At the U.S. Foreign Service Institute (FSI), a full-time week of Slovak means about 23 hours in class, and students study about 17 more hours on their own.
A university course in Slovakia plans fewer hours for a lower goal. The Slovak University of Technology in Bratislava (STU) lists 640 hours for its intensive course aiming at B1, and each class there lasts 45 minutes, so that's about 480 clock hours. Its course aiming at B2 lists 1,000 hours, or about 750 clock hours.
This is how long each total takes at a few amounts of study a week, rounded to the nearest month:
| Study per week | STU course aiming at B1 (480 hours) | STU course aiming at B2 (750 hours) | FSI full-time course (1,012 hours) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 3½ hours | About 2 years 8 months | About 4 years 1 month | About 5 years 6 months |
| 7 hours | About 1 year 4 months | About 2 years 1 month | About 2 years 9 months |
| 14 hours | About 8 months | About 1 year | About 1 year 5 months |
| 28 hours | About 4 months | About 6 months | About 8 months |
All three totals count only time in class, so any study you do alone comes on top.
Here are six levels of Slovak, each with something you can check for yourself.
- Level 1
I'm just starting out or know only a few words.
Say hello, and ask what something costs: Koľko to stojí? (How much is it?)
- Level 2
I can read simple sentences.
Read a short message about someone's day, and answer it in a sentence or two.
- Level 3
I can read short stories and messages.
Read a story written for learners, and tell a friend what happened in it.
- Level 4
I can read longer texts about everyday life.
Follow an interview about everyday life with the Slovak subtitles on.
- Level 5
I can follow complex topics, but miss some details.
Read the news and listen to a podcast about something you like, with a few gaps in the details.
- Level 6
I can read almost anything.
Read novels, and keep up when friends talk fast.
Peter je na trhu
Peter is at the market.
Hello! How much does this cost?
Hello. One nice cup costs three euros.
All right, I'll take two cups for my mom.
Here you go. That's six euros in total.
Poppy, your AI tutor, wrote this Level 1 lesson about shopping at a market in Bubblegum, a language app.
The next steps for every level are in how to learn Slovak, step by step. To see which parts of Slovak take the most practice, read is Slovak hard to learn?
Bubblegum
For serious learners, Bubblegum is the best app to learn Slovak. You learn from Slovak you can mostly understand, which is called comprehensible input.
- Lessons fit your level, interests, and goals.
- Read and listen to news and stories in Slovak about things you care about.
- Ask Poppy about a sentence while you read.
- Regenerative Review™ brings saved words back in new lessons, and you can export them to Anki as flashcards.
- Clear, expressive AI voices read every lesson aloud, with a different voice for each speaker.
- Slovak books you bring can't become lessons. Take a photo of a page, and Poppy tells you what it says.
- A new custom lesson costs us real money to make, so your first one is free, and Bubblegum Pro gives you unlimited custom lessons. The lesson library is free for everyone, because we believe everyone should be able to learn.
- Regenerative Review™
Mobile
Can I Learn Slovak in a Year?
Over a year at 3 to 5 hours a week, you'd put in about 156 to 260 hours. STU's course aiming at B1 has 480 clock hours, so that's about a third to a half of it. Set a goal you can test yourself on, like reading a short Slovak story without the English, and use the fastest way to learn Slovak to split each hour.
Which Slovak App Should a Beginner Choose?
If you are serious about learning Slovak, start with Bubblegum. Poppy writes lessons at your level about things you like. For courses and tutors too, see the Slovak app comparison.
Is Bubblegum Free?
Yes. The lesson library is free for everyone, because we believe everyone should be able to learn. It holds lessons that other learners asked Poppy for. A new custom lesson costs us real money to make, so your first one is free, and Bubblegum Pro gives you unlimited custom lessons.
Sources
- U.S. Department of State, Foreign Language Training (Category III, about 44 weeks or 1,012 class hours, includes Slovak; timelines for an ILR 3 in speaking and listening; a typical week is 23 hours in class and 17 hours of self-study)
- Slovak University of Technology in Bratislava, Institute of Lifelong Learning, Language Centre: Study Information (A1–B1 module 640 hours, A1–B2 module 1,000 hours; one class takes 45 minutes; 25 hours a week)
