FAQ

Yes. This course is about how to write effectively in English; it is not a grammar course, so if you still have trouble with more basic issues, you won’t fully benefit from this course. You should have at least C1 (CEF—Common European Framework) level English to participate.

1. You can take the English section placement test, which is offered several times a year. 
2. You can show a recent result of a standardized English test indicating this level (e.g., TOEFL, IELTS).  Test results older than two years are no longer valid.
3. You are a native English speaker from the United States, United Kingdom, Canada, Ireland, Australia or New Zealand (and went to high school or college there).
4. You have taken the TU Delft instructor’s English test and had a score of C1.
5. You have a Cambridge Advanced or Cambridge Proficiency English certificate. Test results older than two years are no longer valid.

You need a score of 110 (of 120) on the computer based TOEFL test to take the course.

You need a 7.0 on the IELTS test (with at least 7.0 on the writing section) to take the course.

Cambridge Advanced certificate is (roughly speaking) C1 level and Cambridge Proficiency certificate is (roughly) C2 level.

Contact one of the Prom instructors (s.f.johnson@tudelft.nl; n.t.vanpelt@tudelft.nl). Once they have verified your level, they will put you on the waiting list for Prom, and you can register via Brightspace.

Yes, everybody needs to submit a short sample of their writing. This is part of the placement test, so if you do not need to take a placement test, you still need to send a short sample to one of the Prom instructors.

If you do not need to take the placement test:

Answer the following questions briefly (about 200 words each):

1. Describe your research field briefly for a general audience.
2. Discuss your strengths and weakness in English. Send the paragraphs to one of the Prom 4 instructors (s.f.johnson@tudelft.nl; n.t.vanpelt@tudelft.nl). 

If you take the English section placement test and have a low score, you will be advised to take either Academic English 1 or Academic English 2.  Upon successful completion of AE1 (with the instructor’s recommendation), you may enroll in AE2; and upon successful completion of AE2 (with the instructor’s recommendation), you may enroll in Prom4.

If you have passed Academic English 2 (T1.D2) and have your instructor’s recommendation, you may take Prom4. However, your instructor may recommend that you take Academic English 3 (T1.D3) first.  Please contact your AE2 instructor for his or her recommendation.  If you have taken AE3, you should be ready for Prom 4.  But in either case, please ask your instructor for a recommendation, send it to the English Unit, and we will put you on the waiting list so that you can register via Brightspace.

There are many self-study options, though these will take more discipline. You can review English grammar with the excellent Cambridge series (e.g., Raymond Murphy, English Grammar in Use; and Martin Hewings, Advanced Grammar in Use). Once you have improved enough, you can take another test to indicate your level.

The English section offers a computerized placement test several times at the beginning of each semester, both in the week before lessons start and in the first week of lessons. You can sign up for the placement on our webpages: https://www.tudelft.nl/tbm/over-de-faculteit/afdelingen/stafafdelingen/itav/onderwijs/english-unit/placement-test/

Nothing.  Just sign up in advance.

Please contact the languages secretary (Englishunit@tudelft.nl) or one of the English instructors.  In exceptional cases, it may be possible to take a paper test at our office—but only in special cases.

Once you have taken the placement test (with a sufficient score) or have the permission of one of the instructors to register, we will put your name on the waiting list. Once the course schedule for the following semester has been determined, you will receive an invitation to register on Brightspace. (Please note: do not register via Brightspace until you have taken the placement test, received a course recommendation, and are on the waiting list. Otherwise, your name will be removed.)

Yes. There are generally four or five sessions of Prom 4 every semester. These are offered on different days, and you may choose the group that fits your schedule best. This is on a first-come first-served basis, so if you register late, you may not have a choice.

If you are in the Graduate School, the course is part of the Graduate School’s program. For other candidates, the course costs 600 euros (excluding the book). If you are a post-doc, you will need to submit a payment code (baancode) from your department (check with your department first, to make sure they will pay). If you are not at the TU, you will receive an invoice, so you will need to check that your institute will pay. Please submit all billing details to our secretary at Englishunit@tudelft before you register for the course.

Prom 4 is an interactive seminar. For this reason, groups are limited to 12 participants (8 min.-12 max.).  In practice, since the course is very popular, we almost always start with 12 participants.

The regular course takes ten weeks, generally with a two week break at mid-term (after 6 or 7 weeks of class). The intensive course takes seven weeks (three hour sessions) and does not have a break.

Courses generally start in the first week of term and continue for ten weeks (with a break at mid-term). In practice, this generally means the first week of September in the fall and the first week of February in the spring. Intensive groups are usually scheduled so that no break is needed.

There are generally three regular sessions of Prom 4 every semester and one or two intensive sessions. These are offered on different days, and you may choose the group that fits your schedule best. This is on a first-come first-served basis, so if you register late, you may not have a choice.

We use Johnson (2014), Getting It Across: A Guide to Effective Academic Writing, 2^nd edition. In addition, a good English-English dictionary is highly recommended.

You may miss up to two sessions of the regular course and still receive a certificate. You may only miss one session of the intensive workshop. Since much of the class is interactive (with peer review and editing exercises), it is important to attend as much as possible to benefit fully from the course.

Yes. We have tried to plan the course so that each group covers the same issues in the same week, so that you can attend another session if necessary. Please contact the other instructor, though, to warn her/him, and to find out if there are special exercises for that class.