Types of ESL Programs

Pre-Academic or Pre-University Programs

Pre-academic or pre-university programs prepare students to meet the language requirements to study at a university in an English speaking country. Students in such programs often need to improve their English before they can study with native English speakers. Many others attend these programs to learn what projects and behaviors are expected of them while attending school abroad. Pre-academic programs are often intensive, which means they are short (a few weeks or months) but demanding. Classes usually meet for 20-25 hours per week. These programs teach general academic and study skills, as well as vocabulary, grammar, reading and writing, and listening and speaking.

Intensive programs prepare participants for coursework at the university level. The curriculum primarily consists of developing those skills that students will need in order to excel. In the reading/writing class, students learn how to read textbooks, newspaper and magazine articles; choose and develop a topic for a paper; organize their writing; and write different kinds of papers, including a research paper. In listening/speaking class, they will learn how to listen to and take notes on a university lecture, deliver a speech, improve their pronunciation, and lead a class discussion.

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