Are foreign languages important for doing business?
Spanish language speakers are the fastest growing demographic groups in the US today. Likewise, some of the fastest growing trade markets are with Latin America due to lower labor costs, geographical proximity, and quickly rapidly growing economies. Colombia and its surrounding countries are particularly desirable markets due to foreign investment and development opportunities and access to natural resources.
Does my business or job require it?
Many jobs and industries do require Spanish as part of product or service delivery. Examples of these jobs are Spanish language teachers, hospitality industry, import/export, transportation and travel services, real estate, social services, just to name some. Even if your business does not require Spanish language skills, it is easier to develop client and colleague relationships with Spanish speakers if you meet them half-way. Job seekers are also likely to find broader range of opportunities and a much stronger resume if they have language skills.
Do you have a structured study plan equivalent to Rosetta Stone or Berlitz?
Yes, all of our courses are structured in modules so that you can take only what you need, whether it be a refresh of Spanish from high school or college, or immersion into Spanish for the first time. After you finish one of our 6-week professional courses, you can continue with Intermediate and Advanced Spanish, or personal sessions to reinforce your language skills.
How do I fulfill professional development credits?
We have students at various levels taking our Professional courses, AP high school, university, and experienced professionals. Because of this diversity, we do not currently offer credit directly. We are happy to work directly with your organization to arrange for credits. We also like to hear from clients what types of professional development credits they are seeking.
Are you accredited?
We are currently not accredited although we are happy to speak with your school, university, or employer in advance to gain acceptance of your course work. Accreditation becomes a factor mostly at the university level and for employer reimbursement and professional development credits. We are working diligently to gain pre-approval of courses based on our student needs and we appreciate your on-going feedback in this area.
Can I learn a language independently?
Absolutely, and we encourage all of our students to seek out as many opportunities to practice Spanish as possible. Many of the greatest minds in history were self-taught, including Einstein, Mozart, and many more. Bill Gates and Steve Jobs developed their businesses independently. We are here to support your Spanish learning, whether it is through structured courses, occasional tutoring sessions, or our free study sessions. You do not need to go a gym to get in shape, although you do need exercise regularly. Likewise, we do highly recommend regular exercise with native speaker to reinforce what you have learned in books and audio CDs, and it's a lot more fun too!
Is a personal tutor better?
Personal tutors are a great idea if you have access to them and have the money. Many of our clients find that they spend more time in travel and logistics than they spend in the sessions. Furthermore you sacrifice privacy when tutors come to your house. Qualified, native-speaking, personal tutors can start around $25 per hour on Craigslist. In contrast we can provide the same experience virtually for a fraction of that price. This is a personal decision, but we are here to support your learning whether or not you choose to work with a personal tutor.
What kind of results can I expect compared to traditional community college courses?
Average teacher-to-student ratio is about 20-to-1 in community colleges. With recent budget cuts and reduced course availability that ratio may even be higher. That means that for 1 hour of instruction you might receive about 3 minutes of personal attention, most likely less if you are faster or slower than average. Language learning is highly interactive. We like to equate it to learning to play the piano - would you want to learning the piano with 19 other students in the classroom? We limit our class sizes to 5 students and offer personal 1-on-1 sessions. Our students who also take Spanish in traditional classroom format are almost always at the top of their class.
Can I afford it and will my company reimburse me for it?
Our courses start at as little as $12 per session and increase in price for classroom and customized options. Our courses are competitive and in most cases less expensive what you would pay for private music or dance lessons, and far below typical college courses. Personal tutors and community college courses are good, but you can easily spend more money on transportation and materials alone before you spend a penny on the actual course. We assume you have an Internet connection and standard computer equipment, and we provide everything else. There are no additional fees for course materials, rescheduling, or off-line support. We are happy to work directly with your company to help you obtain reimbursement.
How can the quality be good at these low prices?
We are a small company with very low overhead. The owners work side-by-side with the material designers and instructors providing the service. All services are provided in virtual format, meaning there is no printing, postage, or transportation costs involved in the delivery of these services. You may choose to print the materials at your own expense. We advertise through high impact, low cost channels and rely on word-of-mouth and referrals from satisfied customers. It is unlikely that you will see million-dollar ads for InterLingo Spanish during the Superbowl or other mainstream media. The cost of high-quality, native-speaking instructors and designers is much lower in Colombia than what you will be able to find in the US.
There are many online options to learn Spanish, how are you different?
Most of the online learning programs are actually companies selling books, DVDs, and computer software. Some schools and universities offer asynchronous courses where you download assignments and materials and email them to teachers who email back the results. Sometimes they also offer interactive chat sessions. More recently there have been a number of companies offering a platform for independent instructors to sell personal sessions using Internet video chat, or synchronous sessions. It is your responsibility to read reviews of those instructors and figure out if the materials they use, if any, are appropriate. In contrast, we offer complete courses and programs via the leading Internet video conference technology available with all infrastructure constantly monitored for quality. Our course materials have been carefully designed through input from language professionals, pilot students, and people living and studying abroad for extended periods of time. All instructors have been carefully screened and selected for their ability to teach Spanish to via this new medium. We take seriously our roll as a leader in Spanish language programs via Internet video conference technology.
What kind of equipment do I need to get started?
You will need a stable broadband connection, preferably using a wired connection to your computer. No software installation is required, only the standard Flash plug-in that uses standard Internet ports. Most Macs and PCs with 1 GHz and 1GB of memory should work fine. Netbooks may be difficult due to their small screens and lower specs. A USB headset is high recommended, or USB speaker phone if you prefer not to use a headset. Built-in mic and speakers also work, but may cause echo and thus lower the quality of the audio for you and others in the sessions. Although a camera is not required, most students much prefer using them and feel "cut-off" with out them. All of the required equipment is standard, consumer-grade equipment available from regular retails or borrowed from friends and family. Let us know if you need help finding the best equipment for the money.
How do I know my Internet connection and computer will work?
If you have a standard broadband connection and computer purchased within the past 5 years, most likely you will have no problems. You can do a self-diagnostic from our website to test office connections through firewalls, or contact us to do a quick set-up test. In some cases you may need to connect to your home network with a wired ethernet cable or reinstall your Flash plug-in. It is very rare that our clients have problems that they can't resolve for little or no cost.
How can I be sure my information will be kept confidential?
A clear distinction that should be made up-front is that "Internet-based video conference" is not the same thing as "the Internet". Our video conference service simply uses the Internet service that you already have in your home or office as a medium over which you make the encrypted video conference connection directly with us. No unauthorized third-parties can listen in or enter the session. The analogy is similar to having a CB radio conversation verses an encrypted telephone call. The DoD and Fortune 500 executives use this same technology for their sensitive online meetings. No information about you is ever shared with anyone without your explicit permission.
What if I don't know my schedule or have travel or vacations during the course?
We offer courses on a rolling basis throughout the year. We also offer the ability to personalize any of the courses by adding personal sessions for a small additional fee, that is replace fixed group sessions days and times with free floating sessions. Some of clients log into their classes from hotels while traveling. In the event that you need to miss some sessions, you are encouraged to do independent study. Please contact us as we might be able to provide make-up review sessions with an alternate instructor in the case of unforeseen or emergency events.
I have a small group who would like to take the course together, how can we organize that?
Please contact us directly. We can hold a course specifically for your group and offer a time and price that is more favorable. This is a great idea and makes it more fun for clients since they can practice together between the sessions and the instructor can focus on the learning objectives of the group.
What if I decide it's not what I expected?
We offer a full refund within in the first 15 days of the course with no questions asked. If you need to withdraw from the course for a family or personal reason we encourage you to speak with us directly. Most of our business comes from word-of-mouth and referrals, and so it is in everyone's best interest that you are satisfied.
What is Colombian Spanish like compared to other Spanish dialects?
Colombian Spanish is some of the purist Spanish in Latin America. Costal cities tend to cut their words short, and other countries, such as Uruguay are influenced by the neighboring language of Portuguese. Argentinians also tend to speak a more abbreviated Spanish. You will find that Latin American Spanish pronounces their “ll” and “y” as “jay”. In reality the difference in pronunciation is equivalent to different regions of North America, and unlikely make much of a difference. As a non-native speaker, your foreign accent will overwhelm any slight difference in Spanish dialect, but at the same time native speakers will respect you for learning their language regardless of your accent.
Who are your instructors?
Our instructors are selected from experienced staff members of InterLingo and the top-rated modern language program in Manizales, Colombia. We are very proud of the level of education and dedication that each of the instructors has for their work. Instructors view it as a privilege to be able to work with American clients to share their language and culture.
We hear so much bad news about Colombia, do I really want to learn from a Colombian?
Colombia is like any other country in that there are good people and bad people. Unfortunately the mainstream media broadcasts much more of the bad news than the good news. The overwhelming majority of the families in Colombia go to work each day as their children go to school, church on Sundays, family vacations, and they enjoy a similar quality of life as in the US. Manizales, Colombia was chosen as a location for the Language Center specifically for its high-quality Spanish, work ethic, small-town hospitality, and political stability. We encourage you to learn more about Latin America and its rich culture and traditions.