OLSA International is a popular Spanish school in Medellín that offers student visas with certified grammar courses and conversational Spanish classes.
OLSA International has a 4,300 square foot building in Estadio with three spacious classrooms, an additional classroom/dance hall, conversation spaces on the first and second floors, an outdoor patio and balconies and a restaurant serving Mexican-American cuisine. It also has a second location in El Poblado.
At OLSA it is possible to obtain a Colombian student visa with courses that cost less than the universities in Medellín. Also, OLSA, exceeds the minimum of 10 hours of class per week required for a student visa with an immersive 14 hours weekly of certified grammar and conversational Spanish classes.
In addition, OLSA is open for in-person Spanish classes with biosafety protocols in place. Biosafety measures include requiring face masks, temperature taken when entering, hand sanitizer available and social distance maintained between students.
OLSA International’s school in Medellín
OLSA Uses an Accredited Spanish University Program
OLSA uses the United States university-accredited Vistas and Facetas systems as the foundation of its grammar classes.
These two systems are used by more than 100 universities across the United States for Spanish 101, 102, 201 and 202. Medellin Guru believes OLSA is the only Spanish school in Colombia using U.S. university-accredited Spanish curriculums.
OLSA International uses the U.S. university-accredited Vistas and Facetas systems
In addition, OLSA adapted these systems for an international Spanish certification through the Common European Framework for levels A1, A2, B1 and B2. OLSA’s Spanish classes are designed to follow the Cervantes Institute Common European Framework for learning Spanish, which defines levels of competence in the Spanish language.
OLSA’s Spanish program is also licensed by the Secretary of Education of Medellin and the Ministry of Education of Colombia for international certification in Spanish A1, A2, B1 and B2 levels. So, you can obtain a Colombian student visa for taking Spanish classes at OLSA.
With OLSA, students can complete all four levels (A1, A2, B1 and B2) in as little as one year! This provides the opportunity to complete two years of university Spanish in just one year abroad at OLSA.
A class at OLSA (pre-pandemic), photo courtesy of OLSA
2021 Spanish Course Schedule at OLSA
OLSA’s focus is conversation. So, group classes are the most beneficial, plus they are the most economical. See OLSA’s 2021 Group Class Schedule below.
A1 & A2 course dates in 2021:
- January 12 – March 05
- March 08 – May 07
- May 10 – July 02
- July 06 – August 27
- August 30 – October 22
- October 25 – December 17
B1 & B2 course dates in 2021:
- January 12 – May 07
- March 10 – July 02
- May 10 – August 27
- July 06 – October 22
- August 30 – December 17
- October 25 – March 11 (2022)
2021 Costs for Spanish Courses at OLSA
All courses at OLSA are 14 hours per week (8 hours of grammar and 6 hours conversational).
Levels A1 and A2 are two months each and levels B1 and B2 are four months each. 2021 costs for Spanish courses are:
- Group Courses: 1,250,000 pesos (COP) per month
- Partner Courses: 1,600,000 pesos (COP) per month
- Private Courses: 2,600,000 pesos (COP) per month
Also, there are discounts for multiple courses (5 percent for two courses, 7 percent for three courses and 10 percent for four courses).
Students at OLSA (pre-pandemic), photo courtesy of OLSA
Daily Spanish Conversation Classes
In addition to Spanish courses that qualify for a Colombian student visa, OLSA offers daily Spanish conversation classes.
These highly-intensive and highly-interactive classes are designed to improve oral Spanish comprehension and the ability to respond orally in Spanish individually and in group settings.
OLSA uses a variety of conversations, games, activities, multi-media and other tools to help develop these skills in its conversation classes.
These daily Spanish conversation classes have a maximum of 6 students per class and are 75- to 80-minute sessions. The daily Spanish classes are four days per week and students can start classes on any day Monday to Friday.
Costs per week for in-person Daily Spanish Classes:
- 1 week = 200,000 pesos (COP)
- 2 weeks = 390,000 pesos (COP)
- 3 weeks = 580,000 pesos (COP)
- 4 weeks = 770,000 pesos (COP)
In addition, OLSA offers virtual conversational Spanish classes and salsa and other Latin dance classes on campus. A conversational Spanish / dance package comes with a discount of 10 percent.
Medellin Guru Partnered with OLSA International
Medellin Guru reviewed all the Spanish schools in Medellín and selected OLSA International as our recommended Spanish school partner.
Features of the OLSA Spanish School Partnership
- Ability to obtain a Colombian student visa
- Lower prices for Spanish classes than at Universities
- Only Spanish program in Colombia based on U.S. University Spanish curriculums
- Curriculum emphasizes conversational Spanish, so you learn to speak faster
- Location in Estadio is convenient to two metro stations
- Owner of OLSA is from the U.S and has 25 years of education experience in the U.S.
Shane the owner of OLSA
About the Owner of OLSA
Shane Keeley is the owner and operator of the Official Language School of the Americas (OLSA).
Shane graduated from Simpson Christian University in 1996 with a BA degree in Business Administration. After graduating from Simpson Christian, he left the United States and spend a year in Valencia, Spain; going to school to perfect his Spanish and partaking in the vibrant Hispanic culture.
Upon his return from Spain, Shane spent 15 years teaching, moving from elementary to middle school and high school. In 2015, he was looking for another adventure in life. So, after some research, Shane sold his house and nearly everything he owned and moved to Medellín, Colombia.
After a few months of meeting people, experiencing more about this quickly evolving city, Shane was presented with the opportunity to use his experiences in education, along with the help of some Colombians, to create a one-of-a-kind international language school. So, OLSA International was born.
How to Get to OLSA International
OLSA International’s first location is located in Estadio where the large football (soccer) stadium in Medellín is located.
The school is within a five-minute walk to Medellín’s multi-sport complex (built for the Pan Am games in 2012 which includes public pools, martial arts, basketball, volleyball, baseball, soccer and more.
Also, the school is located a 15-minute walk from LA-70 (setenta), which is a popular nightlife area in the Laureles-Estadio neighborhoods.
OLSA is near two Medellín Metro stations on Line B, Estadio and Floresta. The closest metro station is Floresta. And OLSA International is located about an 8-minute walk from the Floresta metro station.
Website:olsainternational.edu.co
Address: Calle 49B #76A-4, Estadio, Medellín
Phone: +57 (034) 357.6602 or +57 311.394.0669
OLSA also has a second new location in El Poblado at Manila/Poblado – Carrera 43F #12-81, Barrio Manila – about 10-12 minutes’ walk from the El Pobaldo metro station. This is their newest location. This is the newest location where OLSA opened its second Spanish School
Students at OLSA (pre-pandemic), photo courtesy of OLSA
The Bottom Line: OLSA International: A Popular Spanish School in Medellín
OLSA International is a popular Spanish school in Medellín that offers student visas with certified grammar courses as well as conversational Spanish classes.
OLSA’s Spanish classes are less expensive than at the universities in Medellín. So, you can study Spanish for cheaper than at the universities and still obtain a Colombian student visa. Also, you can obtain student visas to study Spanish during the coronavirus pandemic.
In addition, the owner of OLSA is an experienced educator from the U.S. and the school offers customer service that meets the sometimes-demanding expectations of foreigners.
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Editors note: updated on February 23 to add second location for OLSA International.
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