My little experience with Inlingua

I started in Inlingua in Zurich
I wanted B1 but they told me it would be better if I go to A2 (later I knew they didn’t had enough people for making the B2 course)

After 4 lessons it was clear it was too low for me. But they told me there was no B2 course.
I drop the course (paying the 4 classes) and THEY SUE ME demanding that I pay the whole 6 months course.

They didn't even try to offer me another alternative, they just asked me to pay 6 months.
I told them that they put me in a lower level and this was useless for me but they didn’t care ...

My advice, never pay in advance.
Careful with Inlingua they seem to be very money driven.
I hope my little experience is of use for some of you

Sorry to hear you've had such a bad experience.

Are there any language schools around which don't make you pay in advance though? I thought that was pretty normal...

I actually hear a lot of bad stuff about Inlingua....sorry you had to go through that experience. Try Benedict, it's a tad bit more expensive but it is definitely worth the money.

I'm sorry to hear about that. How many students were in the course?

I work for a state institution that offers evening language courses.

Facts:

1. It is sometimes hard to fill classes. (Especially higher level German classes)
2. The first three lessons are trial lessons. After that, you are obligated to pay.
3. After the 3rd lesson, invoices are handed out to the students.
4. We offer testing to make sure you are put in the right class.

If there are less than 7 in the class, the school takes a loss. The situation may be similar at Interlingua, which is why they are demanding payment.

Interlingua was wrong to pressure you into another class. You were wrong to attend 4 lessons and then demand your money back. You should have left earlier. Were you informed of trial lessons?

I hope your experience helps others in the future. Thanks for posting and good luck getting your payment back.

__________________
Faith isn't about everything turning out okay. Faith is about being okay no matter how things turn out.

All other I went I always payed one month on advance, and I didn't have problems droping the course, they usually ask in the middle of the month if you will continue or not.
Berlitz, very expensive but good
Migros, cheap but poor quality
Alemania, not expensive but not very good teachers

I mean, avoid paying a whole 6 months course in advance, if you don't like it you may not get your money back :/
just pay one month in advance.

Thanks a lot for your message

It seems there is a contract where it says how many trial lessons you had. But I never received it (nor sign it)
The 4th lesson was at the end of the month so I though this would "round the bill" and it would be easier for all,

I can understand they will lose money if they don't have enough people, but sending me to the wrong level just so that they have enough people to start the course is quite bad from them.

Let's see what happens they have sue me asking for the remaining 5 months.
I should have sue them for sending me to the wrong level

Yeah I had to get some official documents translated at inlungus and they virtually robbed me in the toilets. But thats another story.

I did a few months at Migros, introductory stuff and then had to leave for work. Firstly, Migros didnt make us pay the full amount till after the 2nd week, and when I left I got a FULL REFUND for the classes I cancelled (minus an admin fee).... though I think I had to show them my plane ticket (OS work).......just my experience. Cheers for the Inlingua tip.

I went to Inlingua when I first came to Switzerland and they were fine. However, that was quite a few years back and obviously things can change over time.
More recently, I went to a small independent language school in Basel to get started with French. Volubility, very friendly, flexible program. They also organized social evenings for their students, where only French was permitted to be spoken...

Our school does not require students to sign contracts. It's up to the teachers to inform the students about the trial lessons. Unfortunately, there are teachers who either forget to inform their students or were never informed about the trial lessons themselves.

It's amazing how poor the communication can be between the administration and teachers at some of these language schools.

I am sorry to hear that.

My experience with Migros was at first i was allocated to a higher level class, after 2 lessons i told them i was unable to follow the lesson and they give me a trial on another class. After that I changed to that lower level class and since its already near the end of the lower levelcourse so I received my school fee refund for the missing lessons. Thats fair enough and of cause it would be even better if I can have a trial first. (I did asked for it but they said there are only 1 place left so I better enroll for it sooner).

As for TLC, they let me have a trial first, they softly persuaded me to do another time slot (not level, only time slot) as they don't have enough number of students for the one that suit me best. I refused but then they are still very friendly and just put me in the waiting list. No pressure at all.

I hope your case would be solved soon.

Doh! I just booked the A1 course with Alemania. Was there anything in particular that was bad about the teaching, or should I say any teacher in particular?

I've heard good and bad reports about Inlingua, in terms of teaching. My own experience was that it was OK, not so bad I'd complain, but not so good I'd go back. I know others who had a blast - with a really good teacher. Similarly with Migroschule - so much depends on the teacher.

You must go to your contract and see what you signed. Misrepresentation (i.e. telling lies) in order to get someone to sign a contract, isn't legal. Have you paid up already? If not, get legal advice now. Oh, and be careful what you post here. You must be able to back up any accusations you make.

__________________
Down with racism. Long live miscegenation!

My husband goes to Inlingua, he was tested and was supposed to join a B2 course but since they did not have one they out him in C1 which was at first a bit difficult but then it was OK. When he had to change classes because he got a job they started him on another class that was just starting so he in the end got more lessons. I think they were very nice to him. Sorry about your awful experience

I have also posted a thread about my experience at Inllingua on complaints corner.

As you said, you must be veeeeeery careful while signing a contract with Inlingua. They said yes to everytihg before payment, but treat you like "AIR" after payment.

Another tricky part on the contract is, they only write "gueltig bis Ablauf" instead of a real DATE. You must count how many lessons you have taken, otherwise you would never know how many lessons you have left.

Too bad I didn't know this forum before signing the contract, otherwise I would have chosen another school.

Hi All,

Sorry to hijack the thread, but I have just started a website designed to totally avoid the problems associated with Language Schools.

I have many friends who work for them, and know their pitfalls and the overcharging (compared to the money the teacher gets) that goes on.

If you are interested, please have a look at my website, www.findateacher.ch where we match teachers with students (private, group or intensive) for a small fee on the teacher's part and no charge whatsoever to the student.

Thanks,
StirB

Had a look at your page and applaud your initiative.

Sadly, in my (outback) area, people don't want to pay a decent rate for private lessons
perhaps it is different in the city.

Anyway, there is an organisation which is much more human and professional than Inlingua :

http://www.vhszh.ch/

Volkshochschule is a "Verein" (association?) and very reliable. It offers courses in most cantons.

I took 2 years of courses at Alpha Sprache near Stadelhofen and was very happy with the curriculum and the teacher.

I studied at Alemania and enjoyed learning there. Good teachers,well priced.