes with tuition-based activities three afternoons a week, so you get the best of both worlds.
And finally,...
Summer English courses for teenagers
The minimum age year round at all 3 schools is 16 but in Chester we run a summer English course for teenagers aged 13 to 16. If you are 13 - 16 and are looking for a highly-supervised programme of lesson and activities, then the summer English course for teenagers is the best option.
If you are 16 or 17 and want a holiday course of lessons and activities with similarly aged young adults, then choose one of our summer English course for young adults in Eastbourne or Brighton. If you are 16 or 17 and need to maximise your English studies, perhaps to improve your school grades, then choose the General English course at any of the 3 schools. If you have 4 weeks and want to achieve official certification of your English level, then choose an exam preparation course.
Don't forget...
If you’re still not sure which course is right for you, you can use the chat function or contact us for personal help and guidance.
