The underneath General Terms and Conditions are applicable to online individual classes (6/12/24-lesson packages), online/hybrid daytime courses (= course A, B, C) and online/hybrid evening courses offered by Piccola Università Italiana and subscribed by the student (the client) directly with the school or through an intermediary (including an agent).
1. Enrolment Procedure
1.1. When registering you accept the published “General Terms and Conditions”.
1.2. The registration should be filed online through the form on the website: https://piccolauniversitaitaliana.com
1.3. In exceptional cases, the application may also be sent in writing via e-mail. The contract is achieved by a written confirmation from our side. This confirmation comes into effect on receipt of pre-payment.
1.4. By enrolling at the school, the student commits to following the course and respecting the internal regulations of the school.
2. Minimum age
2.1. Minimum age of admission for adult group courses (= course A, B, C) is 16 years. Teenagers aged 16 to 17 have to provide the authorization, that parents or a legal guardian agree to the course participants, assuming personal liability for the minor and confirming that the child is financially secure. This authorization (scanned) must be sent together with the application and the passport copy (scanned) to the secretary’s office. The template of the authorization is available upon request in the secretary’s office.
2.2. Children from 4 to 15 years need to book private lessons or lessons in a pre-formed group. Children of this age group have to be enrolled in the Junior summer programme (only available from 12 to 17 years) or must be accompanied by their parents or legal guardian during their stay.
3. Payment
3.1. By paying for all or part of the service, the client agrees unreservedly to these General Terms and Conditions as well as the internal regulations to which they refer.
3.2. The entire amount must be paid before the start of the course, thereby the confirmation receives its effectiveness.
3.2.1. Payment by bank transfer: This payment option is recommended for students from the eurozone. Together with the confirmation of the booked language course, students receive automatically the relevant bank details. The bank transfer fees are borne by the student. A remittance copy must be presented at the beginning of the course.
3.2.2. Payment through Flywire: This payment gateway is recommended for students from non-EU countries. It provides the possibility to pay in over 140 currencies, pays by bank transfer or international credit/debit card, eliminates bank fees, enjoys excellent exchange rates, tracks payment from start to finish, pays from any country and any bank.
3.2.3. Cash payment: In exceptional cases, cash payments are accepted especially for “last minute” registration and have to be made on the first day of the course to the secretary’s office.
3.3. The student is entitled to participate in the course, once copies of the payment records have been presented.
3.4 A compulsory stamp duty of € 2,00 applies to each invoice.
4. Cancellation policy
4.1. Withdrawal from a program can be done only by e-mail or registered letter to our office.
4.2. Cancellation policy:
| Cancellation period | Course cancellation fee |
|---|---|
| Less than 30 days before the first day of the course | 50 % of the course fee |
| Less than 7 days before the first day of the course | 100 % of the course fee |
4.3. There will be no course refunds in the event of a cancellation once the course has begun.
4.4. Online/hybrid group courses cannot be cancelled or rescheduled.
4.5. The cancellation of an online individual class must be notified to the secretary’s office at least 24 hours in advance. After this deadline the lesson will be charged, even though it did not take place.
4.6. Delays or no-shows in online/hybrid group courses (= course A, B, C) will be charged as if they were carried out.
4.7. In case of connection problems, the lesson will be suspended immediately and the uncompleted minutes will be made up in the next scheduled lesson.
4.8. Course starting dates are fixed. There is no refund for any missed lessons, early termination of a course, or for missing the start of class.
5. Contracted Services
The scope of the school’s contractual services is clear from our publications, including the price list and any related information received in the confirmation. Written confirmation must be received from the school for any exceptions and a copy presented when the course begins.
6. Concerns and Complaints
Any concerns or complaints should be taken directly to the school management. It is our number one priority to provide the best service and study experience possible. Therefore, should the student have any problems, complaints, or concerns, we will address these immediately and come to a mutually satisfying arrangement.
7. Placement Test
7.1. The placement test is mandatory for all students, also for students who self-evaluate themselves as beginners.
7.2. The written test will take place online before the course starts and it will be sent to the provided e-mail address. The oral test will take place online on our Zoom platform.
8. Classes and timetable
8.1. Online/hybrid daytime courses (= course A, B, C) take place from Monday to Friday and will either be scheduled from 9:00 am to 1:00 pm or in the afternoon from 2:00 pm to 6:00 pm (CEST).
8.2. Online individual classes can be scheduled from 9:00 am to 7:15 pm (CEST). We offer lessons of 45 or 90 minutes that can be booked at 9:00 am, 09:45 am, 10:30 am, 11:15 am, 12:00 am, 12:45 am, 14:00 pm, 14:45 pm, 15:30 pm, 16:15 pm, 17:00 pm, 5:45 pm, 6:30 pm, 7:15 pm.
8.3. Online/hybrid evening courses take place twice a week, always on Monday and Wednesday or on Tuesday and Thursday for two hours from 6:10 pm to 8:00 pm (CEST) for 10 weeks, for a total of 40 hours. Each lesson is 55 minutes long.
8.4. The timetable is established by the school board and will be communicated to students before the start of the course. Special timetable or scheduling requests can apply only to individual lessons and must be requested by e-mail before the course starts.
8.5. On national holidays, online/hybrid daytime courses (= course A, B, C) will be cancelled without scheduling any makeup classes. Only private lessons and online/hybrid evening courses will be made up.
8.6. All the participants of online/hybrid daytime courses (= course A, B, C) and online/hybrid evening courses are required to take a written and oral placement test. Classes are then formed based on exam results and in accordance with the Common European Framework of Reference (CEFR). Should there be no 3-8 grouping available at a student’s level, the student will be placed in a 1-2 student-to-teacher ratio setting. If this occurs, the number of lessons will be reduced by 50%. In the case of online/hybrid evening courses, the student will take an individual 12-lesson package.
8.7. Should a student not be satisfied with the classification or the course itself, it must be reported to the secretary’s office 2 days, at the latest, after courses start. The placement test will then be retaken and a reclassification made if warranted. The student is called throughout the stay to give feedback on the lessons, which must be communicated directly to the secretary’s office.
8.8. No change can be made to the pre-booked course after the start of the course. Therefore, any request for a booking change must be made before.
8.9. In the case of teacher availability, students can book additional private lessons for the already confirmed online/hybrid course.
9. Teaching materials and homework
9.1. Teaching materials, homework and exercises will be sent before the lesson starts to the e-mail communicated at the time of the inscription.
9.2. The homework assigned will be corrected by the teacher only during class hours.
9.3. The request for materials or exercises to teachers outside of class hours is generally forbidden, except in cases of proven necessity.
10. Privacy
10.1. The participant authorizes the Piccola Università Italiana to use personal data for processing the registration and for demographic or statistical analysis and promotional materials. The participant may, according to Italian law (art. 13, 675/96), request the deletion of personal data at any time.
10.2. The participant authorizes the Piccola Università Italiana to publish photographs taken during their stay at the school. If the participant does not agree, he/she must report this on the first day of school in the secretary’s office.
11. Program and prices
The school reserves the right to change course programs and prices for services.
12. Holiday Schedule
The annual holidays are listed in the price list, so please consult the price list for further information. For makeup classes see clause 8.5.
13. Discipline
In the event that a student is disrespectful towards other students or the school’s staff, Piccola Università Italiana reserves the right to exclude the students from the booked group classes. Fees will not be reimbursed.
14. Limitation of Liability
In any event, liability and reimbursement on the part of the Piccola Università Italiana for the failure or delayed provision of the service resulting from circumstances beyond its control or force majeure are excluded, including merely by way of example and not limited to, natural disasters, adverse weather conditions, epidemics, pandemics, sabotage, fire, floods, earthquakes, strikes, defective functioning caused by the incorrect functioning of third-party electronic devices, telephone lines, electrical and international and/or national networks, such as, by way of example but not limited to, breakdowns, overloads, interruptions, and any other circumstances not attributable to the Piccola Università Italiana that prevents the use of the service. Notwithstanding the foregoing, and except in the case of willful misconduct or gross negligence on the part of the Piccola Università Italiana, the parties agree and mutually acknowledge that in each and every case the liability of the Piccola Università Italiana cannot exceed the amounts paid by the student to the Piccola Università Italiana for the provision of the service.
15. Acceptance of general terms and conditions of participation
The school reserves the right to change the school’s “general terms and conditions of participation”. It is understood, that after having read the school’s “general terms and conditions of participation”, the student accepts these terms. The school, therefore, reserves the right to expel participants for blatant disregard of these terms and conditions and/or for any behaviour deemed inappropriate by the school.