Build a dated calendar, not a week count
For a short course, one day without teaching is worth noticing. Start with your possible travel dates, then ask the school to mark each day as arrival, orientation, assessment, teaching, holiday, weekend or departure. A package labelled ‘two weeks’ may describe a booking period rather than an uninterrupted block of lessons.
Keep accommodation nights on a separate line. Arriving earlier can help with travel recovery, but extra nights do not create extra teaching days. Ask when you may check in and when your room must be vacated, especially if your flight is late at night.
Use this calendar checklist
- Arrival date and time, plus the transfer and check-in arrangement.
- Date and duration of the entry test and orientation.
- First full day of teaching, including any partial first day.
- Each scheduled teaching day during your stay.
- National, local and school closure dates affecting your campus.
- Last lesson, any exit assessment and graduation activities.
- Check-out time and departure date.
Ask the school to confirm which sessions are compulsory teaching and which are administrative or optional. Do not count an orientation session as a normal day of language lessons unless the school clearly explains its teaching content.
Check the holiday policy for your course
QQEnglish publishes a school holiday calendar and warns that dates can change. A calendar alone does not establish which replacement lessons your booking includes. Check the relevant year, campus and course, then request a dated timetable and written confirmation of any replacement sessions. Do not assume the policy of another school applies.
Find out whether replacement sessions are individual or group lessons, compulsory or optional, and whether they fall within your stay. A session scheduled after your flight home cannot help your short-course plan. If the answer is only ‘we compensate’, ask how many lessons, of what length and on which dates.
Test two possible arrival dates
Hypothetical example: one itinerary arrives just before a holiday and another arrives on a different week. Do not assume the second automatically gives more teaching. Compare both calendars after the school has marked assessment, orientation and any replacement sessions. Also check whether a later arrival changes room availability or creates an extra accommodation night.
- Send both possible arrival and departure windows.
- Request the actual scheduled teaching days for each option.
- Ask what happens if a delayed flight makes you miss testing or the first lesson.
- Check whether a different start date is permitted for your programme.
- Choose after reviewing the confirmed schedule and the applicable change terms.
Confirm before paying for flights
Do not assume a universal Monday start or a guaranteed first-day timetable. Ask for a booking confirmation that names your first and last teaching dates, accommodation dates and known holiday arrangements. If the calendar is provisional, request a date for final confirmation and identify which details may still change.
Keep the dated reply with your quotation. Recheck it if you change flights or course length. A useful short stay is not just the one with the most crowded timetable: allow enough time to travel safely, sleep and prepare for the next lesson. This checklist helps plan the available study time; it does not promise progress, replacement lessons or a place on a particular start date.
Frequently asked questions
Are two weeks always ten teaching days?
No. The school calendar, course start, orientation and holidays determine your actual timetable. Request the dated schedule rather than assuming a count.
Will every holiday lesson be replaced?
Not necessarily. Ask about the specific holiday, course and campus, and confirm that any replacement falls before you leave.
Should I arrive on the first teaching morning?
First confirm the school's arrival and assessment arrangements. An early flight does not guarantee that you can start a normal lesson that day.
Sources and further reading
QQEnglish: school holiday calendar. Source checked: 2026-10-23.
A Typical Day at a Philippine English School: From Breakfast to Free Time