Programs

“You didn’t come this far, only to come this far!”

Whether you came to the Univerity of Massachusetts Amherst as an undergraduate or graduate student, congratulations on coming this far! You have achieved so much and your level of proficiency in English is very high. You may still, however, find yourself struggling with the demands of Academic English or US Academic Culture. If you find yourself stuggling, come see us. The ESL program is here to help! 

Our courses are designed to address the needs of students who learned English as a second or additional language.  As part of our teaching approach, we engage students in classroom tasks that are relevant to real world tasks (task-based learning) they need to accomplish as university students; such tasks in an English for Academic Purposes (EAP) context include giving presentations, conducting research projects, writing literature reviews and/or essays for a wider purpose than grading, leading and participating in discussions, communicating with professors and other students, and writing emails, etc. Using such an approach means that language learning takes place while students are engaged in expressing novel meaning, not simply for the sake of assessment. This approach helps students develop language fluency and gain confidence in communicating in English.

Please explore our course offerings to see which courses are appropriate for your goals and needs, or if you would like to discuss your needs with us, please visit us on the 3rd Floor of Bartlett or contact us at esl@umass.edu.