Short Term (1 - 4 week) Courses
Tallinn University offers a three-week Estonian language course (beginning on July 15th, 2024) for those at a beginner level to advanced-level speakers, costing 600 EUR (approximately 890 CAD).
The University of Tartu offers short-term Estonian language courses from July 29th to August 9th, 2024.
Formal registration ended on May 31st, 2024, but contact the organizers and perhaps they will still have spaces left.
Semester Long Estonian Language Courses
If one wants to take a semester or academic year-long Estonian language course, there are many options.
To explore the possibilities of studying Estonian, have a look at the homepage of the Integration Foundation and click on the heading "Estonian language and culture." This is the Estonian Government's official website on integration (the site is in English and Estonian). It is not commercially driven. They also offer free consultations in case one has questions.
Multilingua Language School was recommended by a British friend who had just moved to Estonia. It was recommended to him as part of the Estonian Government's "Welcome to Estonia" program. Estonian language courses last either one semester or a whole academic year and are at various levels (from A1 beginner courses to C1 courses for experienced language users). As my friend had signed up for the "Welcome to Estonia" program, the Estonian language course was funded by the Estonian government. For a walk-in student, the one-semester course fee is 720 EUR (or 1,065 CAD). My friend had taken a number of these courses and found the quality very good. His only complaint was that during class breaks, the other students spoke Russian amongst themselves.
The Integration Foundation (in Estonian, Integratsiooni Sihtasutus) also offers free Estonian language courses for adults (18+) at the following levels: A1, A2, B1, and B2. It should be noted that to register for any of these Estonian courses, one would need an Estonian ID card with a valid certificate, a Mobile ID, or Smart ID.
If one Googles "Estonian language courses", there are numerous other options in Tallinn.
In Tartu, the University of Tartu offers Estonian language courses in both autumn and spring semesters at many different levels.
In Tartu, Folkuniversiteet (an NGO specialising in language education) also offers Estonian language courses at many different levels (the homepage is only in Estonian).
Estonian summer camps for children or youths
Eight-day language camps for young Estonians living abroad (13 to 18 year-olds) are also offered by the Integration Foundation, but registration has closed for all three camps being held this coming summer. For any programs you may have missed, it's worth applying for next year's program when that round of applications opens up.
Multilingua Language School also offers summer camps for children (6 to 10 year-olds) whose native language is not Estonian. All camps are in Tallinn (from 9:30 AM to 4:30 PM).
The Global Estonian.com portal lists very many Estonian summer camps around the world.
Apps
The following two Estonian government-funded websites list plenty of apps (and other independent study material) that one can use to learn Estonian:
In other words, there are many options — from official courses to summer camps, to apps — to improve your Estonian language skills, so that before long, you'll be speaking Estonian confidently like Kaja Kallas or Toomas Hendrik Ilves.
