Lingua Service Worldwide, Ltd. General Information

Course Names

Group "x": All courses are labeled by the maximum number of students in the class. For example, a course with a maximum of 10 students is called "Group 10". The average number of students per class is usually 3 or 4 students fewer than the maximum. Courses usually have the maximum number of students during the months of July and August.
One-on-One All courses named "One-on-One" consist of private lessons tailored to the specific needs of the client. The student will write a letter explaining what he/she wants to learn. Students who take private lessons may start any Monday. Students may also take private lessons to complement intensive group courses. This will enable them to concentrate on specific problem areas. All schools offer One on One. If the price is not stated in the price list, please call us.

Activities and Excursions

Some school activities are free of charge. Excursions are free of charge when specified in the brochure. Otherwise, there is a fee to be paid to the school.

Groups: Teachers and Companies

Teachers and Companies who bring groups of students (10 or more) may start any time. Schools offer discounted rates for groups of 8 or more students. Airfares will be greatly reduced for groups of 10 or more. Registration fees for groups vary according to the number of participants.

Tax deductions

Consult with your accountant. All expenses directly related to studying abroad may be tax deductible if studying a language is relevant to your work or your profession, or necessary to upgrade your current skills.

Certificates

All language centers are willing to write a letter specifying the course taken and attesting to the student's language level and class attendance. Some give official certificates for which the student has to comply with attendance and examination requisites.

Prices

Most schools price their programs in local currency. We list the program prices in US Dollars for your convenience, using exchange rates AVERAGED over the previous six months. Except in the case of extreme currency fluctuations or program changes, prices will remain the same. You will be informed of any price changes before you make your final payment and have the right to withdraw your application without penalty in case of program changes that affect the quoted price. Schools in the price and date lists enclosed with our printed brochures are in alphabetical order by city within the language category. Use the price and date lists to compare prices and available dates among schools. Prices in our "Web Brochure" are listed next to the respective programs and accommodations. Some schools charge "enrollment", "materials" or "administration" fees, for your convenience these fees have been calculated into the cost of the programs. To calculate the total cost of the programs simply add the Lingua Service Worldwide application fee (see Application Procedures below) to the cost of the courses and lodging of your choice.

How to Read the Prices

If after reading this you have any questions, please give us a call. We will gladly clarify any doubts. Abbreviations used as the headers of the price sheet columns are the following:

City. The city where the school is located,
School. Name of the school.
No. per class. Maximum number of students per class. During peak season (Summer in Europe) programs usually run at maximum capacity per class, during the rest of the year they usually run a 70% capacity.
Lessons per wk. Number of lessons per week of language class. These lessons may include cultural programs and run from 45 minutes to 60 minutes per lesson depending on the school..
Course & Lodging Describes all the items included in the price.

Date Changes

If you are a beginner, make sure you are applying for the correct date. Most schools have special dates for beginners. Private lessons may start any Monday. Once you have been confirmed, any course or lodging date changes will cost an additional $35. We need a letter or fax requesting the change.

University Accreditation

Most of our courses can receive credit through a university in the US. Students can make these arrangements directly with their university or , in some cases, they can apply for transfer credit through the University of Southern Mississippi (see academic credit information page). Please contact your university's language department for requirements. Feel free to call us if you have any questions.

Travel Arrangements

We encourage you to shop around for the best possible airfare available. If you would like assistance we can make recommend a travel agency that specializes in student travel and will give you a free quote upon request. Please call us for details.

Lodging

Lodging with a family means your host may be a traditional family unit, a single person, a working person, a widower, a divorced woman or man or a retired couple. All homes are carefully selected. If you find your family unsuitable, the school will do everything possible to make a change. If there are no other families available, they may decide to refund you the remaining amount after deducting the fee for one week of lodging after your request has been made. If you have any special requests regarding your homestay or lodging please be as specific as possible by attaching a separate sheet with your preferences to your application (E.g. no kids, or pets, vegetarian meals, hobbies - music - sports etc.). NO LODGING INFORMATION WILL BE SENT BEFORE FINAL PAYMENT IS RECEIVED. If you change lodging dates after the date requested has been confirmed, there will be an additional $35 charge.

Holidays

All schools close for national and religious holidays. While some schools allow students to make up the lost time during the rest of the course, they are not required to make up for the classes that fall on official holidays when the school is closed. If you are going on a very short program (2 weeks or less) you may inquire if there are any national holidays during that time.

Application Procedure

Your completed application must be accompanied by a Lingua Service Worldwide Ltd. APPLICATION FEE of: $100.00. No application will be processed until this fee is received. This application fee is in addition to the course and accommodations cost and it covers the cost of providing our clients with our services. We recommend that you book as soon as possible. You may book at the last minute but all late fees will apply and you risk not having a place and paying a higher airfare. (See below for late application fee information).

Deadlines

We should receive applications at least 45 days prior to the starting date of the course.

If you apply 44 days or less in advance, late registration fee of $125 applies ( $100 application fee plus $25 late registration charge). The balance of the course is due 32 days prior to starting date.

If you apply 31 days or less you must send a certified check for the total amount due for courses, lodging and application fee. The application will not be processed if it doesn't come accompanied by a certified check with the total balance.

The balance is totally refundable if there is no place in the program on the dates requested. If your application is accepted and you withdraw, cancellation fees will apply.

Make sure you want to go before sending the money.

Confirmation

Within 5 working days of our receipt of your application, we will contact you to inform you whether or not you have been confirmed in the course requested. At that time we will also mail you an invoice listing the total amount due and the balance due date. Upon receipt of final payment, an ARRIVAL INFORMATION SHEET with the address of the school, lodging information (if available at that time), arrival instructions and any other recommendations will be sent to you. PLEASE NOTE: Most schools may not provide you with final lodging information (e.g. name and address of host family) until two weeks prior to the beginning of the course. The Arrival Information Sheet will also list your balance as paid in full and will serve as your receipt and confirmation of the course(s) reserved.

Final Payment

We must receive final payment 32 days prior to the starting date. Payments received after that date must be made by CERTIFIED CHECK and must add a $25 late payment fee. If payment is not received 20 days or less prior to the starting date, the application will be canceled automatically. Reactivation will cost $75 in addition to the risk of not finding a place during the high season.

No lodging information can be sent until final payment has been received!.

Cancellation Policy

Once your program has been confirmed cancellations must be done in writing and cancellation fees will apply according to this schedule:

More than 32 days prior to start date: application fee of USD 100 is non-refundable. (At this time the program can be postponed for up to a year without penalty).
Within 31 to 15 days of start date: the greater of 35% of total program cost or USD 175 is non-refundable.
Within 14 days of start date: the greater of 70% of the total program cost or USD 175 is non-refundable.
After start of the course: No refunds.

Please contact us for additional details and complete cancellation procedures.

General Information

Quality of Courses

Language Level