If you want to speak a language quickly and inexpensively, you’ve come to the right place. Below are some of the best and most effective ways on how you can learn a foreign language:
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Enroll in a free language course
First, a lot of universities offer free language courses to students. Though in some cases, these free courses may be available to students from other departments. What you need to do is to inquire whether you qualify for a slot.
Usually, the languages taught in these courses are limited to the more popular ones such as Spanish, French, Mandarin, and more. It is one of the best ways to learn cheaply and quickly.
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Learn from home
Self-teaching is also a good way to learn a new language as it can easily fit around your schedule while staying at home. If you have free time, you can browse through language resources and start learning from there.
Or you can try free language applications. Some apps may ask for a payment, but there are free online learning options out there.
Probably the most famous language-learning app is Duolingo, which has some great reviews. Websites such as Memrise and TripLingo are also good alternatives.
These often have free and paid-for versions. If you want to have an advanced self-learning version, pay for a subscription. Regardless, even the free version will make you learn to a decent level.
If you want an offline option, you could simply find foreign language dictionaries or language learning software in your university library.
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Study abroad or go on holiday
Studying abroad is already a perfect opportunity to learn a new language. You can quickly learn a new language where it is widely spoken, for example, Spanish in Spain, French in France, and Mandarin in China. The fastest way to be fluent is to immerse in a country’s culture and speak to the locals.
More importantly, know if your prospective university abroad offers a year abroad program that is usually free of charge in terms of tuition fees. This will be a big help in adapting to the country’s language.
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Take a language module as part of your degree
Students are often allowed or even required to take a unit outside of a major subject, and this is the opportunity for you to grab that language course to fully learn it. This normally costs free and would not risk your overall workload.
Talk to someone in your department to find which language course would suit you. Even if they are common, open units are not always available on every course. So it is best to check it first.
Try taking beginners’ language courses in your freshman year. This would be perfect for you if you are completely foreign to such languages.
International study is one good way to learn a language. Explore study destinations abroad through reading our articles at MSM Unify.
