UNIcert® I - SLOVAK
Introduction
The framework guidelines for the UNICert® program as a specialized foreign language training program were developed by the Language Center of the Technical University of Dresden and the Association of University Language Centers (Arbeitskreis der Sprachzentren) in Germany in 1991. This program was created in response to the unification processes in Europe, and the growing internationalization of trade, industry, science, and research. New forms of cooperation between European universities arose, particularly in relation to student mobility programs.
UNIcert® is implemented at four levels (I – IV), corresponding to the levels of the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (B1–C2).
In 2024, the Institute for Accreditation of Language Programs and Exams at Universities in Central Europe, UNIcert® LUCE, awarded accreditation to the Institute of Medical Terminology and Foreign Languages (IMTFL) at the Faculty of Medicine, Comenius University in Bratislava, for teaching two language programs:
- Slovak language for medical sciences – General Medicine – UNIcert® I
- Slovak language for medical sciences – Dental Medicine – UNIcert® I
UNICert® is an international educational and testing program that offers:
- professionally and academically oriented specialized language training,
- the.opportunity to obtain a certificate of Slovak language proficiency at the B1 level (according to the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages),
- support for intercultural exchange in a multicultural context and mobility,
- certification of Slovak language proficiency in the field of study for future employers.
Objectives of the programme UNIcert® I
The study of Slovak for foreign students of general and dental medicine is focused primarily on developing key language skills that activate their communicative language competence.
The aim of the language training is to equip students with the knowledge, skills, and competencies that will enable them to understand Slovak-speaking patients and colleagues, especially in oral communication. The students will also be able to comprehend basic information in general texts, but particularly in specialized texts related to their field of study. Eventually, they can systematically organize and apply the knowledge in their professional and personal development.
Conditions, scope and form of the programme UNIcert® I
The program is based on the specific conditions of our faculty and the requirements of UNIcert® LUCE. It includes five semesters of specialized language training, according to the Study Schedule of the Faculty of Medicine (Comenius University), and communication during clinical practice in a hospital.
Upon completing the required number of hours of the training and clinical practice, participants are eligible to receive a UNIcert® I certificate, based on cumulative assessment at the end of the third year.
Cumulative assessment applies to students who, over the five semesters of language tuition, have achieved a success rate of over 72%, meaning they did not receive grades lower than A, B, or C in individual blocks, and who have completed the required practical training. The final grade is a weighted average of results from individual blocks/semesters and the final exam.
Issuance of the certificate is subject to a fee, in accordance with the pricing schedule set annually by IMTFL.