At Nelson English Centre we know that high standards start with qualifications. We also understand that successful teachers must connect with their students. Two thirds of our permanent teachers have higher level ESOL specific diploma qualifications. All of our teachers love teaching and living in Nelson. At Nelson English Centre you will enjoy learning from a great team of people.

Teaching For You

At NEC our skilled teachers make your learning successful by:

• Giving clear explanations of difficult language points
• Having time to answer your questions and give individual help
• Challenging you.
• Setting high standards for you
• Teaching with individual character, fun and creativity

We have designed our student room to increase the speed our students learn English. The English-only rule along with the frequent conversations between students and teachers means you will learn speaking and listening quickly. Our academic coordinators office is next to the student zone meaning you can easily get help with difficult homework questions. Learn faster at NEC with our specially designed student zone. 

Your Learning Journey

At NEC we have carefully constructed a learning journey for all our students to ensure they learn as quickly as possible 

1. Welcome and Orientation
2. Carefully designed placement test assessing both written and oral communication
3. Class placement into appropriate level
4. Extra help with difficult language points in student zone
5. Interview with academic coordinators to assess progress and promote level
6. Graduation with leaving certificate and report

Nelson English Centre offers a wide range of courses to suit all levels and requirements. 

Courses Overview 

We offer a variety of courses across 5 levels all year round including:

• Full time and part time general English

• Cambridge FCE and CAE examination preparation

• Counselling and preparation for other international English examinations such as IELTS

General English

Full time morning and afternoon classes (23 hours per week) and part time morning classes (15 hours per week) are available starting on ANY MONDAY of the year at any level. 

Morning classes focus on grammar and new language from the course book allowing students to improve the four language skills; reading, writing, speaking and listening. Afternoon classes study one everyday life topic each week allowing students to speak and listen in English in a natural, communicative way.

Cambridge Examination Classes

Nelson English Centre provides specialised 12 week Cambridge examination preparation courses for both the FCE (First Certificate in English) and CAE (Certificate in Advanced English) exams.

Students are given a course book which they use throughout the course. Morning classes focus on reading writing and use of English tasks. Afternoon classes focus on speaking, listening and use of English tasks. Our specialised Cambridge curriculum means Nelson English Centre gains the highest number of exam passes of any provincial school in New Zealand.

Cambridge courses run 3 times per year. To find the dates for this year please download the PDF on our prices page

IELTS

Nelson English Centre is an official IELTS test venue offering the exam once a month in Nelson. We are the only place candidates can take the test in the top of the South Island.

We offer four week modules which cover the four skills areas tested in the exam; reading, writing, speaking and listening. Students learn all parts of the IELTS test and get chances to practice using different strategies to complete test questions and tasks successfully. 

Timetable