Courses for UT Graduate Students

We offer English courses for admitted international graduate students to improve their academic listening, speaking, and writing skills and to enhance students' English communication through a variety of functional areas.

Eligibility

• Any student who did not pass the J-Hold speaking and/or writing screening is authorized to register for ESL 388S and/or ESL 388W.
  • Other interested international students should email our office at elc@austin.utexas.edu for permission to register.
• Any student who received a conditional pass on the ITA screening is authorized to register for ESL 388T or ESL 389T (see ITA screening results for specific course).
  • Other international students interested in ITA courses should email our office at txglobal-ita@austin.utexas.edu for permission to register.

Courses for Oral Communication Improvement

ESL 388S: Oral Communication

• Section 1: Spring 2026 (66165) TTH 11:00am - 12:30pm
• Note: This course is required for graduate students who did not pass the oral skills component of the J-hold English assessment. 

This course is designed to provide students with speaking skills they need to succeed in graduate school. These skills include the ability to deliver academic presentations in class and at conferences, to engage in meaningful discussions with professors and peers, and to communicate informally in and out of the classroom. Practice focuses on pronunciation, fluency, grammatical accuracy, and vocabulary development.

ESL 389S: Advanced Oral Communication

• Section 1: Spring 2026 (66190) TTH 2:00pm - 3:30pm

This course is designed for students who have completed 388S or want to further develop their oral English proficiency to help them thrive in their academic and professional careers. With guidance from the instructor, students set goals to sharpen oral communication skills. Practice focuses on skill development in pronunciation, fluency, grammar, and organization, tailored to students’ individual goals, with a particular focus on presenting academic research.

Courses for Writing Improvement

ESL 388W: Academic Writing

• Section 1: Spring 2026 (66180) TTH 11:00am - 12:30pm
• Section 2: Spring 2026 (66185) TTH 12:30pm - 2:00pm
• Note: This course is required for graduate students who did not pass the written skills component of the J-hold English assessment.

This course is designed to provide students with academic writing skills needed to succeed in graduate school. Students work on fluency, accuracy, vocabulary, organization, and style. Additional course topics include avoiding plagiarism and analyzing field-specific writing conventions.

ESL 389W: Advanced Academic Writing

• Tentatively will be offered Fall 2026

This course is for graduate students preparing academic papers for publication or preparing to write their thesis or dissertation. Students analyze authentic academic texts from their fields to identify organizational patterns, stylistic features, and disciplinary conventions. They use these analyses to produce a significant piece of writing—such as a journal article, dissertation chapter, or literature review— tailored to their academic and professional goals. Course objectives include increasing control of grammar, syntax, and rhetorical structures by applying individualized instructor feedback, peer feedback, and self-evaluation to their academic writing.

Courses for International Teaching Assistants (ITA)

ESL 388T: Basic Speaking Skills

• Section 1: Spring 2026 (66175) TTH 9:30am - 11:00am
• Requirement: Graduate students who received a conditional pass (score 6.0 to 6.49) on the ITA English assessment and have TA/AI appointments with student contact. 

This course is designed for international graduate students, particularly International Teaching Assistants (ITAs), who need to further develop their English-speaking skills before advancing to ESL 389T. This course focuses on improving fluency by strengthening foundational grammar, everyday vocabulary, and pronunciation. Through interactive activities and targeted practice, students gain confidence in their spoken English for both academic and professional settings.

ESL 389T: Communication and Teaching

• Section 1: Spring 2026 (66200) TTH 11:00am - 12:30pm
• Section 2: Spring 2026 (66205) MW 3:00pm - 4:30pm
• Requirement: Graduate students who received a conditional pass (score 6.5 to 6.99) on the ITA English assessment and have TA/AI appointments with student contact.

This course caters to international graduate students who have conditionally passed the ITA English assessment. Students engage in tasks such as discussions, recorded speech, and presentations and learn various strategies and tools to bolster their communication skills and confidence. Practice focuses on refining pronunciation, vocabulary, fluency, grammar, and overall communicative competence, tailored to students’ individual goals.

Credit

These courses are taken on a Credit/No Credit basis. They count as 3 credit hours for purposes of full-time enrollment but do not count toward students' degree requirements.

Registration

Registration for these courses is done online. Students can register for these courses until the 5th class day. After 5th class day, email our office to be registered. We do not add students to ESL courses after 12th class day. These courses cannot be audited.

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