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Vancouver Bound! Courses to Learn Business English While Living in or Visiting Vancouver
Whatever you love, you can probably find it in Vancouver, Canada.
Skiing? Beaches? Cuisines from all over the world?
Check, check and check.
How about high-quality business English courses?
Check!
If you’re visiting, working or living in Vancouver, you can make your stay even more rewarding with a business English course. There are flexible options for all types of professionals and all learning levels.
We’ve collected some great options in this article so you can spend less time researching and more time learning and living it up in Vancouver.
Download: This blog post is available as a convenient and portable PDF that you can take anywhere. Click here to get a copy. (Download)
Why Learn Business English in Vancouver?
Apart from being a very picturesque city, Vancouver provides several real-world benefits that make it a great destination to learn business English.
- Most people speak English as a first or second language. That means you’ll be fully immersed in the language.
Plus, a host of other languages are spoken such as Punjabi, Italian, Chinese and French. Many residents are bilingual so communication won’t be an issue—and many locals will understand your experience as a language learner.
- Similarly, Vancouver is culturally diverse, which will make it easier to learn about different cultures and connect with a variety of people. As an extremely multicultural city, it provides the ideal space for learning all about intercultural differences in and out of the office.
You’ll learn how to communicate and negotiate with people in a manner that’s culturally-sensitive and appropriate.
- Vancouver has great language learning resources. As you’ll see in the list below, Vancouver has some amazing, top-notch language schools that’ll ensure your business English learning experience is entertaining, useful and enriching.
Whether you’re already in Vancouver or just planning your trip, FluentU is the most convenient and effective tool to prepare for your language course.
FluentU takes authentic videos—like music videos, movie trailers, news and inspiring talks—and turns them into personalized language learning lessons.
You can try FluentU for free for 2 weeks. Click here to check out the website or download the iOS app or Android app.
Plus, you can take FluentU videos anywhere with the iOS or Android app. It’s a fantastic way to get comfortable being surrounded by English, even if you live far away from Vancouver.
Vancouver Bound! Courses to Learn Business English While Living in or Visiting Vancouver
Below are some of the top-rated language schools in Vancouver that provide business English courses. Some of them provide food and accommodation, while others can be customized and personalized per your needs. Depending on your goals and budget, you can take your pick.
Tamwood Language Centres
This school runs special courses on international business English in both Vancouver and Toronto throughout the year.
The class size is usually kept small, with no more than 15 students per batch. The course length can go up to four, eight or 12 weeks depending on your needs. Apart from covering the essentials of business English, the lessons also greatly focus on building and polishing presentation skills.
They also provide weekly evaluations and a host of other services. For instance, if your course is more than four weeks, you’ll automatically get a personal coach who’ll mentor you on a one-on-one basis outside class.
They also have free interactive workshops every Friday to further accelerate your skills.
St Giles International
St Giles International is a noted educational and training institution, with numerous language schools all over the world. In fact, around 14,000 students participate in their programs every year.
Their four-week long business English course in Vancouver runs three times a year and is open to any intermediate students 16 and older.
There are usually nine to 12 people per class, and there’s a specific focus on understanding cultural differences and successful negotiating. Communication skills over the telephone and in meetings are also extensively covered.
In addition to these intensive classes on business English, every student has access to other amenities like a study center, a library, student computers and free Wi-Fi.
Vancouver Community College
Vancouver Community College’s courses in business English are unique because they’re geared towards those who already have a strong grasp on the English language and are looking to improve their business communication skills. These courses are part-time, taking place in January, April and September, which means you can work or study something else simultaneously.
Their courses cover vocabulary and how to write memos, emails and reports. So if you’re looking for a course to improve your business writing skills, this is a good option. You’ll also be expected to take a test at the end of the course for free and you can even use your credits to apply for a certificate in Office Administration, which makes this a very job-ready course.
Kaplan International English
Kaplan International’s English School in Vancouver provides a number of flexible business English courses. These are primarily aimed at professionals who are required to communicate in business English at the workplace.
Their courses have a mixture of English language and business-specific topics and can be as short as two weeks or go up to a year, depending on the student.
Along with general business English courses, they have intensive English courses that require intermediate or advanced knowledge of the language. They also have a service that’ll help you gain acceptance in an undergraduate or graduate program if you plan on pursuing further studies.
The Kaplan certificate is also sure to look good on any professional’s resume.
Canadian College of English Language
The Canadian College of English Language has an amazing course that focuses on all the aspects of business English including speaking, writing, presentation and reading skills. The course typically runs for 12 weeks. They also have short intensive modules which require intermediate and upper intermediate knowledge of English.
One of them, Business English 120, is primarily concerned with communication skills and will prepare you for job searching in Canada, writing cover letters and acing job interviews.
The other course, Business English 125, will prepare you to enter the workforce by teaching you the right vocabulary and covering important business English topics.
So if you’re planning to work in Canada, this language school might be of some help.
VGC International College
The VGC International College is known for its exceptional language teachers, cultural diversity, personal attention and for providing a true “Canadian” experience. Their business English certificate program covers business communication, intercultural interactions, global marketing and human resource management, making it perfect for those already from or who wish to join the corporate world.
Each concentration is about four weeks long and the classes run from Monday to Thursday. Not only will you develop your grammar and critical reading skills, but you’ll also be informed about how to conduct business meetings like a true professional.
Language Studies International
Language Studies International is another famous language institution that provides a number of flexible business English courses, which can be personalized as per a student’s needs. Their business course not only covers international buzzwords, telephone meetings and writing emails but also business topics relating to marketing, management, recruitment, leadership skills, trade and even social media. They also provide business English classes online.
You can opt for one-on-one language training or a mini-group with five people to practice networking and social skills. There’s also the option of a nine-day “compact course” for those with very specific needs such as conducting a conference call or participating in an important seminar on short notice and the like.
Remember that learning a language won’t just increase your career prospects, but will also help you grow as a human being—enriching you with new information, perspectives and understanding. Business English isn’t just about the art of speaking well in English but also the art of business. By pushing yourself out of your comfort zone, forcing yourself to do the things you were afraid of and learning in a foreign environment like Vancouver, you’re also pushing yourself to be a smarter, more understanding human being.
Download: This blog post is available as a convenient and portable PDF that you can take anywhere. Click here to get a copy. (Download)
Archita Mittra is a freelance writer, journalist, editor and educator. Feel free to check out her blog or contact her for freelancing/educational inquiries.
