Arun and his family had moved to Philadelphia from Burma as refugees from oppressing times in their country. The Nationalities Service Centre (NSC) had helped them to settle in Philadelphia, offering advice and support on every aspect along the way.
One way to integrate into their new life was to find employment and many options were suggested to Arun. In Burma, he´d been a taxi driver so for him this seemed the most obvious choice. As expected, he had to pass numerous checks and tests in order to qualify for his taxi driver´s certificate. One of these was to pass a driver´s examination and some of the instructions for this exam would be issued verbally in English. Once he´d passed that, Arun still had to speak a sufficient amount of English in order to be granted his taxi driver´s certificate. He had to be able to understand traffic signs and signals in English, make entries on reports, respond to official enquiries and, of course, be able to communicate with the general public.
So he needed some help! In order to reach the required level of proficiency in English, he took courses in Philadelphia that were recommended to him by other refugees he´d met at the NSC. Starting with the basics, he quickly progressed and soon became confident enough that he submitted his application to take the driver´s examination.
Arun now proudly displays his taxi driver´s certificate and takes great pleasure in driving his passengers around the great city of Philadelphia that he has come to love as his new home.
Almost every college and university in the United States requires the TOEFL qualification from international students in order to be granted admission.
TOEFL, the Test of English as a Foreign Language, is used to evaluate non-native English speakers´ abilities at reading, writing, speaking and listening to the English language at such a level as to cope in an academic environment. It ensures a high level of English language proficiency amongst students at universities and colleges.
The Internet-based test (TOEFL iBT) can be taken at specified test centres and consists of four in-depth sections relating to reading, listening, writing and speaking. The sections cover topics and word usage that pupils would expect to come across in academic settings and therefore need to be familiar with if they then hope to progress in their chosen subject of study at university. The test lasts for four hours and each section is evaluated by selected graders. Afterwards, the candidate will receive a score which will then determine whether or not they can apply to their chosen university or college. If the score is deemed high enough, the educational institutions will use it as part of the admission process.
Even for those students who have a fairly good grasp of the English language, the TOEFL can be extremely daunting due to its in-depth nature, but help is at hand to study English in such a way as to prepare you for each section of the test and ensure you receive a high pass mark. So if you´re eager to train for your TOEFL, these specialized English courses in Dallas are, without doubt, the best way to getting a higher grade and being granted admission to your chosen university or college!
Ming-Lai and her brother, having both graduated from university in China, had emigrated from their own country to America in order to live and work there. In China, a great value is placed on graduates living and working in foreign countries so it was a natural progression for the siblings to make this move after finishing their studies.
There was so much to see and do in Pittsburgh with lots of attractions and events to go to. The people and culture, food, buildings and climate were so different from back home that they spent the first week just enjoying the freedom to explore their new surroundings. They already had contacts in Pittsburgh who would help them to find employment so, unfortunately, the free time was fairly limited before they started working but they certainly made the most of it and packed a lot of sightseeing in!
The other issue they needed to tackle was the language. Having studied English throughout their education, they were both well versed in it, but studying a language at school and actually using it in real life situations was very different. Shortly after relocating there, they looked for the most beneficial English courses in Pittsburgh that would take into account their existing knowledge of the language and teach them what they needed to genuinely be able to get by in the city.
Having settled into their apartment and with their new jobs about to start, Ming-Lai and her brother eagerly looked forward to see what exciting experiences Pittsburgh would have in store for them!
Juan lived in the Hispanic suburbs of Philadelphia in the state of Pennsylvania. He was studying at university and had been planning to take a gap year at the end of the following academic year. He wanted to travel around Europe as he´d heard so much about its history and culture and was excited at the prospect of seeing famous tourist attractions such as the Eiffel Tower in France, the remnants of the Berlin Wall in Germany, Buckingham Palace and the Changing of the Guard ceremony in England, Dublin Castle in Ireland and most of all the magnificent Sagrada Família in Spain. He wanted to see the spectacular tulip fields in Holland, the gondolas in Venice and the breathtaking Swiss Alps. There were so many amazing places to visit and he was determined to do them all!
In order to make the most of this once in a lifetime trip, Juan needed to learn one commonly spoken language for the countries in Europe: English. Living in Philadelphia and attending university there, he´d obviously picked up the basics here and there but he generally spoke Spanish at home and within his community. In order to survive properly for a year and reap the benefits from each country to their fullest, he really needed to gain a wider vocabulary and increase his fluency of the English language.
He searched for some intensive English courses in Philadelphia where he could study in a group of like-minded and motivated individuals. The lessons were fun and interesting, with unique teaching techniques that he´d not expected from a language course. He rapidly progressed and was surprised at the amount he took on board in such a short space of time. Crossing off each week on his calendar, his fluency in English grew and so did his excitement at his fast approaching European experience!
