The Oxford English Centre

The Oxford English Centre has taught international students in Oxford since 1979. Its home on Banbury Road is a Grade II listed Victorian building in a residential part of the city. Students who like the idea of walking into central Oxford after class can do so from here. The location also suits someone looking for a quieter base for a longer language stay.

Group teaching and individual lessons

General English brings together reading, writing, listening and speaking, with vocabulary and grammar developed alongside those skills. Students take a placement test online before arriving. That gives the school a starting point for assigning a group, whether the student is beginning English or returning to a language they already use regularly.

The centre offers a choice between studying entirely in a group, adding individual tuition to group classes, and arranging a programme with a tutor. The combined option gives a learner a place to practise with classmates as well as time to work on a particular difficulty in private. A student who needs a qualification can instead explore IELTS, Cambridge English or TOEFL preparation. The choice of exam matters here, since the skills a student must demonstrate, the booking arrangements and the accepted results depend on the institution receiving the application.