Language Center

Languages open worlds, your journey begins here...

At the HBKU Language Center, part of the College of Humanities and Social Sciences, we offer fun, engaging, and professional language courses for university students, adults, youth, and children.

What we Offer

12 languages for adults: Arabic, English, French, Spanish, German, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Mandarin Chinese, Portuguese, Russian & Turkish.
8 languages for kids (ages 5–15): Arabic, French, Spanish, German, Italian, Turkish, Mandarin Chinese & Portuguese.
Choose from: General Language, Conversation, Travel Language, or Professional Purposes.
Learn all four skills—listening, speaking, reading, with focus on conversation.
Specialized French and German courses prepare you for university entry exams and visas.

Courses Framework

All our European courses follow the CEFR framework and are taught by expert, native-speaking and near-native speaking instructors using modern methods and technology.

Our goal is to...

Foster multilingualism within the community by providing language courses for all ages and tailor-made language programs for governmental and non-governmental institutions.
Provide cutting-edge professional development for language professionals and contribute to HBKU research activities.
Provide testing services for certified language proficiency and training for exams.
Promote diversity and intercultural communication through cultural events.
Contribute to QF's wide multiversity objective.

Academic Year 2026 - 2027 Calendar

Semester	Adults	Youth and Children
Fall 2026 Registration period: 30 August – 27 September 2026	Term dates: 29 September – 15 December 2026 Duration: 12 weeks with a break on 1 Nov – 7 Nov 2026 Time Period: 40 hours, 2 hours per session from 16:50 – 18:50 or 19:00 – 21:00	Term dates: 3 October – 12 December 2026 Duration: 11 Saturdays without a break (the final session on 12 Dec 2026 will be 150 mins long to complete 25 paid hours) Time Period: 25 hours, 2 hours and 15 mins per session from 8:30 – 10:45 or 10:50 – 13:05 or 13:10 – 15:25
Spring 2027 Registration period: 15 January – 13 March 2027		Ramadan Workshop for Youth Duration: 20 & 22 February 2027, Saturday and Monday Time Period: 5 hours, 2 hours and 30 minutes per session, 9:30 – 12:00; 12:00 – 14:30 (tentative)
	Term dates: 16 March – 31 May 2027 Duration: 12 weeks with a break during Eid Al Adha (16 May – 22 May 2027) Time Period: 40 hours, 2 hours per session from 16:50 – 18:50 or 19:00 – 21:00	Term dates: 20 March – 12 June 2027 Duration: 12 Saturdays with Eid Al Adha break (16 May – 22 May 2027) Time Period: 25 hours, 2 hours and 5 minutes per session from 9:00 – 11:05; 11:10 – 13:15; 13:20 – 15:25
Summer 2027 Registration period: 19 April – 2 June 2027	Term dates: 23 May – 2 June 2027 Duration: 4 weeks Time Period: 20 hours, 2 hours and 30 minutes per session, 17:00 – 19:30; 18:00 – 20:30