How To Choose Your Ideal Location To Study English In England?

When trying to decide where you want to study English in the UK, we understand it can be a little overwhelming. With so many cities to visit and so many schools to choose from, how do you decide? Here’s our little guide to help you with your decision…

Big or Small City?

You may realise by now that there are many English courses in the South of England. One question you may want to ask yourself is whether you want to stay in a big or small city. Of course, London is the largest city in the South of England, which also means it is very busy. If you like the atmosphere of a capital city, then maybe London will suit you. However, many students prefer to have all the amenities of a large city but prefer a place that is a lot less busy and crowded.
Portsmouth is a great city in this regard. There is everything you could possibly need, such as great nightlife, shopping, history and culture and great local transport links. However, the streets are less crowded, and most things are within walking distant. Students often feel very involved with the community and quickly adapt to the lifestyle of the city. It’s also not too small, so you will never get bored, for this reason, a lot of students choose to learn English in Portsmouth.

Countryside or Coast?

When searching for English courses in the South of England, ask yourself this question. Do you want to be by the sea, or would you prefer to be in the English Countryside? Portsmouth is a city on the coast, so you can always be close to the wonderful British seaside. However, Portsmouth is located within Hampshire County, renowned for its beautiful countryside. A few stops on a train and you can visit a traditional English village, or take a long walk along a river.

Traditional or Modern?

Another thing to consider when looking for an English course in the South of England is whether you want your location to be traditional or modern. Portsmouth is a very modern city, with a huge student population and a great, lively atmosphere, it is a great place to learn English. Gunwharf Quays is a modern leisure and retail complex, home to the impressive Spinnaker Tower, The Marina, and loads of modern bars and restaurants. However, Portsmouth is also famous for its rich naval history. Portsmouth city has the Historic Dockyards, lots of museums and ‘Old Portsmouth’, the traditional, old part of town. Whether it’s traditional or modern you’re looking for, Portsmouth has the best of both worlds.

We hope this guide has helped! If you have any more questions about Portsmouth, or about English courses in the South of England, please feel free to email us at info@lsi-portsmouth.co.uk

Dreams Do Come True - The Beauty Of Learning English In The South Of England

With grateful thanks to http://ispu.ru/node/15684

Top Places To Visit In The South Of England During Your Language Stay

In January we had some lovely Russian students who came to stay and learn with us here in Portsmouth. On their return they wrote their feelings about their experiences (in Russian) and it was posted on their website.  Very very kindly, they have translated into English what was said. We are incredibly grateful for the kind words and for the translation - as seen below. 

Dreams Come True

Students of Ivanovo State Power Engineering University (Ivanovo, Russia) share their impressions about the trip to LSI, Portsmouth (Language Specialists International), the United Kingdom.

It is the sixth year when a group of students of Ivanovo State Power Engineering University (ISPU) and other Ivanovo universities has returned from LSI. ISPU is the official representative of LSI in the region and it annually organizes a two-week trip for students and teachers to LSI.

It should be noted that during this visit the cooperation agreement between ISPU and LSI was extended for the next three years, which means that other students and teachers will have the opportunity to visit this language school.

Irina Ermakova (associate professor, Intensive English Learning Department, ISPU, group leader):

I would like to start by saying that on board the plane to London I encountered Irina Lutsenko, a graduate of our university, who now works as a flight attendant in Aeroflot Company (Russian Airlines). Irina also studied at LSI a few years ago and told me that every single time she arrived in London she remembered her trip to Portsmouth. She said, “That experience (by the way that was my first trip abroad) urged me to travel around the world and get to know new countries and cultures. Thanks to LSI, I learnt a lot and got an invaluable experience immersing in the native speakers’ environment. The company I am working for now has strict requirements for the English language skills. Therefore, I can say for sure that LSI played an important role in the way my career is developing now.”

We were really impressed with professionalism of the teachers who taught us modern everyday English, continuous acquaintance with the UK culture (at LSI, in a host family, using public transport and just strolling along the streets, not to mention sightseeing of Portsmouth, London and Oxford). We had a good opportunity to see how traditions and customs of our country differ from others (students from more than 60 countries study at LSI)... “The luggage” of our impressions and received knowledge certainly exceeded all the Customs’ norms. We are sure that these impressions and knowledge will not only serve as an incentive for further English study, but it will also help to believe that dreams do come true.

Big Ben, The Tower of London, Tower Bridge, St Pauls Cathedral, Covent Gardens, Hyde Park and Abbey Road - With grateful thanks to http://ispu.ru/node/15684

Here are some students’ impressions about the trip we would like to share with you.

Sofya Gruzdeva:

I was lucky enough to visit such an amazing country as the United Kingdom. We began preparing for the trip three months in advance in order to gather all the documents for the UK Visa Centre. Thanks to the professors of Intensive English Learning Department there were no difficulties in doing it and all the efforts were worth it. I think I was lucky to live with an Indian family and a roommate who was a student from Japan. I was enlisted in B2 level group where I got acquainted with the guys from Italy, France, Belgium, Switzerland, Japan and Saudi Arabia. Those classes with fantastic teachers will never be forgotten. No time to be bored! I also got an opportunity to visit London and go sightseeing: Big Ben and the Houses of Parliament, Westminster, Buckingham Palace, Tower of London, Tower Bridge, Saint Paul's Cathedral, Trafalgar Square, the National Gallery and many other attractions. Portsmouth made an indelible impression on me as well. It`s a very cozy, quiet, small city with wonderful people and incredibly beautiful streets and buildings. I would be extremely happy to be back to Britain and study at LSI.

Sabrin and Iasmin Al-Taiasne:

It`s already the third time we have been to Portsmouth. Many people ask us why we go to Portsmouth, they think that our English is perfect. Yes, our English is really good enough and we are no longer surprised by separate hot and cold water taps or ‘invertedly’ placed bus stops. But, England is constantly amazing us and each time we come here, we learn something new. Both the host family and LSI help us to be immersed into the culture of the country. Here we are taught vocabulary that native speakers of English use in everyday life. You can easily talk with LSI teachers about things that have surprised you and share your impressions with them. Captivating lessons boost your desire to learn English. Here you can have a talk on various topics with guys from other countries, play educational games and just have a cup of coffee to restore your energy after difficult grammar lessons. The city itself is stunning. On the one hand, Portsmouth is a quiet, calm and clean city, but on the other it is incredibly lively. Everything here is within walking distance: shops, cafes, restaurants, pubs, etc. It takes just 15 minutes to get to the coast where you can breathe fresh sea air. These things urge us to come back again and again.

Ilia Denisov:

Although it was my second trip to Portsmouth and I knew almost all particularities of the educational process and leisure, I got a lot of impressions. There were two Swiss men, a Bulgarian, a Spaniard and a student from Saudi Arabia in my group and, by the way, I still keep in touch with some of them. As for the teachers, they are real professionals with their individual approach to students, that’s why the lessons were neither hard nor tedious. I spent my free time walking around the city and hanging out in local pubs. To sum it up, if you visit England and spend at least two weeks at LSI, you will improve your English skills, find new friends from all over the world, get experience of coping with challenges, and enrich your knowledge about other cultures. 

Iuliia Vasileva:

First of all, I want to thank ISPU for the opportunity to spend the best winter holidays in my life! I hope that cooperation between LSI and ISPU will continue from year to year. I have already visited the United Kingdom twice in a similar program but I should admit that this trip turned out to be the best! I had a nice and friendly host family, great teachers and an incredible opportunity to practice my English with foreign students! The lessons were so intensive and gripping, the teachers didn’t let you get bored. I am happy I participated in this program and I do want to return! I nurse the hope that I would visit LSI again!

Daria Chistova:

My first attempts of translating the documents for the UK Visa Centre were a good experience. When we had overcome all travel formalities and procedures, our group of 11 people headed for Portsmouth. On the first day we took an exam which helped properly identify our level of English. I found myself in the group taught by a young teacher named Kate. The lessons were top level! Everyone in my group was very friendly and communication with new friends and practice of English were a great joy!

My hostess treated me kindly and we are still in touch with her by communicating in social networks. I enjoyed the cuisine, the nature, the architecture and the attitude of the British to us.

My childhood dream was to visit London and it came true. We spent two and a half days to explore this city. I will never forget Big Ben, Trafalgar Square, Royal Observatory, Tower of London, Tower Bridge, subway trips and nighttime strolls.

I received new knowledge at LSI that will definitely be useful for studying at my university. I hope that I will get a chance to return to this beautiful place.

Maria Ponamareva:

The trip to Portsmouth was magnificent! I really liked LSI, especially those creative lessons! I got a good practice. My English family was wonderful. We were talking for hours touching upon all sorts of topics. I set a goal to visit this place next year. Having once been at LSI you will inevitably wish to get there again.

Many grateful thanks for translating this for us to Irina Ermakova

Ivanovo State Power Engineering University.

This is a condensed translated version of the original article seen here: http://ispu.ru/node/15684

Student Accommodation with a Difference - St Michael's Road De-Luxe Accommodation

LSI Portsmouth's Brand New Self-catering Student House - right next to school!

  We are really happy to be about to launch our brand new self-catering student house, St Michael’s, which will become available for our students in just a few weeks.

As you can see from the photos below, the house has been beautifully redecorated and furnished and everything in it is brand new.

We know it’s going to be a lovely place for our students to live in and it will have a live-in House Manager to keep things well organised for them too. There will be twelve study bedrooms for students, all of which have their own private shower and washbasin, plus there will be two bedrooms with full en suite bathrooms and there are five communal shared toilets in the house. There is a large kitchen/dining area with 2 large fridge-freezers, 2 washing machines, 2 tumble dryers, 2 sinks, 2 cookers, a large dining table and sofa and a 50-inch smart TV. Also there is a storage room. The house will have free WiFi and the house is exclusively for LSI Portsmouth students.

  Better than this, it will be ideal for those students who - how shall we put it? – are very keen sleepers and don’t like to walk far to get school. Yes, we do know you are out there! The house is right behind the school and literally 50 metres or 1 minute’s walk from the front entrance, a really great plus point for those students who like to be independent, cook for themselves, but live in a nice mixed, multi-national environment with other LSI students from all over the world really near their school.

‘Four years ago, we didn’t have any year-round independent self-catering accommodation to offer our students at all, just homestay and summer university residences,’ says Andrew, our Principal, ‘then we took on two lovely student houses, both great places and very popular with our students, but about 20 minutes’ walk from school. The next phase of our development of offering independent self-catering accommodation to our students, more and more of whom are preferring this independent way of living with other students, is to have houses which are much nearer to school. This house couldn’t be closer, as it is literally in the next building to school! For our extra sleepy students, they can roll out of bed and be in school in 1 minute - if they move fast!’ he says. ‘Early next year, we will be getting an even larger self-catering residence just 200 metres from school, which will really be great for our students and give us even more rooms right near school. We want to keep our students happy and give them the best options and we think these two houses will be great for them!’

Please contact the school for more information or to check availability as the house will be very popular, we are sure!

More Every Day English Lessons Online

For related vocabulary click here 

We have published a couple more of our 'Every day English Online Tutorials, that reach the English other places don't ;-)
We now also have 'How to Tie a Tie' with one of our best dressed men - the Vice Principal  and How to Replace an Inner Tube with Dave one of the most practical teachers on our staff.

If you haven't already seen 'How to Make a Cup of Coffee', 'How to Do a Smokey Eye' make sure you go and have a look here

Getting Ready for University - Improving Presentation Skills

Recently our summer 2016  Pre-Sessional students completed their 'Project 1' and gave their first formal presentations. Above you can see some examples of their fantastic work (not all were available on the day to photograph).  
Despite some nervousness, the students did really well and everyone was very proud of their work. The standard of their presentations was outstanding. They now have just 6 weeks of their course left until they finish their Pre-Sessional course and start their exciting adventure at the University of Portsmouth”.