Although the focus is grammar, the Standard Course includes daily conversation classes so you will also develop speaking and listening skills. As well as the Standard Course classes, in the month before the exam there will be 40 additional lessons of preparation for the DILI-examination of AIL.

During the second term your horizons will widen. The Standard Course, now with a greater emphasis on the written language, continues and is concluded after a further 240 lessons, inclusive of a further four weeks of DALI-exam preparation.

Meanwhile, the second part of the "Gap year program" broadens to include lessons from the general culture unit.

You will attend classes in history of art (24 lessons over 4 weeks), giving you an introduction to the everlasting beauty and charm of italian art. Two shorter guided tours follow.

Another part of the Academic program will take you through the world of business and current affairs (12 lessons), where there will be a special emphasis on Italian as a business language.

The fashion lessons will focus on a sector where Italian artists are at the leading edge, fashion and design (12 lessons), where we aim to reveal some of the secrets behind the "Made in Italy" label.

Finally, the Italian history and civilization unit (32 hours over 8 weeks) will allow you to understand the mixture of tradition and change which characterizes contemporary Italy.

At the end of the general course you will have to write an essay on a topic of your own choosing, with the help of our school library and of a personal tutor (10 lessons). This will be assessed as part of the final test. That task accomplished, you will have progressed from beginner to connoisseur of Italy and its language and culture.

Starting dates for the Academic School Year Course:

From 07 January 2013 to 16 August 2013;
From 06 May 2013 to 13 December 2013;
From 16 September 2013 to 09 May 2014.