Cursus Italiaans in Rome
bij Dilit International House

I've spent one month in Rome studying italian language and culture at DILIT; it was a great choice: the teachers and DILIT team are very patient and make it easier to learn. The structure of the school is also amazing: good space to learn and to spend time with your friends (believe me, you make a lot in DILIT). If you want to have an excellent time in Rome, learning italian language, culture and making friends, choose DILIT!

Don’t come unless you want to listen to the same 3 minute audio over and over and over and over again. Seriously each day consists of listening to a 3 minute audiotrack, discussing it, and then repeating the process for an hour. There’s no formal grammar taught, no reading or writing is allowed in class, in theory it’s supposed to help you listen and speak more but it’s so repetitive, and because there’re so anti book learning it’s frustrating and waste of money. It’s also extremely expensive being one of the most expensive in Rome. I’ve attended several schools in Rome and have settled on Kappa. They’re a small school with a nice mix of class activities, talking and listening, grammar, etc, and for a much better cost.

Great experience of studying for a month here. Amazing Teachers (Milena was our teacher, I will definitely recommend her ), fantastic and friendly staff, very cosy atmosphere, and here is another bit- a brilliant cafe 😀 with delicious food and gentle owners. Thank you !

I attended DILIT for many weeks/ months, unfortunately, the course and the school itself were quite disappointing. But first about the good points:

- Good Location, nice building and AC in summer
- Cafe in the basement, prices are okay for rome
- many Internationals and diverse mix which is nice for older people as well, not only for young 15-75+ years old (yes there are also many Pensioners in my group and others)

But of course I came to improve my Italian, unfortunately I got disappointed, in the following you can read why:

While there are some teachers who genuinely try to push the lessons forward, not all of them are like this. I had five different teachers in total. Roberto, for example, was quite good, but the others—I won’t mention names—seemed to just sit there. When you asked them something, you could feel they were just waiting for the time to pass. It’s also frustrating that the teachers change so often, which disrupts continuity.

The price is completely overpriced for what you get. You won’t really learn much because you only end up speaking with other students who make the same mistakes as you. There’s barely any correction, and the teachers don’t really teach vocabulary or grammar. I know people who complained about this. Some paid over €4,000 because they were really serious about learning the language. No surprise, they burned out, were allowed to leave the school earlier, and were offered a refund or some other compensation.

For anyone considering a language course, I would strongly advise learning by yourself. Get a private teacher, practice vocabulary and grammar—things this school definitely doesn’t focus on. I recommend the app Busuu (get the premium subscription for about €90; it offers structured lessons and other useful features, and you can easily reach A2 level). It’s way better than Duolingo. I also recommend the YouTube channel "Passione Italiana" where you can learn grammar and how to use it effectively. Listening to podcasts is another great way to improve.

To put this in perspective, I’m also learning German as a third language at the Goethe Institute for the same price. There’s absolutely no comparison in what you learn there in the same time and for the same money.

If you combine these tips, you will definitely learn Italian faster and better! Really, some people pay €2000 for a 4-week course, but they end up speaking Italian at the same level as me after using the resources I listed.

In summary:

- My criticism is mainly directed at those teachers who just sit there and don’t engage.
- My advice to students is to learn by yourself, and once you reach A2 with the resources I mentioned, get a private teacher and just keep speaking.
- This school is absolutely overpriced for what you get. The price might be fair if you weren’t sitting in a class of 15 students, all of whom are speaking as poorly as you, and where your mistakes aren’t corrected.

Highly recommend Dilit International house! The location is great and the staff and teachers are extremely professional! Assistance is alway there regardless how small and the teachers go above and beyond to ensure the school meets your individual needs. The school’s proactive teaching method and structured learning provided me with a great framework to build my language skills and adjust my expectations when learning a language. I spent six weeks learning Italian in Dilit international house and at first the method may seem daunting but the school provided me with great learning tools to continue to develop improving my Italian! Thank you to my teachers Antonella and Francesca!!