Improve your English fast
and have the time of your life

If you are looking to improve your everyday communication skills in international group classes as quickly as possible then this is the perfect course for you!

Intensive General English daytime is by far our most popular course: it is fast-paced, available at all levels and includes elective and optional classes, which means that it can be customised to meet your goals, needs and interests.

It is also the perfect course if you need to improve your overall English before you reach the level required for more specialised courses: many ELC students combine 1 to 6 months of Intensive General English before starting an academic or exam preparation course.

Studying in the daytime means that you will get to enjoy school life at its very best: meeting students from all over the world, receiving optimum support from our team, and having the opportunity to join many social activities. This means you will be able to make the most of Sydney!

Whether it be for a short 1 to 12-week course on a Visitor or Working Holiday visa, or whether it is part of a longer-term study plan on a student visa, over 1,000 students from close to 50 countries study Intensive General English daytime at ELC each year! Become one of them!

Why choose one of
our General English courses?

General English classes focus on improving all aspects of your English and in particular your communication skills, fluency, and confidence. Classes develop your grammar and vocabulary as well as speaking, listening, reading, and writing skills.

In General English you will:

  • Learn to communicate effectively in English for travel, work or leisure
  • Focus on the essentials: speaking, listening and vocabulary
  • Improve your confidence and fluency
  • Build the ideal foundation in preparation for other courses
Learn more about General English

Intensive General English Daytime
Program Features

Flexible start dates

Start any Monday or Tuesday if the Monday is a public holiday

Flexible course length

Choose any course length from 1 to 52 weeks

Available at all levels

Caters for all levels from Beginner to Proficient

Study on any visa

This course is accredited to welcome student visa applicants (CRICOS code 050701A)

Small class sizes

Average of 13 students per class and maximum of 16 only!

Classes for adults

Average age: 24
(minimum 18)

27 hours per week

Intensive course with 20 core hours and 7 hours optional classes

Customisable

Select 5hrs of elective + 7hrs of optional classes each week for optimum customisation

Intensive General English Daytime
Course Customisation

This program is made up of 4 different components which allows ideal personalisation to suit your needs, goals and interests.

Your General English class is your main class each day, Monday to Thursday. In this class, you will focus on everyday communication and your all-round English level. To help you interact and communicate confidently and accurately, our teachers will give you the language you need as well as feedback to ensure all students will make fast progress.

The right level for you

On your first day at ELC you’ll take a placement test and have a spoken interview so we can place you in the class that’s right for you.

On the first day of your new class and if you change course or level, you will receive a coursebook to keep. Our coursebooks and associated digital resources are based on the latest research into English as it is really used in everyday situations. We think that it is important that classes follow a coursebook to give your program structure and for you to use as a reference in the future.

Every single week, your General English classes will cover a range of language skills and develop your grammar and vocabulary as well as speaking, listening, reading and writing skills. The communicative methodology used in classes will enhance your skills acquisition as well as foster your fluency.

Your coursebook will feature a range of subjects and associated vocabulary, including science, history or the environment. This range of current topics will keep your lessons interesting and engaging, with every student weighing in in conversations and putting their developing language skills into practice.

Every Monday you will take a short progress test to revise what you have studied and assess your progress.

Customise your General English course to your needs and goals: you can choose from a great range of elective classes to develop your skills in a specific area.

These elective classes run in 4-week blocks and you can either change every 4 weeks, which is great for variety, or continue with the same elective for several months, which will help you greatly if you need to focus on one area more particularly.

Choose from:

Communication

This popular intensive conversation skills class will help you make fast progress with your speaking skills.

Improve your accuracy and learn how to express yourself in more complex ways.

This class teaches you to use English effectively for everyday tasks in Australia, such as shopping, banking and using public transport.

Learn tips for IELTS exam success; complete practice tests and tasks with feedback and target your strengths and weaknesses for exam success.

You’ll focus on the skills you need to study at university or college in English including presentations and assignments.

Our range of Special Focus Modules changes regularly and more choice will be available once you progress to a different course.

Keen to make even faster progress? Join 5 hours per week or free English Extra classes on Fridays!

Unique to ELC, English Extras are a range of workshops, classes and activities which give students the chance to practise their English skills in a relaxed and stimulating environment while learning new skills and making friends. Every Friday, you can attend 3 classes of your choice.

Depending on your level, you can choose from English Extras in the following fields:

Communication

Classes offered include conversation, pronunciation, video talks and vocabulary to go.

Join up to 5hrs of classes and workshops focused on vocabulary and communication in a range of Business fields.

Practice for the IELTS exam with expert tips, techniques and feedback.

Visit places of interest in Sydney with other students (additional entry fees might apply).

Keen to learn even more? Join an additional 2 hours per week of conversation class!

ELC is Sydney’s only school offering up to 27 hours per week of face to face tuition1 Not all students join but if you would like to make fast progress, joining these 2 hours per week of conversation class will help you grow your vocabulary range and your fluency even faster! Topics change every week but include fields like travel, family, science, the environment, sports, etc…

Your class schedule

Your core classes will run Monday to Thursday, with optional classes on Fridays, as well as in the late afternoons on Tuesdays and Thursdays. The following schedules show how you can choose to study anywhere from 20 hours to 27 hours each week to best suit your availability and goals.

All Classes – 27 hours per week

This program includes up to 27hrs tuition per week, ideal for fast progress!

Main classes – 20 hours per week

Coming on a student visa? Make sure to attend the 20hrs classes presented in blue and yellow, Monday to Thursday.

Our General English courses welcome students of all English abilities, from beginner to proficient. The program is structured around 5 main course levels, as highlighted in the table below, which each take 12 weeks to complete. Inside each of these levels, 3 sub-levels and several classes running concurrently allow for for a more precise placement on first day and ensure students feel their progression to the next stage every 4 weeks.

ELC is a fun school that is serious about learning. Studying abroad is an incredible opportunity to accelerate your language learning and it’s our job to make that EASY for you! With highly qualified and experienced teachers in learning spaces designed to facilitate communication, your classes will be dynamic and engaging, keeping you energised throughout the day. You will learn practical English, with many opportunities for practising the language in real-world contexts and collaborating with your classmates and teacher.

The ELC approach will help you make maximum progress with your language learning in just a short period of time!

Learn more

With less hours tuition each week, our evening courses are more affordable, making them a great option if you have a limited budget. Contact us today to enquire about our latest special promotions on evening courses!

If you are planning to work in the daytime and sometimes full days (8am to 4pm), you will love our evening courses! Our classes start at 5pm only and we are located right across the road from Town Hall station, making it easy for you to come to school on time after work and maintain the 80% attendance required on a student visa!

At ELC, we know that many of our evening students have very busy days before school. This is why we have made sure to schedule classes in the most compact timetable possible: you will study 4hrs every evening with only 1 x 20-minute: start at 5pm and finish at 9:20pm, Monday to Friday. This means you will spend less time on campus, while still achieving great progress in an intensive course.

If you choose to study in the evening, you might miss out on our late afternoon and evening social activities, but you will still have the opportunity to join our weekend activities and trips and to make friends outside of class.

If you choose to study in the evening, you are welcome to arrive early and make the most of all our services and facilities in the daytime, including our Study Centre, student services desk, travel desk, as well as more flexible student counselling appointment times.

At ELC, all our students have access to free optional classes! if you choose to study in the evening, you will have access to 2hrs optional conversation class each week. This is a great opportunity to learn more, improve faster, as well as to meet more students from other countries!

What our students say

Cristian Verbitchi

Cristian Verbitchi

Moldova

Beyond my language skills, ELC has also helped me build a social life in Sydney. I’ve met so many friends from around the world, which is something I love about ELC—it’s so multicultural, and I’ve learned so much about different cultures.

Before joining ELC, my English level wasn’t very strong, especially in speaking. But since starting here, I’ve improved my speaking, vocabulary, and grammar, all thanks to the highly skilled teachers. They’ve helped me progress in the easiest and most enjoyable way. My teachers, Dorothy and Emma, have always been so kind and supportive, and I’ve truly enjoyed every moment in class with them.

Beyond my language skills, ELC has also helped me build a social life in Sydney. I’ve met so many friends from around the world, which is something I love about ELC—it’s so multicultural, and I’ve learned so much about different cultures.

A big thank you to all the teachers, staff, and friends I’ve met during my time here!

Read more
Diego Picone

Diego Picone

Italy

ELC in Sydney is fantastic!

The timetables are super organized, and the staff is super friendly and always ready to help. My teacher is really professional. He makes sure we’re all ready for exams. The atmosphere is great, and learning is a breeze. ELC is the place to be for English education in Sydney!

L’ELC a Sydney è fantastico!

Gli orari sono super organizzati e il personale è super cordiale e sempre pronto ad aiutare. Il mio insegnante è davvero professionale. Si assicura che siamo tutti pronti per gli esami. L’atmosfera è fantastica e imparare è un gioco da ragazzi. L’ELC è il posto giusto per imparare l’inglese a Sydney!

Read more
Manon Seraphin

Manon Seraphin

France

The accommodation is very nice, clean and functional. It’s close to public transports and it’s very nice for international students. Thank you ELC!

The accommodation is very nice, clean and functional. It’s close to public transports and it’s very nice for international students. Thank you ELC!

Read more
Marianna Cerioni

Marianna Cerioni

Italy

I had a great time at ELC and felt very comfortable at Iglu Chatswood, my accommodation. The staff at ELC was very helpful and assisted me promptly when needed.

Marianna studied Intensive General English (Daytime)

I had a great time at ELC and felt very comfortable at Iglu Chatswood, my accommodation. The staff at ELC was very helpful and assisted me promptly when needed.

The overall experience in Australia has been wonderful and it really helped me growing both personally and linguistically thanks as well to all the people I had the luck to meet during my stay.

Mi sono divertita molto all’ELC e mi sono sentita molto a mio agio a Iglu Chatswood, il mio alloggio. Lo staff dell’ELC è stato molto disponibile e mi ha assistito prontamente quando ne ho avuto bisogno.

Marianna ha studiato Inglese Generale Intensivo (Diurno)

Mi sono divertita molto all’ELC e mi sono sentita molto a mio agio a Iglu Chatswood, il mio alloggio. Lo staff dell’ELC è stato molto disponibile e mi ha assistito prontamente quando ne ho avuto bisogno.

L’esperienza complessiva in Australia è stata meravigliosa e mi ha davvero aiutato a crescere sia a livello personale che linguistico, grazie anche a tutte le persone che ho avuto la fortuna di incontrare durante il mio soggiorno.

Read more
Maxut Janayev

Maxut Janayev

Latvia

Social activities especially are above my expectations. The school organises lots of activities like Scary Canary, museums, tours, cinemas, weekend trips… there is something almost every day. It’s great!

Everything at ELC is above my expectations. Social activities especially are above my expectations. The school organises lots of activities like Scary Canary, museums, tours, cinemas, weekend trips… there is something almost every day. It’s great!

I like the studying process – how it’s organised. In my classes we talk about very interesting topics, such as climate change and globalisation. I like the teachers here – Angela is very nice and very competent teacher and so is Lucia.

Our accommodation (Study house) is very convenient. It’s close to school and is in good condition. Everything is great!

Īpaši sociālās aktivitātes pārsniedza manas cerības. Skola organizē daudz aktivitāšu, piemēram, “Baisā Kanārijputniņa”, muzejus, ekskursijas, kinoteātrus, nedēļas nogales braucienus… gandrīz katru dienu kaut kas notiek. Tas ir lieliski!

Viss ELC pārsniedza manas cerības. Īpaši sociālās aktivitātes pārsniedza manas cerības. Skola organizē daudz aktivitāšu, piemēram, “Baisā Kanārijputniņa”, muzejus, ekskursijas, kinoteātrus, nedēļas nogales braucienus… gandrīz katru dienu kaut kas notiek. Tas ir lieliski!

Man patīk mācību process – kā tas ir organizēts. Savās stundās mēs runājam par ļoti interesantām tēmām, piemēram, klimata pārmaiņām un globalizāciju. Man patīk skolotāji šeit – Andžela ir ļoti jauka un ļoti kompetenta skolotāja, tāpat kā Lūcija.

Mūsu izmitināšana (mācību nams) ir ļoti ērta. Tā atrodas netālu no skolas un ir labā stāvoklī. Viss ir lieliski!

Read more

Enrol into a course at ELC

Book your course now or contact us for more information on our Work Ready program

Enrol now Contact us