Undergraduate ESL

Why Study Undergraduate ESL

The University Preparation/Intensive English Language Program at UMass Boston is designed to help students improve their English language proficiency and prepare them for entry into the UMass Boston GSSP. It is a 16-week program that is designed to help students of English develop and improve their skills in the language as well as helping the students prepare for the rigor of a full-time university program. Upon successful completion of the program, a student may get recommended for a full-time UMass Boston GSSP program by their instructors and would be eligible to begin their study the following semester (Fall or Spring).

We offer five different levels of instruction:

• Beginner
• Pre-Intermediate
• Intermediate
• Hi-Intermediate
• Advanced

Course offerings include:

Grammar

Our grammar courses, with an emphasis on sentence structure, provide a strong basis for the development of various academic and functional skills in written and oral communication in English.

Reading and Writing

This course is designed to help students to develop their communicative and academic English skills in preparation for more advanced English courses and/or full-time study at a university.

Seminar (Speaking and Listening)

This course is designed to help students further develop listening comprehension and demonstrate greater fluency, accuracy, and confidence in oral production of English

Program Policy:

Students will be determined their level of study at the Entrance Exam and begin their study at the level they are placed. Students need to get recommended out by their instructors to pursue their next level of study. Students who are tested into Beginner and Pre-Intermediate levels would not be legible for recommendation in that semester due to English proficiency reason. The ESL program does not take new English test scores (IELTS or TOEFL) to replace their recommendation process.