massachusetts institute of technology

77 massachusetts avenue
cambridge, ma 02139-4307

tel 617.253.1000

MIT is truly a global university.

At MIT, we harness streams of converging ideas by creating new interdisciplinary centers, programs and labs with global participants – working together to solve the world’s problems.

MIT's global involvement takes place on nearly every continent, and transpires at many levels—from individual faculty collaborations to institutional partnerships; and it materializes in many forms—from teaching and research, to internships and work, to public service and outreach efforts.

Some examples:

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  Researchers affiliated with the MIT Energy Initiative (MITEI) are assessing how to meet the energy needs of the developing world.

  
  
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  The Singapore-MIT Alliance has pioneered sophisticated techniques in synchronous distance education, in which faculty teach seamlessly across 12 time zones.

  
  
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  The MIT International Science and Technology Initiatives (MISTI) program offers students the chance to participate in intensive professional internships in countries around the world.

  
  
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  MIT OpenCourseWare provides access to MIT’s educators, across the globe.

A few ideas:

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  Take courses on international and global issues, or study abroad.

  
  
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  Collaborate in research internships and work.

  
  
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  Join an ongoing research project, or start your own.

  
  
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  Apply MIT research in public service.

  
  
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  Connect with a global alumni network.

  
  
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  Participate in international student activities and events.

English Language Studies

Our English language subjects are designed for the intermediate through advanced/bilingual English speakers that form a substantial part of MIT’s multicultural student body. A major goal of the program is to foster facility and appropriateness in a variety of academic and professional contexts.

Another component of the ESL program is a series of classes in the Study of Language that bring together theoretical and applied linguistics, as well as relevant areas of cognitive science.

Consultation with English Instructors,

The EET is a diagnostic test of academic English given before each inscription at the request of the Dean. The English Language Studies Program for Colombia, Professor Alfredo Varon Guzman M.A. administers the EET, which is designed for entering international students whose first language is not English.  It aims to identify weaknesses in academic English that may interfere with course work, teaching and research at MIT. 

The diagnostic takes approximately 2.5 hours to complete and is composed of three parts:

Part 1: Multiple-choice listening, reading, vocabulary and sentence structure test

Part 2: Writing task

Part 3: Short interview

Who takes the EET?

The Institute requires all entering international graduate students whose primary language of instruction from the age of six through high school has not been English to take the EET. 

A student does not need to take the EET if English is not a his/her first language, but s/he has attended all schooling from the age of six in English.  Many students from India, Malaysia, Singapore and other Asian countries, as well as African and Caribbean countries such as South Africa, Nigeria, Ghana and St. Lucia fall into this category.

International students who would normally be required to take the EET but have already done undergraduate or Master’s degrees at MIT or at other comparable universities can discuss the possibility of waiving the EET requirement with departmental advisors.

Why do new international students take the EET?

In accordance with policy established by the MIT Committee on School Policy (1982), newly admitted international students should take the English Evaluation Test (EET) as a means of determining the current level of their English language skills.

From the moment they enter the Language Studies proram, students are expected to be productive members of a lively research community.  They are involved in some or all of the following activities:  participating in interactive seminars; completing coursework that requires presentations and research reports; teaching recitation or lab sections; interacting with representatives of industry; presenting research to peers, sponsors, and experts at meetings and conferences; as well as writing proposals, reports and journal papers.  Few international students have experience with these types of communication tasks in English.  Many have little experience even in their first languages.  The EET provides new students and their advisors with key information to help them prepare for success in their activities at MIT.

What do the results mean?

The EET results are strictly informative.  There is no “passing” or “failing.”  Students taking the EET have been admitted to MIT; the test results will not affect their status as admitted students.  A student’s EET results may indicate that:

1.) One or more English skills are weak enough to need attention.  A particular course is recommended.  Departmental policy and a student’s advisor can decide whether and when a student will act on the recommendation.

2.) One or more English skills could benefit from some attention, but problems with English will probably not interfere with activities at MIT.  Registering for a particular course is optional.

3.) A student’s English skills are proficient and should not prevent him/her from engaging fully in studies and research.  No course work is recommended.

The study of foreign languages and literatures provides valuable experience and a potential edge for future career development. Scientists and engineers function in a global market: they rely on primary sources published in other languages, attend international consortia, and often find themselves interacting across national, cultural, and linguistic borders. Government and industry often give preference to job applicants who are proficient in a foreign language. MIT students are encouraged to work and study abroad in conjunction with university, private and public organizations.

The faculty of FL&L, the language coordinators, and the Undergraduate Academic Administrator can provide assistance in choosing an appropriate program and granting transfer credit from overseas or domestic programs. Over IAP (MIT's Independent Activities Period during winter break), FL&L offers intensive introductory language subjects in addition to intensive subjects designed to help students plan for living and woking in English speaking countries. Relevant subjects taken at qualified institutions here and abroad may fulfill MIT's science, engineering and humanities requirements.

MIT provides a unique perspective on foreign languages because of the opportunities available to integrate the study of natural languages with the latest technological advances in multimedia and interactive language learning. FL&L-affiliated faculty are exploring and implementing methods in which multimedia technology can be used to make learning a foreign language a more authentic experience. Using native speakers on location to create documentaries and narratives in ELS, FL&L is developing teaching tools through which students can access hypertext linked supporting resources, such as encyclopedic information, transcription, and historical, grammatical, and cultural materials. Although MIT is known throughout the world for its programs in science and engineering, MIT is also a university where the humanities, arts, and social sciences play an integral role in its educational mission. Together they help to make MIT much more than just an institute of technology.

Students at MIT have the unique opportunity to combine an extraordinary professional training with a first-rate humanistic education. MIT's educational mission involves providing students with the tools for a sensitive and successful involvement in the global community. The Foreign Languages and Literatures Section contributes in significant ways to the internationalization of MIT's education.

The Foreign Languages Section offers a rich variety of subjects. Students can study English Language Studies (ELS), at a number of levels. All of our classes provide an authentic linguistic experience through the use of the most advanced technologies, including the Internet and interactive video. Students can explore literatures in the original languages or in translation. They can study culture and film; they can analyze the linguistic underpinnings of second language acquisition and bilingualism. The possibilities include intensive personalized courses, focus on regional studies, access to film festivals and guest speakers. .

By integrating the cultural flexibility and breadth that FL&L provides with the professional training in technical domains, MIT students are unusually well-prepared for the challenges of the internationalized 21st century.