ELT is an abbreviation of “English language teaching”. In this context, it generally means teaching English to people who do not live in an English-speaking country who want to be able to speak and understand English for study, work or fun. People who migrate to an English-speaking country may also want/need to learn English, but this is generally known as ESL/EAL; English as a second/additional language.

ELICOS is an acronym for English Language Intensive Courses for Overseas Students. It is only used in Australia and refers to full-time English courses that are approved by the Australian government for people studying English on student visas. ELICOS describes a type of course or college, not an institution or an employer in itself.

The most common course is General English (GE) which can be at all levels from Beginner to Advanced. This course is for students who want to improve their general English language proficiency.

Students who want to prepare for vocational study, university or other higher education can study English for Academic Purposes (EAP) if they have an Intermediate or above level of English.

Students who want to do well in an exam such as IELTS, PTE or Cambridge B2 First can do an exam preparation course.

Other courses can be available for to people such as overseas teachers of English or people who have a specific work goal. Most colleges offer one-to-one classes for individual lessons.

See more information on courses in What do I need to know to get started in ELICOS?

CRICOS is the acronym for Commonwealth Register of Institutions and Courses for Overseas Students. It is a list of every college and every course that has been approved by the Australian government as suitable for overseas students.

Go to CRICOS.  To get on this register, providers and their courses (except high schools) must be approved by ASQA or TEQSA (see below).

The Australian Skills Quality Authority (ASQA) and the Tertiary Education Quality and Standards Agency are both independent agencies set up by the Australian government to provide regulation and quality assurance for vocational education and training (ASQA) and higher education (TEQSA). These agencies ensure that providers in their sectors comply with regulations including the ESOS Act and standards such as the ELICOS Standards for ELICOS colleges. 

Stand-alone ELICOS colleges or VET colleges wishing to set up ELICOS will apply to ASQA for registration on CRICOS; colleges offering ELICOS as part of a higher education provider will apply to TEQSA for registration on CRICOS.

This will very much depend on what you want to provide ( What do I need to know to get started in ELICOS? ) what you can provide and where you are now. For example, if your college is already on CRICOS, it can be surprisingly cheap! Give us a ring at us 0403 791 238 or email david@eltsupport.com and we can talk to you about your situation.

Australia has an active and collaborative ELICOS sector and there are associations and communities of practice for staff at all levels of a college. Many of these offer resources free of charge on their website, and professional development workshops are available for a fee for members and non-members.

Quality assurance body

NEAS https://neas.org.au/

Associations
English Australia https://www.englishaustralia.com.au/ - the only association and peak body specifically for ELICOS

IEAA https://www.ieaa.org.au/

ISANA https://isana.org.au/

ITECA https://www.iteca.edu.au/

UECA https://www.ueca.edu.au

We work with English colleges, but we do not teach English! You should look for a college that has been approved by the Australian government to teach English to international students. Please go to the NEAS website or the English Australia website to find a list of quality colleges. You can contact the college directly. Tell them you sent us!

This is a difficult question to answer! Research shows that it depends on many things, such as your language background, how many hours a week you study, and how well you study, that is, if you work hard in class, do all your homework and review the lessons every day. Australian ELICOS courses generally plan to help you improve to the next level after 10-12 weeks’ study – longer is better!