As many of you may have read in my last post, you may have realized that I had mentioned that I had been studying at a language institute. After 3 years of intensive study and dedication to my German studies, I decided that what I needed to eventually reach my goal of fluency was complete immersion in Germany. After a lot of research and looking up affordable language institutes in Frankfurt, I decided on did deutsch-insitut whose mission is to help as many international students learn German as quickly and as effectively as possible.
I learned that it is standard for any European country to accept a certificate from a qualified language institute. Traditionally, there are 6 levels: A1, A2, B1, B2, C1, and C2. The A levels are for beginners, the B levels are for intermediate learners, and the C levels are for advanced learners. It is most common for universities, master's programs, other professional institutions, and jobs to require a C1 level in order to be able to enroll, and or have a job position in your target language. In order to receive a certificate in any given level, you must take an exam on a particular date at a specific time. In order to be able to take the exam, you must talk to an institute that you are interested in taking it, as well as pay a fee. The overall process is much simpler and smoother than you would think.
Now that I gave a basic rundown as to how most European language institutes work, I would like to try to convince you that this is one of the best ways to make progress in another language. The main argument that most people have made for which not to go to one is that language institutes are too expensive and are not worth your money. Although this decision should not be taken light-heartedly, I believe that the experiences and the knowledge that you gain are unparalleled to anything that you could teach yourself in your spare time. Believe me, I have done self-study for years now, but have not been able to progress as quickly as I have when attending language immersion camps and did deutsch-institut. The reason is simple. It is neither because I do to have a good enough memory nor because I am not smart enough. It is because an artificial immersion experience is nowhere near as valuable and as effective as an authentic immersion experience with native teachers who have a lifetime worth of knowledge and experience in their mother tongues.
The first day that I arrived at the institute, I was told go to a room and was asked in which level I would like to try to be. I told the lady that I was hoping to either be in B2, or in C1. A little while later, I was given my schedule for the rest of the week with the times and names of my teachers and was thrilled that I had been put into B2. My first class was somewhat daunting, as I was asked to take the B1 exam, but it was over before I knew it. From then on, I saw the classmates that I would have for 4 weeks. Since our class exceeded the maximum number of students for a class, the owner of the institute felt that it would be best to not add more students to our class as new students arrived. Because of this, I was able to form deep bonds with my classmates. During our breaks, I would stay in our classroom and spark up conversations to anyone who was near me. Before I knew it, it was over in the blink of an eye.
At did deutsch-insitut, we were told that we could only speak to our classmates and to our teachers in German , which, in reality, was not very hard to do, because most of my classmates did not speak any of the other languages that I speak, and if they did, they did not feel comfortable enough to carry on complex conversations in them. I ultimately learned the power that language has in bringing all of my classmates of my institute together. German united us and gave me friends from Vietnam, Sweden, Korea, China, Russia, Tanzania, Portugal, Spain, Brazil, and Guatemala. Despite our differences, ages, and cultural backgrounds, we treated each other as one: as a family and helped pick each other up. We ultimately made each other better learners and cheered each other on.
My institute used the Aspekte Neu textbook, which is by far the best textbook that I have ever been asked to used for class. Instead of being made and tailored to students who are obliged to take a language class, it is made for international students who want to learn German. The instructions, the readings, the grammar explanations, the listening comprehension exercises, and all of the activities were in German. Aside from doing what was in the book, we would work on expanding our vocabulary (ex: we would learn and write down vocabulary by classifying it into thematic categories instead of simply learning words without any context randomly). Since I had decided to pay for an Intensiv Modul, which stands for a designated extra time for more practice, I was able to have a lot of conversational practice with my classmates, as only 5, or 6 students were in it at any given time (you had to pay a little more in order to have it as a part of your weekly schedule). It was not only worth it, but also gave me more exposure to hearing a native speaker talk in German at a rapid and native space, as well as more time to ask questions and clarifications about the grammar and the vocabulary that we had learned in every chapter.
After years of time and dedication to my German studies, I am happy to say that I received a B2 certificate. I am thankful for all of the laughs and conversations and for making me regret not staying longer, hope to someday visit my classmates in their home countries, and that I continue staying in touch with them in German. My hope is that by the end of this post, you learned the value of a language institute education and that you consider to study in one and experience it for yourself. Studying at a language institute not only helps make your resume stand out and look more impressive, but ultimately allows you to be independent, learn more than you ever thought that you could achieve in a short amount of time, and gives you lifelong friendships of other individuals whose ultimate goal is your own.
