This is specifically a New Zealand course and certificate. Successful completion of the NZCEL course guarantees admission to a professional study programme only at New Zealand educational institutions.
Five levels of training
- Level 1 – Beginner level
- Level 5 – Academic English.
Depending on the chosen program of study at a New Zealand university, you will need NZCEL Level 3, 4 or 5. Each level requires a full course of study in order to obtain an NZCEL certificate. Usually, the duration of one level is 17-19 weeks.
From the 3rd level (NZCEL Level 3), courses are in both General and Academic formats. From the 4th level, there is usually only an Academic format.
What is the difference
- NZCEL Level 1-2 (Beginner Level)
- NZCEL level 3 Academic = IELTS Academic (equivalent to 5.0 – 5.5) is required for admission to level 4 programs (certificates)
- NZCEL level 4 Academic = IELTS Academic (equivalent to 6.0 – 6.5) is needed for admission to Bachelor’s programs, Graduate Diploma and diploma programs at levels 4-6
- NZCEL level 5 Academic = IELTS Academic (equivalent to 6.5 – 7.0) is required for admission to Postgraduate Diploma, Masters, PhD programs
* A table of equivalent points for language certificates is given here
How to enrol a NZCEL program
For enrolment in the General module (Levels 1–2), there are usually no entry requirements.
For enrolment in the Academic module (Levels 4–5), you typically need to have completed the previous NZCEL level or provide an IELTS score or equivalent. Some institutions also offer admission based on an internal online placement test.
The standard requirement is an IELTS score that differs from the entry requirement of the target programme by no more than 0.5.
It is assumed that during one NZCEL level, a student improves their IELTS-equivalent level by about 0.5 points. For example, if a student enrols in NZCEL Level 4, they must either have an NZCEL Level 3 certificate or provide an IELTS Academic score of 5.5 overall (or an equivalent).
Criteria
- NZCEL Level 3 – IELTS Academic 4.5
- NZCEL Level 4 – IELTS Academic 5.5
- NZCEL Level 5 – IELTS Academic 6.0
Cost
The course usually costs around NZ$5,000–8,000, which is approximately NZ$300–400 per week.
Where to take the course, which universities accept the certificate, what are the terms
NZCEL courses are mainly offered by all state institutes and some universities in the country. Among private institutes, it is in Aspire2, AIS. The course can also be taken at language schools in New Zealand.
All universities in New Zealand accept NZCEL certificates for admission to the corresponding diploma program. This is the official equivalent of IELTS.
The start dates for the NZCEL course are fixed, they need to be checked on the website of the university, language school or with your Kiwi Education manager. It is important to correctly calculate the start and end dates of each NZCEL level and the start date of the diploma program in order to correctly apply for a visa and take into account the timing of both training programs.
How to obtain a student visa
If you plan to continue studying on a diploma program after completing the NZCEL course, you must first apply for a visa only for the NZCEL course, then again for a diploma program (two applications for a student visa).
Important things when applying for a visa for the NZCEL course:
- It is necessary to base the strategy on the diploma program as the ultimate goal. Depending on the level of the diploma program and its start date, you need to choose the level of the NZCEL course, one or several, calculate everything in terms of time, check the entry requirements for NZCEL.
- After receiving an offer of place to NZCEL and a conditional offer of place to the diploma program, we apply for the first visa for the NZCEL course.
- Ideally, the student show funds both for the NZCEL course and for a further diploma program.
In some cases, it is possible to obtain a Pathway Student Visa covering both NZCEL and the diploma programme. To do this, you need to check whether the chosen institution is approved as a Pathway education provider. Often, students choose to take NZCEL and the diploma programme at the same institution. In this case, the Pathway visa is issued for the entire duration of study.
If a student does not complete the NZCEL course on time and cannot start the diploma programme as planned (meaning the visa timeline is disrupted), they will need to apply for a new visa to extend their English course. In other words, the timeline of the Pathway visa must be carefully followed to avoid this situation.
We hope this article was helpful to you. In order to correctly compose the entire learning path from start to finish, contact Kiwi Education!
