FAQ

Frequently Asked Questions

About the site
	Which company operates FES? FindEnglishSchool (FES) is operated by Cosmopolitan Academy Ltd. which has been assisting overseas students to study in the UK for over 20 years. More information What can you do with FES? FES enables you to make direct bookings of English language courses online in 5 languages including Japanese, Simplified Chinese, Traditional Chinese, French and English. Shortly, the site will be available in Spanish, Italian, Portuguese, Russian, German and Korean. There are many reasons for choosing FES. Some of the main features are: * No Agents You make your own free informed choice and place the booking, so no admission or introduction fees paid to agents * Accuracy Accurate and real time submission of applications * Direct communication Receive documents and communicate with the schools directly * Multiple-languages Make the online application in the language of your choice * Specail discounted fees Exclusive FES discounts of up to 10% on some selected course fees * Useful telephone card Free telephone card for every online booking * Unique automated email system Contact the schools in the language of your choice through the automated email system * Choice of courses A wide range of English courses can be searched and booked at various locations * Security Your personal information is protected by VeriSign SSL * Relevant information A comprehensive set of information and links needed to choose the right course Can I apply to any English course in the UK? There are over 1,450 approved English courses to choose from. It is simply impossible to make the site to enable booking on all English courses as there will be too many courses of unknown quality. All the schools in the UK are approved by the British council which ensures the quality. How up-to-date are the school and course details? All school and course information are updated annually. They are also updated when the new information is provided by the schools. Why do I get the free telephone card with every booking? FES knows how important for you to call your family and friends when you arrive in the new country. The free telephone card enables you to make telephone calls from any telephone for up to £5. Are all school fees same as the ones published by the schools? Yes, if the courses are not in the discount scheme. There are some courses offered at discounted prices if you book them through the FES online booking system. Why can some courses be booked at discounted prices? FES has negotiated with the schools to offer discounts on some selected courses for the applications sent through the online booking system. You can enjoy up to 10% of the course fee when booked through FES. This offer is unique to the courses booked through FES and not repeated elsewhere, not even through the schools' online booking. Can I get the same discount on course fees if I book directly through the school? No. The discount scheme is unique only to FES. TOP

The online booking system
	Is the online booking free? Yes, absolutely free. On top of the free booking service, you will get a free telephone card on every booking and discounted course fees on selected courses. What are the advantages of using the online booking system? * No Agents You make your own free informed choice and place the booking, so no admission or introduction fees paid to agents * Accuracy Accurate and real time submission of applications * Direct communication Receive documents and communicate with the schools directly * Multiple-languages Make the online application in the language of your choice * Specail discounted fees Exclusive FES discounts of up to 10% on some selected course fees * Useful telephone card Free telephone card for every online booking * Unique automated email system Contact the schools in the language of your choice through the automated email system * Choice of courses A wide range of English courses can be searched and booked at various locations * Security Your personal information is protected by VeriSign SSL * Relevant information A comprehensive set of information and links needed to choose the right course I cannot understand English well, Can I still use the online booking system? Of course. At moment, the site is available in Japanese, French and English. Shortly, there will be 9 languages available for you to choose from covering approximately 40% of the world population. The languages included are Chinese (1), Spanish (2), English (3), Portuguese (6), Japanese (8), German (9), French (12) Italian (24) and Korean. The number in the bracket shows the population ranking. There is also the automated email system enabling you to write emails in the language of your choice. Why is the online booking better than posting application forms? The online booking is more accurate as the system validates all the information entered during the booking process. They are also easier to fill as the applications are in the language of your choice. The applications are sent to FES instantly through internet so it is much faster than post and there is no chance of a lost application. Is there a time limit to apply for a course? Once the online booking is received, the application is sent to the school. Schools usually take a few days to process and acknowledge the applications. For this reason, FES will not allow applications for courses starting within 2 weeks of the booking date. FES recommends you to apply at least 3 to 4 weeks before the course starts so you have time to get confirmation and the documents from the school, make the payment and organise travel arrangements. If you require a visa, you should book 6 to 8 weeks before the course commences. Can I book more than one course at once? No. You must make separate applications if you wish to apply for more than one course. Is my personal information secure? Yes. FES uses the world famous "VeriSign" SSL (Secure Socket Layer) security system to keep your personal information safe. FES will not supply your information to third parties. Is credit card payment safe? Yes. FES uses the world famous "VeriSign" SSL (Secure Socket Layer) security system to keep your card information safe. The credit card detail will only be used by the school. Can I pay the deposit without using a credit card? Yes. You can also pay for the deposit by a cheque in the currency of the school or bank transfer within the specified period. Can I make a payment using someone else's credit card? Yes, so long as you have the right detail and consent from the card holder. Why can't I find the information I want when booking online? Using the online booking system, only information which is valid to choose for the booking are shown. For example, if your age or English level does not fit the course criteria, it will not allow you to make the booking. Equally, only valid options in the course detail, accommodation and transfers are selectable. If your desired option is not in the list, it means the option is invalid for the booking you are making. How is the deposit calculated? The deposit required is different between courses. It is calculated based on the terms provided by the school. If the course commences within the period in which the total fees must be paid, the deposit required will be the total fees. When do I pay the deposit? You can pay for the deposit at the time of online booking by an approved credit card. The approved credit cards varies between the schools. You can also pay for the deposit by a cheque in the currency of the school or bank transfer within the specified period. The school will not acknowledge your booking until the deposit is paid. Why are some same course prices for longer duration less than shorter ones? Some schools offer special discounted prices for long course durations. Sometimes, the discount may be significant enough to make the longer course cheaper than the shorter ones. For example, 36 weeks course may be offered at £2,000 while the same course of 35 weeks may cost £2,100. How is the deposit used? The deposit will form a part of the total fees due to the school for your course. For example, if the total is £5,000 and the deposit £250, the balance to be paid at the later date is £4,750. What is the cancellation policy? The cancellation policy differs between courses. Please refer to the specific terms & conditions and cancellation policy for each school description page. What happens to the deposit if I were to cancel the booking? You must refer to the terms & conditions and cancellation policy of the booking provided at the time of booking. TOP

After the booking
	What do I do after completing the online booking? You will receive the confirmation of the booking from FES. This email is very important as it contains your unique FES booking ID, terms & conditions and cancellation policy of the booking, other booking details and the link to the automated email system. You should make sure there is no mistake on the booking detail. Once the deposit is received by the school, the school will send you the confirmation document along with any other documents necessary such the balance invoice and accommodation detail. Automated email system is provided for you to contact the school as and when necessary. When do I get the documents from the school? You will typically get the first set of documents from the school usually within 1 and 3 weeks from the time the school receive your deposit. What is the automated email system? The automated email service is a unique feature of FES which enables you to prepare, write and send emails to the school in the language of your choice (choice of Chinese, Spanish, English, Portuguese, Korean, Japanese, German, French and Italian). The emails will be translated into English before sending. Copies of the original language and English emails will be sent to your email address and only the English version will be sent to the school. To use this service, you must have FES booking ID and the email address you have used to place the online booking. The types of emails you can send are: * Make a payment by credit/debit card * Request documents from the school (confirmation letter, payment receipt, invoice, immigration letter, accommodation detail and transfer arrangement confirmation) * Inform the school of a payment by cheque or bank transfer * Inform the school of travel details for the transfer arrangement * Change the course detail booked * Amend the accommodation detail * Amend the transfer detail * Amend the personal detail * Cancel the booking * Cancel the accommodation * Cancel the transfer requested When do I pay the balance? Please refer to the terms & conditions of the school, which can be found in the booking confirmation email from FES. How do I pay the balance? You must pay the balance by a method acceptable by the date in the terms & conditions of the booking. The common payment method are credit/debit card, cheque and bank transfer. Follow the instruction on how to pay in the terms & conditions and remember to inform the school of your payment through the automated email system. What do I do after paying the balance? You must inform the school of your payment through the automated email service. The school will then expect to receive your payment within the next few days. Once the balance payment is received by the school, FES will email you a unique PIN number and the telephone number which enable you to make up to £5 worth of free international telephone calls. What if I don't get the documents from the school? Allow at least 3 weeks after paying the deposit to receive documents from the school. If you don't hear from them after this period, use the automated email system to request documents you need. What if I want to change the booking detail? You can only change the booking detail in accordance with the terms & conditions of the booking. You can inform the school of changes in the booking detail through the automated email system. What if I want to cancel the booking? You can only cancel the booking in accordance with the terms & conditions of the booking. You can inform the school of cancellation through the automated email system. What happens to the deposit if I were to cancel the booking? Please refer to the cancellation policy of the booking, which can be found in the booking confirmation email from FES. Can I get refund after paying the fees? Please refer to the cancellation policy of the booking, which can be found in the booking confirmation email from FES. When do I get the accommodation detail? Accommodation could take some time to arrange especially during busy seasons. Usually, the schools provide the accommodate detail at the latest, 1 week before you join. However, in some exceptional cases, it could be just 2 or 3 days. If you are concerned, ask the school for your accommodation detail through the automated email system. How do I inform the school of my travel detail? You can do this through the automated email system. Do I need to inform the accommodation of my arrival time? If you are making your own way to the accommodation, you should inform the accommodation of your approximate arrival time so there will be someone to greet you. When do I apply for the visa? As soon as you have the immigration letter from the school. TOP

About the UK
	Can I extend my visa in the UK? Only if you already have the student visa. Can I extend my course or accommodation after starting the course? Yes, however you must make sure to have enough time on and correct visa to study in the UK for the extended duration. If you are extending the accommodation only, the schools will only allow you to extend until the end of your course. If homestay is to be extended, you may not be able to stay with the same family. Can I change my booking detail after starting the course? Its usually acceptable to change to a more expensive course if the space if available. If you are shortening the course or changing it to a cheaper course, you must refer to the terms & conditions of the booking. If it is not in it, you must ask the school. The British public holidays The UK has different public (bank) holidays, depending on the region as below: The British public holidays 2007 2008 2009 New Year's Day 01/01 01/01 01/01 Extra New Year (Scotland only) 02/01 02/01 02/01 St Patrick's Day (N. Ireland only) 19/03 17/03 23/03 Good Friday 06/04 21/03 10/04 Easter Monday (England, Wales & N. Ireland only) 09/04 24/03 13/04 Early May Bank Holiday 07/05 05/05 04/05 Spring Bank Holiday 28/05 26/05 25/05 Orangemen's Day (N. Ireland only) 12/07 14/07 12/07 Summer Bank Holiday (Scotland only) 06/08 04/08 03/08 Summer Bank Holiday (England, Wales & N. Ireland only) 27/08 25/08 31/08 Christmas Day 25/12 25/12 25/12 Boxing Day 26/12 26/12 28/12  ■ Holidays for different regions TOP

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