General English Classes
Our General English classes are for students who want to focus on their speaking and listening. Our teachers show you the grammar and vocabulary that will help you communicate. You will also practise some reading and writing for your everyday and working life.
Part-time Morning Group Lessons 15 hours per week
Study General English, Monday to Friday in the morning to improve your overall English level with a maximum of 12 students.
9:15 – 10:45 General English Group Lessons.
11:00 – 12:30 General English Group Lessons
Note that if you are the only student registered for a Beginner (A1), Elementary (A2) or Advanced (C1) course, or any evening course, we may replace your 90-minute group class with a 60-minute 1:1 class.
Full-time Morning & Afternoon Group Lessons 22.5 hours per week
Study General English, Monday to Friday in the morning to improve your overall English level with a maximum of 12 students, plus reduced-sized group lessons in the afternoon, Monday to Friday, for 90 minutes with a maximum of 8 students.
9:15 – 10:45 General English Group Lessons
11:00 – 12:30 General English Group Lessons
13:15 – 14:45 Small Group Lessons
Full-time Morning Group Lessons & Private Lessons 22.5 hours per week
Study General English, Monday to Friday mornings to improve your overall English level with a maximum of 12 students, plus private lessons classes Monday to Friday focussed on your personal needs and goals, 90 minutes per day.
9:15 – 10:45 General English Group Lessons.
11:00 – 12:30 General English Group Lessons
13:15 – 14:45 General English Private Lessons
Note that if you are the only student registered for a Beginner (A1), Elementary (A2) or Advanced (C1) course, or any evening course, we may replace your 90-minute group class with a 60-minute 1:1 class.
What's included?
- Starting Level Test
- All students can join three activities per week // five activities per week in July and August.
- Access to our Online Platform with daily feedback from your teacher
- Certificate at the end of your course
- Free coffee, tea and biscuits during your breaks
Come to our General classes to ...
- Immerse yourself in English: Our classes have people from all over the world, so you’ll only use English at school.
- Daily homework: Your teacher will give you homework each day to help you progress.
- Socialise in English: Chat with your classmates in English as you enjoy our free tea, coffee and biscuits during breaks.
- Make English-speaking friends: Meet people like you at school, swap numbers and practice speaking English while you explore Edinburgh and Scotland.
- Join our Social events: Come to pub nights, learn Scottish dancing or have a barbecue in the park…. all while practising English.
- Discover real English and the most frequently used English words and expressions
- Talk about many different subjects from the arts to sport and science
- Listen to conversations, radio shows, instructions, meetings and interviews with English speakers from around the world
- Write letters, emails, blogs and your CV/Résumé
- Read articles, interviews, adverts and reports
- Learn about British and Scottish culture
- Have fun with pictures, role-play, real objects, pair work, group work, class discussions, card matching activities, games, debates, brainstorming, projects and many more activities – our classes are like our students: interesting and engaging!
What is the timetable?
We offer General English classes at 9:15 am, and 11:15 am, Monday to Friday. Each class is 90 minutes.
General English & Exam Preparation (18 hours): General English classes, plus two evenings at 18:30.
Super-Intensive Courses (22.5 hours): General English classes, plus Monday – Thursday afternoon (13:15 – 14:45, 90 minutes per afternoon class).
What are the courses outline?
Elementary A2
The course aims to help you understand and use frequently used expressions related to everyday life (e.g. basic personal and family information, shopping, getting around, employment).
Pre-intermediate B1
The course aims to help you understand the main points of clear, standard English on familiar subjects regularly found in work, studies and leisure time. In addition, the course helps you to describe experiences, hopes and plans and to give reasons and explanations for opinions.
Intermediate B1+
The course aims to help you understand and express the main ideas and details in English using a variety of expressions, both formal and colloquial. A wide range of vocabulary is introduced to allow you to express yourself in a variety of work, study and social situations.
Upper-intermediate B2
The course aims to bring your English to a level where you can interact with a level of fluency and spontaneity that makes regular interaction with native speakers possible without too much effort for either person. You will work with complex reading and listening texts and learn to manipulate a wide range of sentence structures to produce precise, detailed speech and writing.
Advanced C1
The course aims to help you understand a wide range of demanding, longer texts and clauses and to recognize the implicit meaning and nuances of words and expressions. In addition, you will work on perfecting your grammar and usage so you can use English flexibly, fluently and effectively for social, academic and professional purposes.
When should I pay?
If you don’t need a course confirmation for a visa, you should pay a £100 deposit to secure your place, then the balance 4 weeks before you start.
If you need a course confirmation letter for your visa, you must pay the total course fees before we issue it.
How can I pay?
You can pay for your course by credit/debit card on our secure payment webpage or by bank transfer available here.
You can make an international transfer at the best price using a service like TransferWise or Flywire to make a bank transfer. If you make a ‘traditional’ bank transfer, you must pay an additional £7 fee.
Do I have to pay other fees, like booking, enrolment or high season fees?
No. The only other thing you have to pay for is your coursebook. All books (general English and exams) cost £35. If you don’t write in your General English book, we will give you £30 back when you return it at the end of your course. Prices for classes are the same all year for part-time classes but with seasonal discounts (usually in Winter) if you study full-time.