ALP courses are designed to help students develop English skills they need for the university classroom and professional workplace. They also highlight practical English needed for everyday situations.
Instruction is interactive, encouraging students to practice English through a variety of activities. Courses focus on academic reading and writing, as well as listening, speaking, grammar and vocabulary. ALP students must be high school graduates and, in order to achieve maximum success, it is recommended they have had at least two years of English study at the high school level.
ALP courses do not carry university credit towards an academic degree. Students receive letter grades in each class that indicate their progress and effort in the program. In combination with their placement test scores, grades help determine a student’s placement in the program (foundations, intermediate, or capstone). Students receive official university grades on their transcripts (A-E).
Faculty
ALP’s full-time faculty are experienced English language instructors trained in multilingual language teaching methods. All faculty hold a minimum of a master’s degree in Teaching of English to Speakers of Other Languages (TESOL), linguistics, or a related field. Most of our instructors speak other languages and have had experience living and teaching in English as a Foreign Language (EFL) settings abroad.
Length of Study
ALP offers three instructional terms (semesters) each year: Autumn, Spring, and Summer. Autumn and Spring semesters are 15 weeks long, and Summer semester is 12 weeks long. Classes range from beginner proficiency to advanced proficiency levels. The average student spends about 9-12 months in our program, but this varies greatly based on the student’s proficiency level at the time of arrival and the student’s native language.
Hours of Study
ALP classes meet four days a week, currently Monday-Tuesday and Thursday-Friday. All students attend 4-5 hours of class daily, supplemented by field trips and other events. We encourage all ALP students to choose from a wide variety of activities offered by the university, and other community events where they may practice and apply what they have learned in the classroom.
Typical Class Schedule
Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, Friday
9:00 AM – 1:35 PM
