minor in teaching english as a second language (TESL)

Are you thinking about teaching ESL in a foreign country or volunteering at an adult ESL center in the United States? The Undergraduate Certificate in TESL may be what you are looking for. It prepares students to understand the learning and teaching of ESL.

The minor in TESL:

• is an 18-credit hour program that combines linguistic theory, second language acquisition theory, and ESL teaching methods
• may be pursued concurrently with any undergraduate major
• a limited number of TESL courses may be applied toward your undergraduate major (up to 9 credits)

Minor in TESL Requirements
Candidates for the certificate must successfully complete the five courses listed below plus one elective. Undergraduates may take 500-level classes with permission of instructor. fill out a Graduate Course for Undergraduate Credit form

• General Linguistics (ling 326)
• Applied Linguistics: Teaching English as a Second Language (ling 521)
• English Grammar (ling 322)
• Descriptive Aspects of English Phonetics and Phonology (ling 523)
• Second Language Acquisition (ling 582)
• Elective

The elective may be any course in linguistics, or any course that has linguistic content. Consult with the TESL advisor, steven weinberger (weinberg@gmu.edu) for suitable electives.

APPLICATION PROCEDURE

To apply, undergraduates must:

• first complete 3 credit hours of LING course work in the English department
• apply to the English department by filling out a Change/Declaration of Academic Program form

For more information, contact the linguistics undergraduate concentration advisor, Steven Weinberger (weinberg@gmu.edu), 993-1188.