Australian Public Service Employee Enrolls in Arabic at Middlebury Language Schools
Abdul Aziz, a Public Service employee from Australia, is a lover of languages. He attended our 8-week Arabic immersion program where, thanks to caring colleagues and mentors, he was able to become comfortable conversing about a variety of topics.
Abdul Aziz
Hometown: Australia
Program: 8-week Immersion
Level: 2
Current: Public Service Employee
Why did you choose to study at the Middlebury Language Schools?
I head heard many amazing things about the school and considered it as a school where I would be able to improve my Arabic language skills and meet students from other parts of the world.
What surprised you about your experience at the Middlebury Language Schools?
I knew it was an intensive program with a Language Pledge, but I didn’t know the Language Pledge® would be taken very seriously and that the students would get used to following it so quickly.
Also, all of our teachers and more senior students were so nice and they were all encouraging us to try to speak despite us making so many silly mistakes in the beginning. I was also quite surprised by the amount of homework and extracurricular activities. There were many cultural events planned for evenings and the weekends.
Please describe how your language skills improved due to your studies at Middlebury. How are you currently using or planning to use the language you studied in your daily life (job, personal, etc.)?
My main goal by enrolling to the summer immersion program was to improve my speaking and listening skills. This program helped me break the ice and converse more.
In the beginning I was probably only able to say a few sentences about myself and the weather but left the program with the ability to carry on conversations about a variety of topics.
While I still have a long way to master Arabic, I am certainly feeling more confident now that I can do that.
Describe a typical day at Middlebury.
My day would start with morning prayers and then doing my homework and preparing for the class. Before breakfast, I was walking around the campus for a few minutes to enjoy the wonderful weather and the view in Bennington.
After breakfast, i would prepare to the first three hours of training in MSA. The classes were fast paced and the teachers were simply wonderful. My classmates were a bunch of really nice people, mostly a lot younger than me, and very kind and caring. We were a good group as everyone was really committed to learning the language. There was a bit of positive competition going on which was really motivating all of us.
After lunch, I was attending an hour of Shami class and then we had clubs such as cooking, theatre, Quran recitation, Tajweed, and arts and calligraphy.
Evenings were quite busy with a lot of students staying in the library/cafeteria and also the teachers would have 2.5 hours of office hours which were quite popular amongst the students.
With all of the above activities, we were still enjoying a variety of sports such as volleyball and soccer, and also many of us got really interested in watching the stars and get some amazing photos of sunset in Bennington.
What is one of your favorite memories from your summer at the Arabic School?
During the first few days of the program, many of us were struggling to keep the language pledge and we had to stick to the familiar topic such as weather and complaining about the high volume of homework. My favorite sentences during that time were, ‘I am tired’, ‘The humidity is quite high’ and, ‘There was a bat in our building and I couldn’t sleep much’.
What advice would you give someone wanting to attend the Arabic School?
Come prepared for a summer of fun and learning.
The program is set up in a way that you would learn the language in an environment which is friendly and you will not be intimidated by anyone or anything, and you will soon realise that everybody is helping each other through this amazing journey.
Stick to the language pledge and don’t be shy. Speak the language, do your homework, participate in the classroom activities, and attend the office hours with your instructor as much as needed. You will be surprised by how much you learn during the 8 weeks.
What are you up to now?
I love languages. I am trying to improve my Arabic and maintain the other languages that I have been blessed to learn.
Language Schools applications are OPEN as of November 3, 2025.
Apply to our graduate or immersion programs at the Arabic School.
Have questions for Abdul? Connect with Abdul and our other immersion ambassadors here.
The Arabic School can’t wait to welcome you!
