Great Value for Arabic Immersion Program for Beginner and Intermediate Speakers

Value = Excellent
Instruction = Good
Housing = Adequate
Support = Needs Improvement

I attended the beginner colloquial Arabic intensive immersion course for one month in July of 2022. I recommend the Arabic immersion program with the Excellence Center for beginner and intermediate Arabic speakers. The instruction is high quality and the value of this program is excellent. However, there could be improvements with the accommodations and support which were still more than adequate considering the price.

Before attending this course I recommend that all students study sufficient Arabic to be capable of reading text in Arabic script as well as understand basic greetings and introductions. I also recommend that people attending this course consider the quality and convenience of the housing you desire and request the ideal housing for your needs before your arrival. This may incur additional costs but it is worth it if it helps you focus.

Instruction

When I attended the Excellence Center, all Arabic immersion students were provided personalized instruction in groups of 3 or less with instructors who were college educated native Arabic speakers. Many of the instructors also speak English which is helpful for absolute beginners such as myself. The instructors are not necessarily educated as Arabic language instructors through a university or certification program. For example, my instructor was a recent graduate with a degree in business who had been trained in providing Arabic instruction.

Given the small class size this is the highest quality of instruction that is feasible. I would not recommend the Excellence Center for advanced Arabic speakers looking for university level instruction. This course is clearly designed to increase general competency and fluency rather than achieve advanced proficiency in a professional or academic setting. Of course, this course would also benefit those at those more advanced levels. However, I am not able to make a recommendation given my lack of knowledge. The Excellence Center does provide other programs that may connect students with professionals in their respective fields. I only had incidental exposure to those programs.

Prior to my arrival, I had only had 6 online lessons with a tutor on Italki and had not completed Unit 1 on Mango Languages. I had not learned how to read Arabic script and had only begun to learn basic greetings. Because of this, it was necessary for the instructor to teach me how to read which required instruction in English. This was not the most effective use of my instructor's time. Due to my lack of preparation, I did not receive the full benefits of an immersion program. However, if I had spent more time studying with an online tutor prior to my arrival then I would have had the opportunity to have a full immersion experience.

Nonetheless, I would still recommend this program for absolute beginners.

Despite my lack of preparation, the staff at the Excellence Center made sure to provide me with personalized instruction that best fit my needs and goals. By the time I left, I could competently read Arabic text and obtained a basic functional level of speaking sufficient to order food, hail a taxi, purchase items in a store, and other types of basic interactions. This was a huge improvement of my prior skills where I couldn't read and struggled with basic greetings.

Most importantly, I am now able to study Arabic in full immersion.

However, I could have made even more progress had I studied more prior to my arrival. I observed people who had studied with a tutor for one year or could speak MSA recieve a full immersion experience which could help them reach a much higher level.

I also saw that when students requested modifications to their instruction that the staff was responsive to those requests. Do not hesitate to express your needs to the staff. They will do their best to accommodate within reason.

Value

The Excellence Center provides instruction, breakfast, and housing for less than the cost of other programs that only provide instruction. They stretch every penny to ensure that the needs of their students are met. In addition, many other programs require that students attend during specified dates. However, the Excellence Center provides flexible dates for instruction. During my time at the Center, students would arrive and depart continuously.

The Center's program are promoted with specified dates. It is probably ideal to make an effort to start within these recommended time frames. However, I had a scheduling conflict for the first few days of my program and the Excellence Center allowed me to push back the start and end dates of my one month program. This flexibility led to a more chaotic feeling at the Center than many were accustomed to, but the staff were very skillful at coordinating many moving parts in real time.

Accommodations

Considering the cost of the program, the accommodations were more than adequate. The Excellence Center advertises home stays. However, due to the demand following the end of the Covid-19 lock-down it was necessary for the Center to house many of the students in "dorms" which were apartments they rented for students.

Some students were disappointing that they were housed in dorms, but since my Arabic skills were so minimal I found it helpful to be in the company of others who had more advanced skills. Also, it appeared that the staff would provide home stays to students upon request. There just weren't enough home stays available for all students at that time.

With that said, it may be an improvement to have dorms and other housing available. The home stay experience is not for everyone. If you are a private person, have strict personal needs, have social anxiety, or don't have much experience with other cultures then a home stay may not be ideal.

My dorm was a 30 minute walk from the Center which was not convenient and impeded my ability to study outside my instruction. I enjoyed the walk and convinced myself that a long walk would be nice. However, the inconvenience eventually proved to be somewhat detrimental to my learning experience.

However, the staff were more than available to provide alternative housing. There was a dormitory in a building that was not in good quality which was only a 15 minute walk from the Center. Additionally, there was a private apartment within 5 minutes walking distance that I could rent for a reasonable amount.

If you are a person with limited funds then I would encourage you to request the accommodations that best serve your needs. Be aware that if you prefer convenience you will likely need to sacrifice quality and vice versa.

On the other hand, if you are a person who has extra funds then I would highly recommend inquiring into your ideal housing options for additional costs. There may be a private apartment or home stay very close to the Center that will be less expensive than the Hebron Hotel which is a 4 minute walk from the Center. Even if the Center staff are unable to provide you with the ideal housing, the Hebron Hotel is relatively inexpensive, albeit slightly run down. They provide discounts for extended stays so I would recommend asking the Center staff to book the room for you.

Support

At the time I attended the Excellence Center, there was a flood of students who had been waiting to attend courses until after the pandemic. The support staff worked tirelessly to meet the needs of the students, but there were still gaps or delays in their responsiveness. I would have liked to have seen one additional staff member providing administrative and program support. However, this will likely improve since this may only have been part of the post-pandemic transition.

Conclusion

Great value: The Excellence Center provides an amazing value for housing, food, and immersive instruction by a college educated, native Arabic speaker. I would recommend this program for both beginner and intermediate Arabic speakers.

Request housing: You can improve your experience by requesting the best housing to meet your needs prior to signing up for your course. If you have the funds then I would recommend requesting upgraded housing options.

Learn to read Arabic: You can improve your experience by learning how to read and studying basic conversation prior to your arrival. Definitely prioritize reading skills! I would recommend at least 12 lessons per week on an online platform prior to your arrival. However, I would still recommend this program even if you are unable to study beforehand.