Are there any recognized short term courses for Portuguese in India?

Portuguese is a Romance language originating in the Iberian Peninsula of Europe. It is the sole official language of Portugal, Angola, Mozambique, Guinea-Bissau, Cape Verde, São Tomé and Príncipe, and Brazil, while having co-official language status in East Timor, Equatorial Guinea, and Macau. A Portuguese-speaking person or nation is referred to as “Lusophone” (lusófono). As the result of expansion during colonial times, a cultural presence of Portuguese and Portuguese creole speakers are also found around the world. Portuguese is part of the Ibero-Romance group that evolved from several dialects of Vulgar Latin in the medieval Kingdom of Galicia and the County of Portugal and has kept some Celtic phonology and its lexicon. 

With approximately 215 to 220 million native speakers and 50 million L2 speakers, Portuguese has approximately 270 million total speakers. It is usually listed as the sixth-most spoken language and the third-most spoken European language in the world in terms of native speakers. 

Over the last decade, we have witnessed an immense surge in the requirement of foreign language professionals.

Learning is not only great for your hobby or travelling but can also broaden language job prospects, immigration abroad, and business opportunities. Spanish, German, Chinese, and Japanese remain on top of the category wish list of most students interested in pursuing foreign language courses.

In recent years, the demand for Portuguese, Italian and Arabic is also rising for various reasons. There is increasing demand and scope for Portuguese language experts in India in various industries like finance, accounts, technology, technical support, IT/ITES, tourism, and education. Due to Brazil’s rapidly growing economy and its economic and geographic closeness to the United States, learning Portuguese is an attractive opportunity for many people. In India, there are many institutions, colleges, organizations teaching the Portuguese language. Let us have a look at the institutions that are offering recognized short term courses for Portuguese in India.

Multibhashi offers short term courses for Portuguese. Multibhashi is an online platform that provides audiovisual classes by experienced Portuguese teachers at an affordable rate from your comfort zone at your comfortable timings. They use a holistic approach through which the course is learnt well and quick enough to be used in everyday situations within a few days of the commencement of the course. By the end of the live online Portuguese classes, a self-evaluation checklist will be provided which will help you understand your result of progress on necessary parameters. Certification of completion will also be provided at the end of the course. 

Camões Institute 

The primary role of the Camões Institute in India is to promote Portuguese culture and the teaching of the Portuguese language. It is probably the best institute in Delhi to learn the Portuguese language. The Portuguese Embassy Cultural Centre in New Delhi offers Portuguese programs for basic, intermediate, and advanced levels such as A1, A2, B1 as per Common European Framework of Reference (CEFR), and Portuguese proficiency tests, i.e., CAPLE. It is the go-to authority on Portuguese culture and language in New Delhi and NCR. Instituto Camões runs two batches in a year (Jan and July). The classes are held thrice weekly, and a certificate is awarded to all the successful students.

GRS Department at Delhi university

Students can focus on the Portuguese language and literature at the University of Delhi through the Department of Germanic and Romance studies. DU language courses are one of the most sought-after in the field of foreign languages in India. Interdisciplinary study allows students to integrate the education of Portuguese language, literature, and culture at the Delhi University. The GRS Department offers a one-year part-time certificate, diploma, advanced Diploma, and a one-year full-time Intensive Advanced Diploma in Portuguese.

JNU – CSPILAS

JNU Foreign Language Courses has built a niche for itself in place of being the best in India. The Centre of Spanish, Portuguese, Italian, and Latin American Studies (CSPILAS) at Jawaharlal University offers education in Luso-Brazilian Studies. Many students have completed M.Phil in Portuguese with their research on topics related to Brazilian history, tradition, literature, custom, and culture.

Learn Portuguese at Jamia Millia Islamia

The Centre for European and Latin American Studies (CELAS) offers a part-time certificate, diploma, and advanced diploma course in Portuguese in their Delhi campus. Each course duration is one year.

Jawaharlal Nehru Academy of Languages

Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan’s Jawaharlal Nehru Academy of Languages in New Delhi offers a one-year certificate course in Portuguese since 2013. JNA has divided the course into two semesters of 5 months each, and you can earn a certificate after the 2nd semester.

Brazilian Portuguese at LangÉcole

With highly professional Native Portuguese teachers, LangÉcole is yet another option for Portuguese classes in Delhi. With a focus on teaching a small group of students, this institute is quite popular. They run various programs such as Basic, Intermediate, Advanced, Expert as per CEFR guidelines. Plus, LangÉcole also offers customized courses like conversational and Portuguese for business.

Goa University

Founded in 1985, it is the only University in India and even in the entire Indian subcontinent that offers Master’s programs in Portuguese. The Department of Portuguese & Lusophone Studies at Goa University offers BA, MA, and M.Phil in Portuguese. It also conducts part-time Certificate I, II, Diploma, and Advanced Diploma of proficiency in Portuguese. For eligibility criteria and admission procedure, you can visit their website.

There are a few more choices like Chowgule College in Margao, Instituto Camões in Panjim, Communicare Trust, Institute of Universal Languages & Education (IULE), Bangalore. The Govind Ramnath Kare College of Law at Margao runs a certificate program in the Portuguese Language with Legal Inputs. Indo-Portuguese Friendship Society, either on its own or through collaboration with different organizations like The Fundacao Cidade de Lisboa, conducts various Portuguese classes in other parts of Goa. They also run customized programs such as conversations and courses for children. There are many academies and institutions which help people learn a foreign language, which has phases. The duration of a course to learn a foreign language is generally six to 12 months, however, one needs plenty of practice to perfect the language, how to read, write and understand the language. 

I hope this article will help you in finding and short-listing the centres for short term Portuguese courses in India. 

All the best!!!