Dear Advisors,

The Center for English Language Programs’ mission is to prepare international students for successful academic careers at NMSU. In order to accomplish this, we offer the following courses for matriculated international students:

SPCD 108 - Intermediate ESL Listening and Speaking: Development of listening and speaking skills with attention to pronunciation. Emphasis on conversation and oral practice appropriate to an academic setting. Prerequisites: placement based on English language screening test, and either a minimum TOEFL score of 500 or 68 iBT or consent of instructor. Graded S/U.

SPCD 110 - Intermediate ESL Composition and Grammar Review: Development of fluent academic writing skills, with an emphasis on grammar review for editing purposes. Prerequisite(s): Placement based on English language screening test, and either a minimum TOEFL score of 500 or 68 iBT or consent of instructor.

SPCD 111G - Advanced ESL Composition: Academic writing, including library research papers and the issue of plagiarism, for students with nonnative English. SPCD 111G is substituted for ENGL 111G for international students whose native language is not English. Prerequisite(s): Placement based on English language screening test, and either a minimum TOEFL score of 500 or 68 iBT, or consent of instructor; or successful completion of SPCD 110.

We place students in these classes to prepare them to succeed in American university culture, which is often different from their own. Additionally, the professors leading these courses are trained in raising the English abilities of the students up to the levels necessary to successfully communicate in NMSU courses.

Our requests for advisors:

DO / DON’T
Encourage students to share about their culture. / Remove SPCD holds without contacting CELP.
Help students to become more connected in class. / Waive or defer SPCD classes – students cannot graduate without them.
Encourage students to take advantage of NMSU resources. / Expect students to succeed without first learning the rules of academic honesty.
Create a welcoming environment.
Encourage students to focus on ESOL courses. They cannot graduate without them.

P.O. Box 30001 – MSC 3567, Las Cruces, NM 88003-8001 (575) 646-7041; (575) 646-1517-Fax; e-mail: