Austrian Sign Language Courses (ÖGS)

A1 – Your First Step into a New Visual Language

At A1 level, you learn to use the foundations of visual communication with confidence. You build a solid base in the finger alphabet, essential grammar, and core vocabulary for everyday situations. Colours, numbers, family, personal information, living spaces and simple daily interactions soon become part of your active repertoire.

You practise forming signs clearly, using eye contact intentionally, and handling short conversations. Along the way, you gain an initial sense of regional differences, natural signing flow, and the cultural aspects that shape ÖGS.

This creates a strong foundation that supports your continued learning – structured, practical and empowering.

A2 – Greater Clarity, Greater Confidence, Greater Range

The A2 course takes you beyond the basics and broadens your communicative abilities. Your vocabulary expands significantly across everyday themes such as food, occupations, leisure, fashion, mobility and social life. Grammar, spatial structure and form descriptions become more precise and expressive.

You learn to convey more complex ideas, describe situations in detail, and maintain longer, coherent conversations. Facial expression and spatial classifiers take on a stronger role as you learn to use them intentionally to communicate more naturally and clearly.

By the end of A2, you have the skills to navigate a wider range of situations in ÖGS with confidence and ease.

Contribute to an Inclusive Society

Austrian Sign Language (ÖGS) is becoming increasingly valuable in today’s workplace. Companies, public institutions and organisations are investing in accessible communication to operate more inclusively, customer-focused and future-oriented. Anyone who can sign in ÖGS expands their own communication toolkit and creates real access for hearing-impaired clients, patients, colleagues and community members.

ÖGS skills offer a clear competitive advantage across a wide range of sectors: healthcare, education, social services, public administration, HR, customer service, retail, tourism, events & culture, and public safety. More and more employers value team members who can communicate inclusively – whether in consultations, service encounters, complaint handling, patient interactions or internal team communication. This demonstrates professionalism, social responsibility and an awareness of modern workplace standards.

By learning ÖGS, you gain more than a new language: you actively promote inclusion, accessibility, customer-centred communication and diversity competence. You develop an understanding of cultural nuances within the hearing-impaired community, reduce communication barriers and help create a working environment that respects people equally –whether they hear or sign.

The impact goes beyond your personal development: you contribute to a workplace that meets today’s expectations of quality, social awareness and human-centred communication –strengthening your organisation socially, strategically and culturally.