Due to COVID-19 measures, hardcopy certificates for Business English cannot be collected. As soon as we have more information about when certificates can be collected, we will update this notification. Please email us if you need a digital copy of the certificate urgently. 

The courses take place once a week and typically start in the first week of the lecture period of that term. Please note that Business English will run digitally in spring 2020 and fall 2020/21. 

The classes will be scheduled for the following time slots:
Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday or Thursday: 2 pm – 5 pm or 6 pm – 9 pm.
Wednesday: 9 am – 12 pm.

The courses are made up of 12 sessions with the final session reserved for the end of course test. There are no sessions during term breaks or public holidays. The exact timetable for the term will be finalised after all students have participated in the placement test.

Registration for the fall term starts in June and for the spring term in January via ILIAS. Once registration starts, a link to the registration page will be published on this website. Please note that registration for Business English does not take place on KLIPS 2.0. The registration period will end as soon as all available places have been allocated.

You will have to take a placement test to evaluate your current English language proficiency or provide a valid certificate confirming your level of proficiency. Your registration will not be complete if you do not take a placement test or provide a valid certificate.

The test takes approximately one hour and is conducted by the English Institute of Cologne. Places are limited and allocated on a 'first-come, first-served' basis.

Once the registration period has ended, we will inform you of your allocations via email. If there is high demand for the course, we will operate a waiting list. If you are placed on the waiting list, you will be informed should any of your fellow students choose to withdraw from the course.

If you are allocated a course but need to withdraw, please send us an email as soon as possible.

Please note:

• Students who have already taken the placement test in a previous term do not need to retake the test. If this is the case, please send us a short email letting us know which semester you took the test in.
• Students who have one of the following certificates do not need to take the placement test: Cambridge, TOEFL, TOEIC, IELTS, FILTERtest. In this case, please register on ILIAS and join the relevant group. Then, send us a short email with a scan of your certificate.
• If you fail the course, you will not receive minus points ("Maluspunkte"). However, you cannot retake the course nor will you receive any credit points towards Studium Integrale.
• The "English for the Social Sciences" course only takes place if a sufficient number of students have registered for it. Otherwise, students who opted for this course will be offered a place on the "Business English" course.

The course aims to improve your communication skills in a business environment. It includes discussions, oral presentations and written tasks relating to business, and, depending on learner level, grammar training. During class, you will regularly work in small groups and receive individual feedback from the teacher. You will be required to prepare for class and do follow-up work on each session; the total workload amounts to about 6 hours per week. In order to pass the course, students must attend at least 9 of the 12 sessions.

The course structure and its learning objectives are aligned with the 'Common European Framework of Reference for Languages' (CEFR), a guideline used to describe the achievements of learners of foreign languages across Europe.

The levels defined by the CEFR are as follows:

A1: Beginner
A2: Elementary / Pre-intermediate
B1: Intermediate
B2: Upper-intermediate
C1: Advanced Intermediate