This page lists our current (credit-bearing) course offerings for current UMass Amherst students by category and semester.

Graduate students can enroll in any of our 100-level ESL courses.

To enroll in a course, please visit SPIRE and search "English as a Second Language." Enroll as you would in any other university section course at UMass.

PLEASE NOTE: There are NO prerequisites on ANY of our courses.

On Campus ESL Courses

FALL 2025

ESL126 Vocabulary & Comprehension of Academic English (3 credits)

This course aims to increase the size and expand the range of vocabulary of advanced ESL students for academic writing, speaking, and listening. In addition, the course aims to improve students reading ability of university level texts; this includes improving comprehension, reading speed, and the use of reading strategies.

ESL129 Oral Comprehension of Academic and Professional Genres (3 Credits)

The course emphasizes the mastery of listening skills and note-taking with a focus on current topics and controversial issues presented in academic and professional lectures, as well as other oral genres. Students will listen to academic/professional lectures and other authentic listening materials and demonstrate comprehension and critical thinking through taking detailed notes, reflective writing, and participating in discussions. 

ESL125 Techniques of Oral Communication (3 credits)

In this course, students will gain confidence in speaking English in the university setting by practicing speaking in a variety of academic contexts, including informal interactions with other students and staff/faculty, effective communication with professors during office hours, participation in class discussions, and delivery of class presentations. 

ESL601 Research Writing (3 Credits)

This course is focused on creating written products that are discipline specific and based on empirical research. Students will read and analyze research papers within their own fields; practice writing abstracts, various sections of research reports, as well as other products. The course will consist of tasks associated with the academic writing process, and throughout, there will be an emphasis on the conventions of academic written English, including grammatical concepts, vocabulary and highly frequent collocations.

LLC125 Intercultural Communication: Language & Identity (4 credits- Gen. Ed. SB, DG)

We live in an increasingly globalized world, where living and working with people from various cultures is nearly an everyday occurrence. These interactions, combined with ever-growing opportunities for students to explore and study in foreign settings, make it important to master effective ways to engage and learn from these experiences. This course will engage students interested in developing intercultural competence with an eye towards fostering diverse and vibrant communities that coexist peacefully.

On Campus TESOL Courses

FALL 2025

ALL TESOL courses are ONLINE asynchronous courses even for currently enrolled on campus students. To enroll without the UWW fee, please select the university section of the course.

LLC322 Teaching ESL Writing (3 Credits)

This course explores the theory and practice of teaching writing to adult learners of English as a second language (ESL). Within this exploration, an emphasis will be placed on the classroom implications and practices based on research, concepts and theories concerning the teaching and learning of ESL writing. The course will additionally consider the role of emerging technologies, including artificial intelligence (AI), in shaping instructional practices and supporting ESL writing development.

LLC320 Foundations of Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages (3 Credits)

The course is designed to present an overview of the field of how additional languages, with an emphasis on English, are learned after a first language has already been acquired. In this course, core concepts of language learning will be explored along with a historical perspective of teaching approaches based on those core concepts. The development of learner language will also be examined from the perspective of the four modalities: reading, writing, listening, speaking, as will the influences of culture and individual differences on language learning.