Register to attend the Una Europa Language Café 

Would you like to practice speaking another language? Do you wish you had more opportunities to speak a second language you already know but are getting rusty at? Are you preparing for an exchange or study abroad experience and would like to learn the basics of the language spoken in your destination country? 

Then look no further! Register to attend the Una Europa Language Café and practice speaking one of the nine languages of the Una Europa partner universities: German, Italian, Finnish, Polish, Dutch, Spanish, French, English or Irish!

What is the Una Europa Language Café?

The Una Europa Language Café is a multicultural and multilingual programme that provides the opportunity to all UCD students to practice speaking German, Italian, Finnish, Polish, Dutch, Spanish, French, English or Irish in an informal setting.

The Language Cafés are led by the Language Guides -- student volunteers who are already fluent in one of the above-mentioned languages. The Language Guides are conversational partners whose task is to help the learners practice speaking a language by creating a comfortable atmosphere and initiating easy and useful conversational topics. All learners who attend a minimum four Language Café sessions will receive a certificate and will be eligible to use the sessions for their UCD Advantage Award applications.

Is the Una Europa Language Café for me?

The Una Europa Language Café is open to all UCD students (full-time, part-time, exchange) no matter their study programme, level or year of study. All UCD students are welcome to register for the Language Café, no matter their proficiency level in the language they wish to practice speaking - beginners are as welcome as intermediate and advanced language users. 

What is expected of me?

You will be placed in a group with several other learners, moderated by a Language Guide volunteer. You do not have to do anything special to prepare for the session, but you should come with an open mind and an appetite for learning and growth.

You will be expected to actively engage with the language no matter your proficiency level; you should not come to the session to just sit and listen, you should try speaking the language even if you only know the basics. You will be supported by the Language Guide as well as your peers in this process.

To ensure that the sessions run smoothly and that they contribute to your learning, you are expected to attend one session per week. To make sure that you can commit to this, please take a look at the detailed schedule below. Depending on your availability, you can select more than one day on which you would like to attend the Language Café, and we will allocate you to one of the selected days. This will allow us to accommodate as many learners as possible. 

When and where does the Una Europa Language Café take place?

The Una Europa Language Café is held once a week for one hour (60 minutes) per session in the Global Lounge at UCD Global. 

Please see the detailed schedule below outlining when the language sessions will take place during the coming semester.

You are required to attend only one session per week. You should attend a minimum of four sessions in total, in order to receive a certificate and to be able to use the Language Café sessions on your UCD Advantage Award application.

You will be allocated to one of the days you select during the registration process.

Why apply to attend?

This is an ideal opportunity for students who are interested in: 

• Becoming more comfortable with speaking in another language;
• Learning the basics of another language or practise speaking a language they already know;
• Preparing for their exchange or study abroad period;
• Improving their language of instruction, if studying in a language other than their native;
• Getting to know new people and making new friends;
• Developing intercultural and communication skills;
• Receiving a confirmation of extracurricular on-campus engagement; 
• Applying for the UCD Advantage Award.

How can you apply?

If you are interested in participating in the Una Europa Language Café, apply by completing the application form by 5pm on Monday, 17 February 2025.

You can register to practice speaking only one language. The Una Europa Language Café will run in the next academic year as well, when you can apply to practice speaking another language or continue with the one you started this semester. Depending on the interest, places may be limited due to the room capacity.

For more information, please contact Tajana Mohnacki at tajana.mohnacki@ucd.ie.