FAQ

CercleS is a confederation of independent national associations (full members) and associate members. It brings together almost 400 language centres, departments, institutes, faculties or schools in Higher Education whose main responsibility is academic communication, language teaching and research. 

Cercles has four different kinds of members: full, associate, honorary and benefactor members. Full members are national associations or other associations in which language centres are regionally united. National associations are composed of language centres. Each of these language centres is an institutional member of the Association. Institutional members (language centres) are thus members of full members (national associations) that have registered with CercleS via the national association to which they belong.
At present, there are 13 full members (= national associations) and 22 associate members. 

The annual subscription for institutional and associate members is €100 for 2023 and 2024.  

If you are an institutional member of a national association, your national association pays the subscription fee to CercleS according to its number of members. 

If you are an associate member, you will have to cover the subscription fee directly to CercleS. 

If you are a member of CercleS you will have the following benefits:

Networking/professional development:

• Participation in CercleS webinars
• Participation in CercleS conferences,
• Participation in conferences of National Associations
• Participation in CercleS Focus Groups
• Participation in CercleS training sessions
• Participation in bottom-up exchange formats between members
• Possibility of having the CercleS logo printed on the NULTE certificate

Academic development:

• Access and possibility of contribution to LLHE journal
• Participation in projects with CercleS members
• Access to cooperation contracts between institutions/associations within CercleS (e.g., NULTE)

Financial benefits:

• Free access to the Language Learning in Higher Education (LLHE) online journal via the CercleS website 
• 30% discount on all book publications of De Gruyter. Any orders from members should be sent to the CercleS General Secretariat (generalsecretariat@cercles.org) and will be forwarded to De Gruyter
• Conference fee reduction at CercleS Conferences
• Scholarships for CercleS conferences: €180 / person
• Focus groups: maximum amount of €1000 for accommodation costs of meetings
• National Associations: maximum amount of €500 per meeting with clear link to CercleS

To become a new institutional member of CercleS, contact your national association.
If you want to become an associate member, please contact the General Secretariat at the address below.

Dr. Anne Château (CercleS Secretary General) 
Université de Lorraine 
UFR Lansad (Langues pour Spécialistes d’Autres Disciplines) 
CLSH – 23 Boulevard Albert 1er – B.P. 60546 
54005 NANCY CEDEX, France
generalsecretariat@cercles.org
Website: cercles.org

• ACLES (Spain)
• AICLU (Italy)
• AKS (Germany)
• AULC (UK & Ireland)
• CASALC CZ (Czech Republic)
• CASALC SL (Slovakia)
• FINELC (Finland)
• NUT (Netherlands & Belgium)
• RANACLES (France)
• ReCLes.pt (Portugal)
• SERMO (Poland)
• SSH-CHES (Switzerland)
• VUS (Austria)

CercleS has associate member institutions from the following countries:

• Bangladesh
• Belgium
• Cyprus
• Greece
• Hong Kong
• Hungary
• Iceland
• Israel
• Macedonia
• Romania
• Spain
• Sweden

According to the Statutes 2020, the organisation of CercleS is based on three pillars:

The General Meeting (= the meeting of all institutional, associate, honorary and benefactor members), which meets at least every two years, whose duties are to: 

• determine the overall strategy of the Association, 
• ratify the election of the President, 
• approve standing orders and reports of the President, Secretary General and the Treasurer, 

• appoint two auditors to check the accounts submitted by the Treasurer, and 
• determine the subscription fee. 

The Coordinating Committee, which usually meets twice a year, and whose duties are to: 

• define strategy, 
• elect the members of the Executive Committee, 
• direct the actions of the Executive Committee, 
• supervise the latter’s administrative activities, 
• agree the accounts and the annual budget, and 
• draw up proposals or amendments for standing orders for submission to the General Meeting. 

The Executive Committee, which usually meets monthly, and whose duties are to: 

• represent the Association legally and extra-legally, 
• coordinate the activities of the Association, 
• provide the Secretariat of the Association, 
• organise the Association’s international conferences in conjunction with local organising committees, 
• organise the Association’s meetings, colloquia, seminars and workshops, 
• take responsibility for the Association’s publications, and 
• support the Association’s Focus Groups and projects. 

The General Meeting consists of all institutional, associate, honorary and benefactor members. It is chaired by the President of the Association. 

The Coordinating Committee consists of the Chairpersons of all national associations (full members and additional representatives selected by full members in proportion to the size of their membership). It also includes the President, Secretary General and Treasurer of CercleS and/or their deputies. 

The Executive Committee of CercleS comprises its President, Secretary General, Treasurer, their respective deputies, and the General Secretariat’s Assistant. 

CercleS co-organises a biannual conference organised and hosted by a national association, as well as other webinars, seminars, and workshops during the year.  

It publishes the work of its members in its own journal Language Learning in Higher Education.

It supports national conferences, seminars and workshops, facilitates staff training, exchanges between centres and peer exchange in different formats.  

It promotes research into language teaching and learning and encourages international and interdisciplinary cooperation between language centres through its Focus Groups. 

Members have free access to the journal. Please see this document for detailed login instructions.

Access to LLHE articles

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A Focus Group is mainly a self-organised interest group concentrating on research, exchange and development on topics of interest to the CercleS community. 

Read more about the activities of the CercleS Focus Groups here. If you are interested in joining a Focus Group or in establishing a new one, please contact the General Secretariat at generalsecretariat@cercles.org