Can friends stay in the same house?

It is Coláiste Chamuis policy not to house friends or family members together due to the total immersion nature of the course. Habits of a lifetime cannot be changed overnight in terms of language. Nearly 50 years of experience has shown us that students are under less pressure in a full immersion language environment where there is separate housing for students who are used to speaking English to each other. There is a much less likely chance that they will speak English to each other and as a result they benefit much more from the language course. Our policy of limiting the numbers of students from the same year in the same school on each course is also a pivotal factor in delivering a full immersion language environment.

It is also of huge social benefit in the overall course experience for students. It can be off-putting for students attending on their own (as many do to Coláiste Chamuis) to see groups of friends attending together. Students grow more socially in an environment where they are all on a level playing field. We strive to create an positive social environment (with many practices and techniques fine-tuned over the years) whereby all students get to know each other within the first 2-3 days thereby eliminating the risk of cliques and social exclusion.

No mixing of males and females is permitted within our accommodation system.