In this article, we will compare Salamanca University to Sampere Salamanca; two Spanish Language Schools located in the beautiful city of Salamanca, Spain.
Salamanca University is a public university that was founded in 1218 and is Spain’s most prestigious and most beautiful university as well as the third oldest university in Europe. It’s Spanish language Course for foreign students, which is recognized as one of the best in Spain, was put in place over thirty years ago and since then, claims to have educated around 150,000 foreign students. The University also plays a crucial role in the evaluation of the national Spanish language Exams, DELE; the only official and internationally recognized certificate of Spanish language proposed by the Spanish government.
Sampere Salamanca is a private Spanish language institute that can also boast solid experience of over 45 years in the offering of Spanish language courses. The company has schools in Madrid, Alicante, and of course Salamanca – with this particular institute being on the smaller scale, as well as renowned translation school in Ecuador. It boasts foreign students of more than 40 diverse nationalities and an original Spanish language teaching system accompanied by a book that highlights conversation and audio visual comprising real-life material.
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SALAMANCA UNIVERSITY vs SAMPERE SALAMANCA
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Enrolment Statistics
Students per class: Max. 15 Students per class: Max. 9
Average Students Summer: 2000 Average Students Summer: 50
Average Students All Year: 2000 Average Students All Year: 25
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Program
Lesson Duration: 60 minutes Lesson Duration: 45 minutes
Course Duration: 2 – 52 weeks Course Duration: 2 – 52 weeks
Spanish Levels: 4 Spanish Levels: 7
Schedule: not provided– Schedule: 9-10.30|11-12.30|14.30-16|16.30-18
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Price
Mid Price Range High Price Range
Books/Study Materials Included in Tuition fee: Yes Books/Study Materials Included in Tuition fee: Yes
Price Calculator Price Calculator
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Amenities
Location: City Centre Location: City Centre
Proximity to Las Escuelas Proximity to Plaza Mayor
Classrooms: – – Classrooms: 55
Free Wifi Available: No Free Wifi available: Yes
Air conditioned classroom Computer Room, Library
Audio-Visual Equipment Student Common Area
Library, Sports Grounds,
Student Email
Airport: Salamanca/Madrid Airport: Madrid
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Age
Minimum Age: 16 Minimum Age: 18
< 22 yrs – – < 22 yrs – 41%
[22 – 28 yrs] – – [22 – 28 yrs] – 37%
[29 – 35 yrs] – – [29 – 35 yrs] – 11%
> 35 yrs – – >35 yrs – 11%
% = of total students
As Salamanca University is large, the age percentages have not been provided.
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Top Nationalities
The following represent Sampere Salamanca :
United States – 35%
Italy – 22%
France – 13%
Swaziland – 10%
Germany – 5%
% = of total students of Sampere Salamanca
Recent years have seen a gradual increase of Asian and Eastern European students
As Salamanca University is large, the age percentages have not been provided.
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Activities
Language Exchange Offered: No Language Exchange Offered: No
Extra-curricular Activities Offered: Yes Extra-curricular Activities Offered: Yes
Diverse Cultural Activites Diverse Cultural Activities
Museum/Monument Visits Museum /Monument Visits
Langauge students can participate Excursions & Weekend Trips
in certain Universirty activites Food Nights & Eating Out
Language Exchange(?) is arranged by the school with local Spanish students.
Cultural activities could require an additional fee per activity depending.
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Student Review
At UniSpain, we often gather feedback from our student clients so that we can continue to assure the quality of the schools we make available to them. Here is a review of both schools based on our student clients’ experiences:
Salamanca University
Positive – The Spanish language courses were excellent, interesting and challenging, in a good way, with a methodically progressive approach e.g. beginners courses being heavy on grammar. The teachers were experienced, knew the material and were passionate about teaching Spanish to foreign students.The students also felt that the facilities were top notch and combined with the generally friendly and helpful attitude of the staff, it created a positive learning atmosphere.
Negative – The major problem was with the placement test to determine the Spanish level of the students and assign them to classes that suited their abilities. A good number of students often felt misplaced in classes that were either too difficult leaving them feeling lost or too easy leaving them feeling bored and unchallenged. And lack of permission to switch classes made things worse.Others felt it unfair that there were no lower level classes available forcing near beginners to take courses that were too difficult for them. Students also noted the lack of national diversity amongst students at the program, that more emphasis should have been put on oral practice and that classes were sometimes too cramped and not conducive to learning.
Sampere Salamanca
Positive – In general the quality of the courses was excellent with staff and teachers that were friendly, helpful, made themselves available and always seemed to take a genuine interest in the students. The teaching method was highly effective leaving the students very satisfied with the material and there was an evident passion for Spanish that resonated within the dynamic lessons. The general environment was conducive to learning and the approach of the school was professional, well organized and very efficient.
Negative – At present, the students have not left any negative feedback regarding their time at this institute.
Conclusion
Here at UniSpain, we give a Salamanca University the badge of Most Popular because the school never lacks students who choose to enrol, at times, repeatedly at different time periods – which shows that they generally have a good enough experience with the quality courses to want to come back again. There are more choices of courses to choose from and students can benefit from the University facilities and get a sample of Spanish university life. However, the prices are higher than the other public universities in Spain and there are not too many Spanish levels particularly for beginners. Sampere Salamanca gets a badge of Top Quality because, although in the higher price range, the quality of the program is top notch with smaller class sizes and an extremely personal and individualized approach to teaching. The student body is generally much more diverse and the school has its own original textbook and Spanish teaching method that seems to be very interactive and effective.
If you like what you see here, go ahead and book your Spanish language course with Salamanca University or Sampere Salamanca and qualify for great deals and discounts.
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