Preparing for the FCE at Kings Oxford

Sabrina Rizzi from Italy has been studying the Intensive English programme at Kings Oxford, which has given her the opportunity to prepare for the FCE exam in a Special Interest Group. We met up with her to find out about her time with us.

What brought you here, to Kings?
I graduated in Economics last year and in Italy it’s essential to speak English fluently now if you want to find a job. I thought the only way that I could learn is to come to England, so I searched schools on the internet and I found an agency in Italy. When I went there they told me that this school in Oxford is the best one.

What course are you doing here at Kings?
I’m doing the Intensive course and am preparing for the FCE in the afternoons.

Do you feel well prepared?
Yes, the teacher told me every day that I can do it, and not to worry. I can feel that my English has changed – when I first arrived I wasn’t really able to speak, and now I’m here, talking with you! I think that I can pass it…I hope!

Had you learnt any English before?
A little in school, but there we always did grammar. I was quite good at grammar, but when I arrived here and had to speak, I found it really hard.

What have you been doing in your FCE preparation sessions here?
We cover speaking, listening, grammar and use of English, so it’s preparation in all areas. I like the structure of this course. It’s very useful if you want to do FCE.

It’s good that the classes are not that big, the teachers can really focus on you.

How have the morning lessons differed to English classes you had in Italy?
There is much more speaking…the first lesson is grammar, but we do it with a lot of speaking. The second lesson is usually just speaking, or listening.

In the afternoons, you go out, and I’m always with people who are not from Italy so I speak English all the time.

Is this the first time you’ve been in such an international environment?
Yes, it’s the first time that I’ve gone abroad – I’ve never been in another country before so it’s a really good experience. It was a little hard at the start but then it’s amazing because you meet a lot of new people from different countries and of course they think in another way, they have different cultures, so you can compare your life with others’.

Which nationalities of people do you spend most time with?
Switzerland, Kuwait, Germany, Belgium, Spain…lots!