Winter Quarter Registration Begins on December 2 at 9a

Our Mission

Through academic, professional, and intercultural programming, the English Language Institute supports individuals for whom English is an additional language at the University of Chicago.

Our Programs

Academic English Pre-Matriculation Program

Academic Year Courses

Extracurricular

Writing Tutor

The ELI Impact

The English Language Institute at the University of Chicago serves the linguistic and cultural needs of multilingual students and scholars, empowering them to raise their confidence and English proficiency to new levels.

We serve individuals from all facets of the university—from undergraduates to postdoctoral scholars—in every school and division. As part of the Chicago Language Center, we work closely with UChicagoGRAD and the Writing Program to ensure that curricula are relevant, challenging, and tailored to the unique needs of our students.

We actively participate in university initiatives with the goal of ensuring equal opportunity for the multilingual community. We foster an open and interactive environment in which students acquire communicative tools and intercultural knowledge to navigate their lives at the University of Chicago and beyond.

Meet the ELI

Our language pedagogy specialists have decades of experience teaching English across the globe with diverse populations in academic and professional settings. Their deep knowledge and understanding of Applied Linguistics and intercultural communication allows instructors to provide immediate, individualized feedback to students.
About Us

News

ELI Senior Operations Manager and Language Pedagogy Junior Associate Amanda Samawi with Students, 2015.

The Ins and Outs of Finding a Job Teaching English Abroad

In this blog post, we will explore the advantages and disadvantages of different jobs teaching English abroad. ELI staff and students who have taught abroad will also share key pieces of advice to follow when searching for a program teaching English in another country.

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In the News: The Magic of the ELI's Board Game Group

The ELI is in the news! Last month, the English Language Institute’s very own Shane Dunkle was featured in the press for his work leading the ELI’s Board Game Group. Several news outlets, including the Chicago Sun-Times, WLS-AM 890’s PM Chicago, and Engoo Daily News caught wind of the group and decided to interview Shane about how board games can be used to teach English.

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Teaching English Abroad in France: How the ELI's TEAL Course Prepared me to be a Language Assistant

My name is Madeleine Roberts-Ganim, and I’ve been in France working as an English Language Assistant. Last spring, I took the ELI’s language pedagogy course, Teaching English as an Additional Language (TEAL). This class offered me invaluable resources that I have consistently used during my time teaching here in France. 

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Third Places: What Are They and Why Are They Important to American Culture?

Where do you go when you are itching to leave the house but don’t need to go to work or class? The term “third places” is used to describe the places outside of the home (the first place) and the workplace (the second place) where people go to converse with others and connect with their community.

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“I attended Conversation Hour in the Spring, which gave me ample opportunities to practice English. The ELI plays a key role in making UChicago an inclusive community that values multicultural and multidisciplinary backgrounds. I would like all the future participants to know and be proud of the fact that their attendance itself is an enriching factor to the university”
Shin'Ichi

Masters Student

“I took the Academic English Pre-Matriculation Program: Speaking because I was worried about my English before coming to UChicago. And I definitely made the right decision! My English was improved not only by gaining more language learning skills, but also by being more confident and more willing to express myself and learning from others. My instructor was always patient and open to all my questions and suggestions. I also want to say ‘thank you’ for my dearest classmates for always supporting me and encouraging me for everything. We are now very close friends and I know they will be always with me.”
Sally

Masters

“I took the Written Communication: Crafting Varied and Impactful Sentences course because I wanted to improve my academic writing. This course has helped me to identify some frequent grammatical errors I tend to make. It provided me tools to make better word choices, to manage information flow within a sentence, and to tighten and clarify long sentences. I recommend this course to all international students who want to improve their English writing and editing skills.”
Yujie

PhD student

“I was always nervous about talking in English especially in those situations requiring unplanned speech. Now after taking Spoken Communication: Fluency Building, I feel much more confident by the skills learnt in this class. In this course, all levels of English speakers are engaged because of the professional guidance as well as the relaxed atmosphere. So it is quite a helpful class!”
Hua

Non-degree visiting scholar

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