Arabic language course

For available times for the courses below, please see the course dates and the registration form. The registration form shows the currently available groups.

Quick links:

•  Arabic A1
•  Arabic A2
•  Arabic B1^minus (web-based)
•  Arabic B1^plus (web-based)

•  Arabic B2 (web-based)

•  Registration and intake
•  Certificate and ECTS credits

Reference levels according to the CEFR:

• Beginner: Arabic A1 
• Elementary: Arabic A2
• Elementary: Arabic B1^minus

• Intermediate: Arabic B1^plus

• Advanced: Arabic B2

Arabic A1 is for people with no prior knowledge of Arabic. Once you have completed this module, you will be able to:

• greet people as well as introduce yourself and others;
• ask for and provide personal details;
• learn to read and write in Arabic;
• talk about your family;
• place an order in a restaurant or a cafe;
• talk about daily activities;
• indicate colours, forms and sizes;
• ask for and give directions;
• describe your home, your room and your city.

Coursematerial: 

• Wightwick, J. en Mahmoud Gaafar, Mastering Arabic 1, (third edition, with audio and video ‘free-to-access’ online) ISBN 9781137380449
• Wightwick, J. en Mahmoud Gaafar, Mastering Arabic 1 Activity Book, Second Edition. ISBN 9780781813396 or ISBN 9781137372260.  The course material is not included in the course fee

Date: The registration form shows the actual available groups.

Certificate A1: Upon completion of the course requirements, you will receive a participation certificate by mail.

'I expected to feel a bit uncomfortable at first, especially with the online education and it being a language I have no previous experience with. My teacher made me feel very comfortable right away and encouraged everybody to get the most out of ourselves. This made the classes very enjoyable.'

Yorick Zuidema - Student at FASoS Global Studies

Arabic A2 is for people with basic knowledge of Arabic and for people who have completed Arabic A1. An intake is necessary when you have not followed course 1. In this course, you will increase your vocabulary and broaden your understanding of Arabic grammar. Once you have completed this module, you will be able to:

• conduct simple discussions in the past and present about daily activities such as work, study, pastime, shopping, travel and health;
• talk about nationalities and geography;

• express what you have and miss;

• indicate your favourite food and construct preferences in general;

• inquire about travel, transportation, itinerary or prices;
• indicate time, date, days and months of the year;
• rent a room or an apartment;
• Arabic expression.

Course materials:

• Wightwick, J. en Mahmoud Gaafar, Mastering Arabic 1 (third edition, with audio and video ‘free-to-access’ online), ISBN  9781137380449.
• Wightwick, J. en Mahmoud Gaafar, Mastering Arabic 1 Activity Book, Second Edition, ISBN 9780781813396 or ISBN 9781137372260.  The course material is not included in the course fee

Date: The registration form shows the actual available groups.

Certificate A2: Upon completion of the course requirements, you will receive a participation certificate by mail.

Arabic B1^minus is for people who have completed at least two Arabic courses and who are able to express themselves in most common, everyday situations. An intake is necessary when you have not followed Arabic A2. Once you have completed this module, you will be able to:

• deal with most of the situations that may arise during conversations with native speakers;

• produce text on topics of familiar or personal interest;

• describe experiences and events, dreams, expectations, and ambitions and briefly give reasons and explanations for opinions and plans;

• describe places and situations; talk about the weather;

• talk about future events and projects and give advice;

• express yourself in all kinds of areas, for example when it comes to taste, preferences, colours, shapes, sizes, clothing, art (objects), different media, and the educational system;

• apply various forms of negations to generate conversations easily;

• Arabic expression.

For more detailed information about the course click here

Course material:

• Wightwick, J. en Mahmoud Gaafar, Mastering Arabic 1 (third edition, with audio and video ‘free-to-access’ online), ISBN  9781137380449.

• Wightwick, J. en Mahmoud Gaafar, Mastering Arabic 1 Activity Book, Second Edition, ISBN 9780781813396 or ISBN 9781137372260.  The course material is not included in the course fee

Facts:

• entirely online: web-based and interactive
• one-on-one, so a lot of personal attention
• 8 oral sessions of 30 minutes
• ca. 10 hours of independent study per lesson

Date:  starting date and schedule are determined in consultation with the teacher, after online registration

Certificate B1^minus: Upon completion of the course requirements, you will receive a participation certificate by mail.

This course is for people with a fairly high level of Arabic. Meaning you are able to make yourself understood in common everyday situations even though you might not have all the necessary vocabulary. In this module, you will improve your ability to debate and present certain topics and you will learn to:

• speak about freedom, cultures, and literature;  
• speak about biographies and background information based on extensive readings about famous Arab figures;  
• express the current circumstances in the region;
• apply the learned information to be able to make conversations on socially-related topics;  
• develop assertive presentations and debates about current topics in the Arab world after getting exposed to an extensive range of practical tasks;
• improve your speaking skills and practice real-life Arabic;
• summarise and paraphrase information;  
• report what others have said;
• a. understand the main ideas behind a complex text, TV programs (articulated at normal speed), and newspaper articles;
• b. produce and explain the viewpoint about the advantages and disadvantages of different topical issues;
• c. communicate and interact with a great extent of spontaneity with native speakers 
• e. apply a wide range and variety of linguistic resources to develop debatable and argumentative conversations.

For more detailed information about the course click here

Facts:

• entirely online: web-based and interactive

• one-on-one, so a lot of personal attention
• 8 oral sessions of 30 minutes
• ca. 10 hours of independent study per lesson

The course material is compiled by the teacher, and it contains excerpts from novels, literary texts, TV films & programs, and real newspaper articles. Moreover, there will be more audio transcripts and recordings available to help the students.

Date:  starting date and schedule are determined in consultation with the teacher, after online registration

Certificate B2: Upon completion of the course requirements, you will receive a participation certificate by mail.

If you have no prior knowledge of Arabic, you can simply register for Arabic A1 by using our registration form. After registering, you will receive a confirmation.

If you would like to take any of the other levels, you must first successfully complete the previous level, or demonstrate a comparable level of Arabic.

If you already have some knowledge of the language and would like to join a non-beginners group then please schedule an online intake by sending an email to Mai Mamdouh to make an appointment, free of charge.

Book an intake well before the course is scheduled to begin. This process will make it easier to make the appointment, and more likely that there will still be an available spot in the module that’s right for you.

Costs per course

• UM students: € 475

• UM staff and alumni: € 475

• All other participants: € 605

Costs are exclusive course materials