Back in 2009 Frenchman Marwin Turki first encountered LSI London Hampstead as a nervous 16 year old about to experience travelling and studying independently for the first time ever. His parents had enrolled him on one of London Hampstead’s Young Learner courses, programmes which are specifically designed to cater for students from 13 to 17 years. It must have been a daunting experience at the time but one which Marwin clearly enjoyed, so much so that he decided to come back to London Hampstead to carry out a two month work placement. Now 19 years old and currently studying English Literature at the Sorbonne in Paris, his dream is to become a writer or work in publishing. Marwin loves writing in English, presumably a passion that was developed during his first visit to London. Interviewed for the LSI Blog, Marwin happily discussed what he enjoyed about his time as a Young Learner and why he decided to come back again.
““My first big trip on my own was when I travelled to London in 2009 to study at Hampstead and it was an amazing experience! I stayed with a host family who really made me feel welcome. In fact this year, after I’d decided to take up the work experience placement at Hampstead, I was really keen to stay with them again. My young learners’ course was just as perfect. I had a fantastic teacher called Sally who really helped to improve my English and made learning both easy and great fun. One of the best things about the course was all the friends I made from around the world. I’ve stayed in touch with some of them and have even been to visit my friends in Italy.”
“Second time around at Hampstead is also proving to be great fun. It is really interesting experiencing LSI from a different angle, seeing how everything is done behind the scenes to make the courses run smoothly and keeping the students happy. Meeting so many of the staff again has been wonderful and they have been so friendly and welcoming and once again I’m getting the opportunity to meet students from around the world which I love. Most mornings I’m working in the office answering student enquiries and generally helping out with any administrative tasks related to the students and courses. In the afternoons I often help out with the social activities leading both young learner and adult groups. It’s been a great experience and I am definitely enjoying it second time around. After my two months here, I will be returning to my studies at the Sorbonne with great memories. Thanks LSI.”