In this program students have the opportunity to gain the skills necessary for success in an English language university and/or work environment. The program consists of three levels: Beginner, Intermediate, and Advanced. Students enter the program at their level of skill. Upon entering Dorset College, students are given an English Placement Test and placed in the appropriate level. Each level of the program can be completed within one semester (3 months); the full program can be completed in three semesters.

Classes are offered in weekdays and on weekend and deliver not less than 24 instructional hours per week for 12 weeks (totaling up to 280 hours). Students are awarded a Certificate upon the successful completion of each level. All levels of this program have been approved by the registrar of the Private Training Institutions Branch (PTIB/ PTIRU ) of the Ministry of Advanced Education, Skills & Training.

Please note: This program is not eligible for the Post-Graduation Work Permit Program (PGWPP) offered by Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC). Students enrolled in this program will not qualify for a PGWP upon completion.

For more information on PGWP eligibility, visit:
🔗 IRCC – Work After Graduation

Beginner Level — one semester (3 months)

• Students gain strong foundational English language skills.
• Courses include fun and instructive class excursions to such places as Future Shop, Chapters Bookstore, and Starbucks.
• The Reading and Writing component help students learn basic grammar and sentence structure, develop vocabulary, apply reading skills to basic texts, and practice writing.
• The Listening and Speaking component involve intensive speaking practice and exposes students to CDs, videos and pod casts to develop comprehension of spoken English.

Intermediate Level — one semester (3 months)

• Students gain strong intermediate English language skills.
• Courses include fun and instructive class excursions to such places as the Cypress Community Garden and Granville Island.
• The Reading and Writing component will help students continue learning sentence structure, tenses, increase vocabulary, construct sentences with new words, and apply increased reading skills to various English texts. Students practice writing paragraphs. They also practice critical thinking skills.
• The Listening and Speaking component involve students in focused discussion to develop increased fluency. Students are exposed to CDs, videos and pod casts to develop comprehension of spoken English.

Advanced Level — one semester (3 months)

• Students gain strong Advanced English language skills.
• Courses include fun and instructive excursions to places such as the Vancouver Public Library and the Museum of Anthropology.
• The Reading and Writing component will help students gain the English language reading and writing skills necessary. Students gain enhanced knowledge of sentence structure, acquire more expansive vocabularies related to various topics, and learn to recognize various structures in academic reading. They practice writing developed paragraphs, effective thesis statements for academic essays as well as brief academic essays.
• The Listening and Speaking component help students gain the language listening and speaking skills necessary.

Minimum 3 months each level.