L-R | Quezia Souza Santos | Music Performer Diploma | São Paulo, Brasil (hometown)
Ricardo Castillo Moreno | Bachelor of Science in Management Information Systems | Puebla, México (hometown)
Suad Hamid | Pre-Nursing | Khartoum, Sudan (hometown)
English as a Second Language
Shawn Nichols-Boyle, PhD | Director
Wiekamp Hall 3161 | (574) 520-4360 | Website
About English as a Second Language
Students may be placed into the English as a Second Language (ESL) Program for additional support.
International students whose first language is not English are required to take placement examinations in person prior to registration.
Any student who speaks English as a second or new language can choose to take the ESL placement examinations to see if they need additional English support. Interested students should contact the Director of the ESL Program or the Office of Admissions to confirm if they should take the ESL exam and to receive the ESL placement examinations schedule.
The ESL placement examinations include an oral and a written examination and determine whether additional English instruction will be required as part of the regular student course load. Students must take any supplemental English language courses prescribed from the results of this examination. Fees for supplemental English courses are the same as for other courses, but not all courses count towards degree requirements. Students should regularly consult their academic advisor about their overall degree progress.
If students are required to take ESL course(s), they must begin them during their first semester of study, and complete any remaining course(s) during consecutive subsequent semester(s). No interruption in the sequence of prescribed ESL courses will be permitted; students are automatically pre-registered in the prescribed ESL courses every semester until they are done with the sequence. Exceptions will be made in the summer, if classes are not offered at that time.
The ESL Program offers the following composition courses:
- ENG-G 13 Academic Writing Graduate Students (International Students)
- ENG-W 31 Pre-Composition/ESL (4 cr.)
- ENG-W 130 Principles of Composition/ESL
ESL placement exam results for undergraduate students may place a student into an ESL or non-ESL English writing class. Students receive the same course credit for an ESL or non-ESL W130 English writing class.
ESL students may also be placed into the following language support classes:
- ENG-G 20 Communication Skills for Graduate Students and ITAS (4 cr.)
- LING-L 100 English Language Improvement (4 cr.)
See the general course listing for complete course descriptions.
For further information about the ESL Program, contact the program director.