The history of the Language Training Centre (LTC) dates back to 1952, when the Cabinet of
Russian Language was established within the Faculty of Medicine and was supervised by the
Department of Russian Language operating under the Comenius University in Bratislava. The
first Head of the Cabinet was Assoc. Prof. Dr. Stefan Dobos, to be followed by JUDr. Jaroslav
Savulak from 1953. In 1959 the Cabinet was incorporated into the Department of Foreign
Languages operating within the former Faculty of Arts. In 1963, after the establishment of the
Faculty of Natural Science, a separate Department of Languages came into existence offering
its language courses to the Faculty of Medicine and the Faculty of Natural Science, and later
also to the Faculty of Law. In that period the Department was headed by JUDr. Jaroslav
Savulak (till 1970) and PhDr. Ivan Kimak, CSc. (till 1982). After 1982 the Department was
chaired by Assoc. Prof. PhDr. Vasil Jabur, CSc. (1982–1986), prof. PhDr. Julius Rybak, CSc.
(1986–1994), in 1991–1992 vice-chaired by Assoc. Prof. PhDr. Frantisek Simon, CSc., and
PhDr. Olga Farkasova, CSc. (1994–1998). In 1998 Assoc. Prof. PhDr. Frantisek Simon, CSc.
assumed the position again. In 2014 the Language Training Centre was established and
chaired by PhDr. Helena Petruňová, CSc. (2014–2019).
The Department of Languages at the University of P. J. Šafárik in Košice (UPJS) was ranked
high among the scientific-educational workplaces conducting LSP courses in English, German,
French, Latin, Russian and Slovak as a foreign language at all non-philological UPJS faculties
for more than 50 years. Foreign language courses were provided at all three levels of tertiary
education, Bachelor´s, Master´s and Doctoral (PhD). In 2005 the Department of Languages at
UPJS became the basis of the Institute of Philologies and Social Sciences and later it was
incorporated into the Department of British and American Studies.
The Language Training Centre (LTC) of Pavol Jozef Šafarik University was established in
2014 as the facility of the Faculty of Arts, P. J. Šafarik University in Košice (UPJS) offering
students and employees of UPJS a range of language courses for specific purposes to
increase their language competences in English, Russian and Slovak as a foreign language.
Today, the principal mission of LTC is to allow the greatest number possible of students and
researchers at the University of P. J. Šafárik to learn one or several foreign languages to
foster their mobility inside as well as outside the university. The LTC is also responsible for
language training of international students at the university, focusing on Slovak language
courses at the Faculty of Medicine.
Currently, undergraduate and graduate students from all non-philological faculties (Faculty of
Medicine, Faculty of Science, Faculty of Law, Faculty of Public Administration, Institute of
Physical Education and Sport) and from the Faculty of Arts can choose from over 20 ESP and
EAP language courses each semester, focusing on improving their speaking, reading,
listening and writing skills. LTC has designed many LSP courses with the objectives and
contents based on the levels stated in the CEFR.
