Our solutions Language courses
EDUCOM's services and recommendations are free. They are designed to help you choose the summer camp or language course best suited to the needs, abilities, and motivation of your child (an intensive course, sports or creative arts academy, university campus, humanitarian programme, and so forth).
EDUCOM looks at each situation individually, through personal contact with the parents and the student. We'll help you with registration formalities, the departure abroad and, above all, we'll remain the link between you and your child for the duration of the stay.
- Summer camps are mainly for children aged 5 to 18. These are generally 2 or 3 week programs at a college or campus. Children are looked after and supervised all day long. Some programs offer the option of taking language courses or an academy (intensive training) in a particular sport or activity. Evening activities and excursions are also organized.
- The language stay is aimed at "young adults" (16+) who want to learn or improve a language. The language school offers courses of varying intensity and the possibility of preparing for an exam. Young people are housed in residences (from age 18) or with host families. Outside the language courses, they are free to choose their own schedule.
We also offer language immersion programmes for professionals : a genuine performance accelerator.
- Do you need to prepare an important presentation in German? Perfect your English or Italian? Conquer a new market in Brazil, Russia, Argentina or China?
- Save time learning the language with a stay in an immersion or intensive training center. A one-week stay is equivalent to 4-5 months of classic private language tuition!
We work in collaboration with over 250 organizations (language institutes and summer camp organizations) worldwide. We work in close partnership with the schools we select, to offer parents the best possible service. Each year, the panel of organizations is updated to better meet your expectations.
Find the perfect course for your child
Any questions ?
With the internet overflowing with organisations, it is sometimes difficult to know which one to choose without losing your way in the maze of offers.
EDUCOM provides you with comprehensive support at every stage of the process. We always start by listening attentively to your needs: how old your child is, their level, motivation, requirements and so forth.
The goal is to fully understand the context of each individual so we can find the best solution for you and your child.
A programme specialising in a particular sport, a humanitarian mission to boost your child’s CV, a programme able to host siblings, each taking part in a specific hobby and so forth.
Whatever the request, EDUCOM provides solutions that meet your needs.
And if they don’t exist, we’re also here to find alternatives !
EDUCOM works in partnership with a select group of schools, language institutes and summer camps, all chosen with the highest standards of quality, commitment, and safety in mind. Every year we re-assess the quality of the services offered by our partners so we can guarantee you that they always meet our demanding criteria. EDUCOM is also constantly looking for new organisations so we can offer more in-depth, interesting programmes to prepare your children for the demands of the next generation.
There is no age for sending your child on a summer camp! We work with specialised partners that host very young children (from 3 years old), and other organisations that only host teenagers (14-17 years old).
Our advice for a first camp experience :
- A successful first stay will encourage the desire to renew the experience the following year.
- Opt for a short course of one or two weeks.
- Choose a camp with less intensive lessons or none. There will always be an opportunity to increase the number of course hours for future experiences.
- If your child feels anxious about the idea of leaving home, try to find a friend or sibling to go with them.
Aurélie sent her 7-year-old son to do his first camp in Switzerland. He initially signed up for just one week but liked it so much that he ended up staying a fortnight !
Of course, they can! Many organisations host pupils who are complete beginners in a language. The children always sit a language test when they arrive to make sure they are placed in a group that matches their abilities.
EDUCOM is at your disposal to help you find the language course that suits your child best !
In general terms, we recommend a language course in a school campus. The student often has a better experience in these conditions. It’s also an opportunity to develop social skills and experience life in a community.
Even though host families are selected with great care by our partner organisations, it is still something of a lottery that EDUCOM has no control over.
Here are the situations where EDUCOM recommends your child stays with a host family :
- All the students on the programme are accommodated this way. This avoids creating a split between students who stay on campus for evening activities and those who must go back to their families.
- The student prefers private classes and tailor-made lessons. In this case, we recommend staying with a family where one of the members is the teacher. This is the perfect option for a bespoke programme.
- The child can only go on a study holiday outside the summer vacation. Few organisations offer courses in October or Easter. Families welcome students all year round! So, there are very few constraints in terms of the dates of the language course.
It is important here to distinguish between a summer camp and a language course.
Summer camps are designed for children who are under-age, and they provide comprehensive supervision 24 hours a day.
The children follow a well-established timetable with a series of lessons, activities and excursions that take up the entire day from sunrise to sunset.
Depending on the age of the child, they are allowed some freedom, especially during excursions.
Language courses are designed for students from the age of 16 who no longer want to be in a supervised environment.
This means language schools, which offer courses of different intensities together with the option of sitting a language exam. These schools may put on a range of activities for students to fill their afternoons, but these are never mandatory.
If a student is staying in a hall of residence, they will be responsible for their curfew.
If a student is staying with a host family, they will have to comply with the rules of the house.
EDUCOM is your privileged point of contact for the entire duration your child’s camp experience.
You can reach us at any time and for any emergency: your child cannot fit in, their roommate is unpleasant, they cannot find the driver when they arrive at the airport, or they would like to change activity. We are here to act without delay and find a solution.
We also have the mobile phone number of every camp director so that we can intervene very quickly.
In addition, every parent is given the EDUCOM emergency number before their child departs. This is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week during the summer so that we can help you if necessary – a real added value that provides parents with reassurance.