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Full-Time Intensive Programs

The following 4 intensive noncredit programs are offered in the summer:

You must be at least 18 years old by July 1, 2012, to participate except in the secondary school program. Learn more about how to register and take the placement test.

IEL S-DAY Intensive English for Academic Purposes (30900)

Mondays–Fridays, 8–10 am and 1–3 pm, or 10 am–noon and 3:15–5:15 pm (to be determined on June 26, based on your placement test score). Tuition: $5,400

Levels: A (beginning), B (intermediate), C (high intermediate), D (advanced), and E (high advanced)

Students in this program develop balanced proficiency in the 4 major communicative skills—listening, reading, speaking, and writing—by examining a common theme of topical importance throughout the 7-week summer session.

Students practice the methods used in American universities as they analyze and produce academic work in English, developing a wide and sophisticated vocabulary and improving their use of English in group and individual research projects, formal writing, oral presentations, and seminar discussions about scholarly papers, novels, and other forms of contemporary literature. Students use information related to the theme and presented in English in different media in the areas of education, politics, and the environment to guide their oral and written work in daily skills classes and 3 workshops each week. Once a week, students also attend lectures by a Harvard professor or visit a local site of academic and cultural importance, and on Fridays all IEL students participate in a lecture and discussion session led by a Harvard professor.

How to register >>

IEL S-B30 Intensive English for Professional Purposes (30901)

Mondays–Fridays, 8–10 am and 1–3 pm. Tuition: $5,400

Levels: C (high intermediate), D (advanced), and E (high advanced)

This program guides students in developing the ability to use English proficiently when listening, reading, speaking, and writing in professional environments in which they must demonstrate social competence, historical perspective, moral understanding, scientific awareness, and analytical and critical thinking. Considering issues in education, politics, and the environment, this program uses the common reading and a variety of texts presented in different media—including novels, contemporary journalism, and reading assignments from Harvard professors—as the basis for oral and written work in daily skills classes. In the three team-taught workshops each week, students sharpen their negotiation and writing skills via individual and group assignments, research projects, analytical papers, small-group and seminar discussions, and formal oral presentations.

Once a week, students either visit a local site of academic interest that is related to the summer's theme or they attend a lecture that is usually presented by an HBS professor. On Fridays, they join all other IEL students in a lecture and discussion led by a Harvard professor. At the high-advanced level, the workshops feature case studies led by DBA candidates recommended by Harvard Business School.

How to register >>

IEL S-D50 Intensive English for Design (30924)

Mondays–Fridays, 10 am–noon and 3:15–5:15 pm. Tuition: $5,400

Levels: C (high intermediate), D (advanced), and E (high advanced)

Open to students accepted by a professional school of design or architecture where the instruction is in English, this program provides a wide-ranging orientation to the linguistic, philosophical, and cultural mores that are found in graduate schools of architecture and design, and offers students several opportunities to practice the presentation and critiquing procedures typical of such schools. Students participate in daily language classes and workshops in which they read and discuss design texts, novels, and contemporary journalism encompassing topics in education, politics, and the environment related to the IEL common theme. Students constantly receive personalized feedback on their oral presentations and undertake a variety of writing projects. In addition, they attend lectures in the Career Discovery Program at the Harvard Graduate School of Design and others presented by Harvard faculty to IEL students, and they visit locations of architectural and cultural importance in the Greater Boston area.

How to register. Begin registration online, then submit a copy of a letter of acceptance to an English language professional program in design or architecture by fax to (617) 496-8147, e-mail to iel@dcemail.harvard.edu, or express mail to 51 Brattle Street.

Secondary School Intensive English Language Program

This program is run jointly by the Institute for English Language Programs and the Secondary School Program (SSP). Students live with SSP students and participate in SSP activities. See the Secondary School Intensive English Language Program.