English and Languages

Program Chair
Alan Rosiene, Ph.D.

Organization

Florida Tech’s Division of English and Languages is operated by the School of Arts and Communication. It administers and teaches all foreign language courses offered by the university and provides training in English for students whose home language is not English and who have been admitted into a Florida Tech degree program.

English Language Proficiency

English language proficiency is required of all students whose home language is not English and who are taking academic courses at Florida Tech. Evidence of English proficiency in the form of results from an Internet-based Test of English as a Foreign Language (iBT),  International English Language Testing System test (IELTS),  a Pearson Test of English Academic (PTE Academic) or Cambridge English: Advanced must be submitted to the university before arrival on campus.

English proficiency is not required for admission, however submission of a test score is required for the issuance of immigration documents. In the rare instance when students whose home language is not English enter Florida Tech without establishing proof of English proficiency with either an iBT, IELTS, PTE Academic or Cambridge English: Advanced result, they will be required to take an official Florida Tech TOEFL (paper-based) before the start of classes. In this instance, students should register with the School of Arts and Communication at check-in for the TOEFL exam and report to the English and Languages for the examination results before meeting with their academic advisor. Only Florida Tech paper-based TOEFL scores are valid. No other paper-based TOEFL scores will be accepted.

For all academic students (both international and domestic) whose home language is not English and whose command of the English language does not meet the requirements of their academic programs, English language courses at two levels of proficiency are available each semester. These courses are listed in the Course Descriptions  section under “English as a Second Language” (ESL).

Determining Proficiency

The School of Arts and Communication determines the incoming student’s competence in English and establishes the most beneficial program of study. Both undergraduate and graduate students whose home language is not English with scores in the following ranges are required to take ESL courses as specified by the program chair:

iBT	IELTS	PTE Academic	Cambridge English: Advanced	Florida Tech TOEFL
61-78	6.0	50-52	169-179	500-549

Students who score below the following ranges may enroll in lower-level English training courses at the ELS Language Center on campus:

iBT	IELTS	PTE Academic	Cambridge English: Advanced	Florida Tech TOEFL
61	6.0	50	169	500

Students whose home language is not English are considered to have demonstrated English language proficiency if they have done any of the following:

• Taken an Internet-based TOEFL (iBT) with an earned score of at least 79, an IELTS with an earned score of at least 6.5, a PTE Academic with an earned score of at least 58, a Cambridge English: Advanced with an earned score of at least 180 (Grade of C) or an official Florida Tech TOEFL (paper based) with an earned score of at least 550, no more than two years before attendance at Florida Tech; or
• successfully completed the ELS 112 certificate taken at an ELS Language Center within two months of their report date at Florida Tech; or
• successfully completed a total of 20 semester credit hours at an accredited mainland U.S. university where English is the language of instruction, including three semester credit hours of English that qualify as transfer credit for Florida Tech’s Composition and Rhetoric (COM 1101 ); or
• earned a bachelor’s or higher degree from an accredited mainland U.S. university or college where English is the language of instruction; or
• attended for three consecutive years and graduated from an accredited mainland U.S. high school where English is the language of instruction; or
• obtained an official score of four or higher on either the International Baccalaureate Higher Level Language A examination in English or the College Board Advanced Placement Program (AP) examination in English Language and Composition.

Students who meet English language proficiency by any means may still need to complete certain ESL courses if it is so deemed by their academic advisor. The program chair of English and Languages makes the final determination. For more information about the policies and requirements for English language proficiency at Florida Tech, contact the program chair of English and Languages in the School of Arts and Communication.

Registering for Academic and ESL Courses

Students are permitted to begin their academic coursework in conjunction with ESL courses. However, ESL courses take precedence over academic courses. Although these courses are credit bearing (three credit hours per course, three days per week), they cannot be applied toward completion of a degree and are not included in GPA calculations. Any student who is taking an ESL course cannot take humanities (HUM), chemistry (CHM), flight (AVF) or introduction to engineering courses. The program chair of English and Languages makes the final determination of what and when ESL courses are to be taken and enforces all English proficiency policies. Any student who accumulates four Fs in ESL courses may be academically dismissed at the direction of the program chair.

International students and students whose home language is not English must have documented proficiency in English (either through submitted writing samples, or test scores, or placement examinations, or a combination of these) before making the transition from English as a Second Language (ESL) courses to English Writing Review (WRI 0100  ), College English Grammar (WRI 0110  ) or Composition and Rhetoric (COM 1101  ).

Language Requirements for Graduate Assistantships

(See Graduate Policy 4.11)

International students are eligible for graduate assistantships in some academic units. In addition to specific academic unit requirements, any student whose home language is not English, whether or not the student has graduated from an English speaking, postsecondary institution, must submit a score of at least the following, as well achieve at least a B on the International Teaching Assistant Speaking Assessment (ITASA) to be considered for a teaching assistantship:

iBT	IELTS	PTE Academic	Cambridge English: Advanced	Florida Tech TOEFL
100	7.0	70	193 (Grade of B)	600

A score of at least the following must be submitted for a research assistantship:

iBT	IELTS	PTE Academic	Cambridge English: Advanced	Florida Tech TOEFL
79	6.5	53	180 (Grade of C)	550