All students and staff at the University can enrol in our Global Language Summer School to enhance their career prospects, develop intercultural competence, and enjoy a rewarding learning experience. These intensive summer courses are available to university students and staff with the benefit of heavily discounted concessionary fees.
The courses will help you get the basics under your belt before you head off for the summer; whether you’re going on holiday, getting ready for a placement abroad, or want to broaden your horizons and develop your employability skills, our short-term intensive courses in Spanish, German, French, Japanese and Mandarin Chinese will be just the ticket!
What languages are available?
This year, we're offering Global Language Summer School courses in five languages, ranging from Complete Beginner to Elementary. Where applicable, the course levels are based on the Common European Framework.
You don’t need to have enrolled in semester 1 or 2 to join a summer course.
The following levels are available as Global Language Summer School courses:
- French - In Your Suitcase, Complete Beginner
- German - Complete Beginner, Post Beginner
- Japanese - In Your Suitcase
- Mandarin Chinese - Complete Beginner
- Spanish - Complete Beginner, Elementary
When will the courses run?
All courses will start week commencing 2 June 2025. Some will run for 2 days, others for 5 or 10 days, depending on the language and the course chosen.
A full timetable of the courses is available in MySkills.
Who can enrol on a Global Language Summer School course?
These courses are available to all University of Bath students and staff.
You do not need to have studied a language with us before to join a Global Language Summer School course; the Complete Beginner courses are open to everyone, and you can join one of the other levels if you have previous experience of the language and that level is appropriate for you.
You can read a course descriptor for each level offered in MySkills.
Do I have to pay for a Global Language Summer School course?
Students and staff are offered a heavily discounted rate of:
- £49 for In Your Suitcase courses
- £99 all other Global Language Summer School courses
If you are a Bath Bursary or Gold Scholar student, you can apply for a funded place. You will need to submit an application even if you have received a funded place on a language course previously. You can apply for a funded place in MySkills.
Where do the courses take place?
Some Global Language Summer School courses will take place on campus, and others will run online. None of the courses are hybrid, so if you want to join a course that's running on campus, you must make sure that you're available to join them in person for every session.
The full timetable of courses in MySkills shows you which courses are on campus and which are online.
How to enrol
If you are a Bath Bursary or Gold Scholar student, you enrol by applying for a funded place. You will need to submit an application even if you have received a funded place on a language course previously. You can apply for a funded place in MySkills.
All other students, and staff, should enrol by following the steps in MySkills.
Other ways to learn a language
As well as our new Global Language Summer School courses, we offer 10-week courses throughout semesters 1 and 2. These courses offer more levels across more languages than the summer courses. The course timetable for semester 1 2025-26 will be published later this year; if you would like to be notified when the timetable is available and enrolments are open, please complete this form.
As well as our Foreign Language courses, we also offer cultural events, student-led Peer Assisted Learning (PAL) sessions and Language Cafés. There is also a range of Virtual Language Exchanges available throughout the year. All members of staff and students at the University are welcome to join these; you don’t have to be enrolled on a Foreign Language course to participate in any of these activities, which are free.