Cambridge English puts a number on it: about 200 guided learning hours to move from one level of the Common European Framework of Reference (CEFR) to the next. In Malta, the average student stays 3.4 weeks. Put those two figures side by side and you get a realistic plan for your stay, and a clear idea of what one month of lessons buys you.
The benchmark: about 200 hours per level
Cambridge English, the exam board behind B2 First and C1 Advanced, publishes guidance on guided learning hours. Its table is cumulative, counted from complete beginner:
- A2: 180 to 200 hours
- B1: 350 to 400 hours
- B2: 500 to 600 hours
- C1: 700 to 800 hours
- C2: 1,000 to 1,200 hours
Guided learning hours means lessons plus supervised study. Cambridge presents the figures as a guideline only and names four factors that change them: your language learning background, the intensity of your study, your age, and the amount of exposure to English outside lesson times. The last factor is where Malta helps, since English is one of the two official languages of the island.
What a typical stay in Malta adds up to
The National Statistics Office (NSO) release on English language teaching for 2025 describes the average course at Malta’s licensed schools:
- 76,063 foreign students during the year.
- An average of 3.4 student weeks per student.
- 72.9 per cent on a General English Standard course, 19.2 per cent on an Intensive English course.
Schools set their own timetables, so the hours per week differ from one offer to the next. Take an example: a course of 20 lessons of 45 minutes gives 15 hours a week, so four weeks give 60 hours. An intensive course of 30 lessons of 45 minutes gives 22.5 hours a week, or 90 hours over four weeks. Neither reaches 200 hours. Check the number of lessons and their length in each offer before you compare prices: a cheaper course with fewer minutes of teaching per week is not a saving.
So how many weeks do you need?
Divide 200 by the weekly hours of your course. On the two examples above:
- 15 hours a week: about 13 weeks to cover one full level in class time alone.
- 22.5 hours a week: about 9 weeks.
Those are class hours only. Homework, self-study and conversation outside the classroom count towards progress too, which is why students who live in English outside class move faster than the arithmetic suggests. Our guide on practising English outside class in Malta lists ten habits that add those hours to your week.
When students stay longer
The NSO table on student weeks by month shows that the average length of stay changes across the year. In 2025 it peaked in January at 7.9 weeks per student and fell to 2.6 weeks in August, the second busiest month of the year after July. Students from some countries stay far longer than the average: Colombians recorded 12.1 weeks, Chileans 11.9 and South Koreans 8.6. Stays of that length come close to the 200-hour benchmark once you add study outside class.
What one month gives you
Four weeks will not move you a full CEFR level on class hours alone. They give you other results worth having:
- Speed and confidence in speaking, since you use English all day.
- Practice in listening to real accents at normal speed, in shops, buses and offices.
- A precise list of your weak points from a teacher who hears you every day.
- A solid base before an exam course, if you plan to sit one later.
If your goal is a certificate, plan backwards from the exam date. The guide to English exams in Malta compares IELTS, Cambridge and TOLES. Ask your school for a placement test before or on your first day: it puts you in the right class and gives you a baseline to measure against at the end of your stay.
A planning method in four steps
- Find your current level with a placement test.
- Pick your target level and note the gap in hours, using the Cambridge table above.
- Ask each school for the number of lessons per week and the length of one lesson, then work out the weekly hours.
- Divide the gap by the weekly hours, and add a margin for public holidays and days off.
Then set the result against your budget. Rent and food add up with every extra week, so a longer stay at a lower intensity sometimes costs more than a shorter intensive one. Our page on the cost of living in Malta for students sets out the monthly lines. Before you pay a deposit, check that the school appears on the official list, as explained in our guide to checking a school’s licence.
The figure to keep in mind
About 200 hours per level, against an average stay of 3.4 weeks. The average stay in Malta covers less than one level’s worth of lessons. That is fine if you know it in advance and set your goal to match: fluency and confidence for a short stay, a full level or an exam for a stay of two to three months or more.
