ELS offers two Intensive English Programs of study to meet your needs: General English and English for Academic Purposes.  ELS offers a Semi Intensive and American Explorer program for those students who wish fewer than 30 hours a week of English study.  Now you can decide what you want to study and select the program that best fits your needs and goals. Both intensive programs of study use the proven communicative approach to language learning. This approach makes for lively, interactive classes with a wide range of activities. These will challenge your abilities and allow you to have fun while developing all language skills. Courses for both programs meet for 30 lessons per week, so you are certain to learn quickly. With these programs of study to choose from, you tell us where you want your English to take you, and we will help get you there. No matter which program a student selects, ELS will provide placement testing upon arrival, and place the student in one of our 12 proficiency levels (Levels 101 through 112). Depending on the program, each level consists of 15 to 30 class hours weekly of teacher-led instruction. Each session is four weeks in duration. Each level includes class work, individualized tasks in the Language Technology Center, homework, quizzes, written essays and a final level test. Classroom participation is an important part of our program. At the end of each 4-week session, those students who have successfully met the requirements for that level will progress to the next ELS level of study and immediately begin the new session. Students can begin their ELS program on any one of the 26 starting dates each year and can choose to study for any number of 4-week sessions. Those students who complete Level 112 of the intensive English for Academic Purposes program will receive our Level 112 Certificate of Completion. This official document is accepted as proof of English proficiency for admission at more than 650 colleges and universities in the USA and Canada.

Famous as a cultural, academic and historic center, Boston offers the magic of New England. Our Center at Mount Ida College is located in the upscale suburb of Newton - just 15 minutes from the heart of the city. Students can enjoy the beauty of the campus, take advantage of the library, the athletic facilities, and the relative quiet of the campus while they study and then take a short ride on the subway to take advantage of the many resources and activities of the city in the evenings and on weekends. As the gateway to New England, the city and region are rich in reminders of America's Colonial and Revolutionary past. Explore the famous Old North Church, Beacon Hill, the John F. Kennedy Library, and a full-scale replica of the Boston Tea Party ship. Take day trips to the seaside resorts of Newport and Cape Cod or the magnificent White Mountains; New York City and Montreal, Canada, are close enough for weekend trips. Attend performances by the highly regarded Boston Symphony, Boston Pops, and Boston Ballet, or go see your favorite professional sports team - the Boston Red Sox in baseball, the Celtics in basketball, the Patriots in football, or the Bruins in hockey.