Juniors is the term we use for our youngest students between ages 9 and 13. Teenagers are our students between ages 14 and 18. At Wittgenstein Castle we welcome students from age 7, whose parents may also take German courses.
Our schools for juniors and teenagers are located amidst beautiful landscape or in attractive small towns. Some summer course centers for teenagers are in the heart of larger cities. Our students’ safety is always assured — regardless of course center chosen — through our 24-hour staff supervision.
The fees for all courses include lessons, housing accommodations, full board, course materials, a daily activity program, weekly excursions and a certificate. Starting dates and language levels vary by course center. Please select the course that most suits your needs.
Intensive German courses
In the course centers for juniors and teenagers we offer intensive German courses with 25 lessons (juniors) and 30 lessons (teenagers) of 45 minutes per week.
The lessons are especially structured and designed for younger and adolescent students. They are interactive and demanding, very effective, and fun!
One-on-one intensive courses
We offer students the opportunity to intensify their German language knowledge by taking highly intensive one-on-one lessons. They can choose to take 25, 30 or 40 lessons of 45 minutes per week.
The teacher will focus on the individual needs of the student and will customize lessons according to his or her needs. Taking one-on-one lessons can help students who wish to attain a specific goal in a minimum amount of time or who wish to fill a knowledge gap for participating in a specific language level class.
German + secondary school
Our “Secondary Education in Germany” program is geared towards highly motivated students ages 10 to 17, and offers them the chance to attend a boarding school in Germany. There the students will study to pass the Abitur, which is the required diploma for university admission in Germany.
In order to be admitted to a German school, foreign candidates must demonstrate generally above-average academic performance, as well as sufficient knowledge of the German language. This is why our students are asked first of all to attend an intensive German language course with 30 lessons of 45 minutes in Bad Schussenried or Lindenberg.
In both schools we offer our students ideal conditions to feel at ease and get used to a life in Germany. Through lessons in small classes they learn the German language quickly and thoroughly. Outside of the classroom the students will receive optimal support and will become acquainted with living in a boarding school community.
Having successfully completed the German language course, students are then transferred to a boarding school and integrated into a class according to their age and performance level. The Humboldt-Institut cooperates with highly respected boarding schools throughout Germany and will gladly help students to find the school that is right for them. Depending on their prior skill level, students will need from two to eight months to reach the required level of German (at least completion of Humboldt level B2).
The Humboldt-Institut divides its courses into six levels based on the Common European Framework for Languages.
This graphic shows you the sequence and the levels of the German courses at the Humboldt-Institut. The durations are indicated for an intensive course 30 with 30 lessons per week.
Additional offer
Following the regular German language course, we offer our students a five-week school preparatory course. After this preparatory course they may switch to a German boarding school.
Partner schools
Details about our partner schools as well as a thorough overview regarding our program “Secondary Education in Germany” are available in our brochure “Boarding Schools in Germany”.
School preparation courses
After successfully completing the Humboldt level B2, our students will be able to continue their secondary education in Germany. There they can complete their high school completion diploma or Abitur, which is the prerequisite for admission to a German university. To ease the transition between our German course and German school attendance, the Humboldt-Institut offers a special preparatory course aimed at teaching the terminology and methodology in the most important subject areas taught in school.
The school preparatory course is organized into subject area modules: the natural sciences (mathematics, physics, biology, chemistry) and the humanities (history, politics, geography, religion). Art and music are covered as well. In addition to acquiring important technical vocabulary, students also learn how to summarize texts, work with sources, perform research and give presentations. Role-playing simulation games and project work also teach students how to work in groups.
The school preparatory course can only be booked after successfully passing the Humboldt level B2.
