EF Education First (abbreviated as EF) is an international education company that specializes in language training, educational travel, academic degree programs, and cultural exchange. The company was founded in 1965 by

Bertil Hult Bertil Eric Hult (born February 10, 1941) is a Swedish billionaire, known for founding educational and language school company EF Education First in 1965, and for being the patron and namesake of Hult International Business School. In 1971, he mo ...

in the

Swedish Swedish or ' may refer to: Anything from or related to Sweden, a country in Northern Europe. Or, specifically: * Swedish language, a North Germanic language spoken primarily in Sweden and Finland ** Swedish alphabet, the official alphabet used by ...

university town of

Lund Lund (, , ) is a city in the southern Swedish provinces of Sweden, province of Scania, across the Øresund, Öresund strait from Copenhagen. The town had 91,940 inhabitants out of a municipal total of 121,510 . It is the seat of Lund Municipali ...

. The company is privately held by the Hult family. As of 2017, EF had approximately 52,000 employees in 116 countries. The company has particular focus in China and other Asian markets under the brand name "English First". Torbay Campus

History

Bertil Hult dropped out of college to launch EF in 1969. He had earlier dropped out of junior high and gone to work for a ship broker in London, where he learned English by immersion; he had been unable to learn it in school due to dyslexia. The company started selling a French language course to Swedish students seeking to study in France, but he thought English was a bigger market and started offering services throughout Europe. In 1972 a friend convinced him to open a school in Japan, just when English-language keyboards were introduced there, and the company experienced explosive growth. The company expanded to the US in 1983, first establishing headquarters in California, then in Boston in 1988. Hult never took outside investment, growing the business with revenue. By 2014 EF had approximately 37,000 employees in 55 countries. By that time Hult had stopped running the company and had passed leadership to his sons. EF Learning Labs publishes the annual

EF English Proficiency Index The EF English Proficiency Index (EF EPI) attempts to rank countries by the equity of English language skills amongst those adults who took the EF test.

, a ranking of English language skills by country. EF has developed a standardized English test called the

EF Standard English Test The EF Standard English Test is a standardized test of the English language designed for non-native English speakers.

The company also offers an

e-learning Educational technology (commonly abbreviated as edutech, or edtech) is the combined use of computer hardware, software, and Education sciences, educational theory and practice to facilitate learning. When referred to with its abbreviation, edt ...

program for adults called "EF English Live", which was formerly known as "EF Englishtown". EF English Live program has been certified by the

Education Alliance Finland Education is a purposeful activity directed at achieving certain aims, such as transmitting knowledge or fostering skills and character traits. These aims may include the development of understanding, rationality, kindness, and honesty. Vari ...

for pedagogical quality. Through a division called EF Tours, the company offers educational tours, service learning tours, and conferences.

Sports

In 2018, they became the owner and title sponsor of the Slipstream Sports cycling team, which then became known as .

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:EF Education First International education industry Education companies of Sweden Education companies of Switzerland Education companies established in 1965 Companies based in Lucerne Companies based in Lund

History

Sports

See also

References

External links