Student Profiles

Attending the Academic Writing courses is an amazing journey in that I found my potential abilities to broaden my writing style. With the help of knowledgeable and considerate advisors from EIS, I believe you can learn what you have never learned about academic writing in English.

Ruey-Kuang Cheng, Psychology Department, Taiwan

Seven reasons to take the English Classes:

1. Nobody will come up to you and tell you that this is how you should pronounce this word or the sentence you use is awkward, except the English teachers.
2. This is probably the last chance for you to study English systematically in your life.
3. You feel more comfortable to speak English in the class because the other students do not speak English much better than you do.
4. Speaking good English makes you feel confident.
5. This class is not only about English but also about American culture, which you will need in order to understand this society and succeed in this country.
6. It's a wonderful break from your routine research work.
7. Those teachers are kind and resourceful and could become your friends when you get to know each other.

An Lei, Chemistry Department, China

I am from Armenia where the education system including the course structure, grading system, and enrollment process are totally different from U.S. standards. There are a lot of differences in the academic atmosphere, but I would emphasize the informal relationships between professors and students and the participation requirement. Duke is like a mysterious ancient castle promising everything when you are first arriving and giving everything when you are already studying here.

Shoghik Hovhannisyan, Armenia

I came to this country to pursue academic excellence. However, studying in a field of social sciences, it did not take me long to realize that the language (English) would be the first and biggest barrier for all foreign students who seek to succeed in their academic life here. I am glad that I did not realize this too late, and I am also happy that I got help from EIS courses at the early stage of my graduate studies at Duke. Everything I learned from EIS courses was very useful in both my everyday communication and my academic performance.

Wang Yu, Anthropology, China