Frequently Asked Questions

The English Language Institute (ELI) at the College of Staten Island, CUNY, offers intensive English instruction in New York City for international students, local residents, and institutional partners abroad. If your question is not answered below, email elistudy@csi.cuny.edu, call 718.982.2100, or message us on WhatsApp at +1.929.376.8302. We answer in English, Spanish, Portuguese, and French.

Courses, Levels, and Schedule

Q: Which English courses and levels do you offer?

A: The ELI Intensive English Program covers all six levels of the Common European Framework of Reference (CEFR), A1 through C2.* Every student takes four courses daily: Reading and Writing, Grammar, Communications (Conversation), and TOEFL Preparation. The TOEFL ITP test is included in daytime sessions at no extra cost. The ELI also offers private tutoring, customized programs for institutional groups, and evening classes, which are a separate non-intensive offering described below.

Q: How do I know which English level is right for me?

A: We place you. Every student takes an online placement test followed by a short speaking interview with an ELI instructor. Because we assess speaking as well as reading and writing, students are placed where they can take part in class, not where a multiple-choice score puts them. Placement decides where you enter the program; the pacing is the same for everyone.

Q: Can complete beginners join the program?

A: The Intensive English Program is not designed for absolute beginners. You need to read and write the English alphabet and understand and produce simple phrases. If you can understand the question "What's your name?" and answer it, you are ready for our A1 entry point.

If you are starting from no English at all, begin with ELI private tutoring. Our teachers work from any level, including zero, and tutoring can start on any day the College is open.

Q: Why do students at different levels study in the same classroom?

A: ELI classrooms are organized in proficiency bands rather than one room per level. We generally run two bands, A1 to B1 and B2 to C2, and open a third when placement scores call for it. Instructors differentiate within a band, so students at different levels work on the same theme at different depths. This is a standard multi-level model in intensive English programs. Because band composition follows the placement scores of each incoming group, the exact grouping varies by term.

Q: If I stay in the same classroom for more than one term, am I repeating material?

A: No. Course content does not repeat within an academic year. Terms always move forward, so a longer stay in one band is a longer stretch of new topics, texts, and vocabulary. Grammar and skills spiral back in unfamiliar contexts: learned the first time, mastered the second.

Q: How long does it take to go from beginner to advanced?

A: Up to 24 months of continuous study from A1 to C2: 88 instructional weeks, six CEFR levels, about three levels a year. A student attending fall, spring, and both summer sessions completes roughly 840 classroom hours a year and 1,680 across 24 months, beyond the 1,000 to 1,200 guided learning hours Cambridge English associates with C2.*

Most students need less. Placement puts you where you are, so a student entering at B1 reaches an advanced level and exits to degree study sooner. The 24-month figure is the length of the full pathway, not of a typical enrollment.

Q: What are the class days and times?

A: The Intensive English Program meets in the daytime, Tuesday through Friday, 9:00 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. during the fall and spring terms: 18 hours a week. Summer sessions meet Monday through Thursday, 9:00 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.: 22 hours a week. The daily sequence is Reading and Writing, Grammar, a one-hour break, Communications, then TOEFL Preparation. Evening classes run on a separate schedule, described below.

Q: How long does each course or session last?

A: The Intensive English Program has six starts a year: two full-level terms and four half-level terms.

Fall — August to December, 16 weeks, full level
Fall II — October to December, 8 weeks, half level
Spring — January to May, 16 weeks, full level
Spring II — March to May, 8 weeks, half level
Summer I — May to June, 6 weeks, half level
Summer II — July to August, 6 weeks, half level

A student attending across a full year completes about 44 instructional weeks and advances roughly three CEFR levels. F-1 visa students must register for a full term. Other students may enroll for shorter periods and join a group already in progress.

Q: Are classes offered in person, online, or both?

A: The Intensive English Program is taught in person on the main CSI campus at 2800 Victory Boulevard, Staten Island. Being on campus is part of the program: students use the library, the Sports and Recreation Center, and the pool, attend college lectures and club events, and practice English outside class every day. The ELI also delivers online instruction for institutional partners abroad. Students on an F-1 visa must attend in person, as federal rules do not permit a full course of study by distance learning.****

Q: Do you offer classes all year?

A: Yes. With six intensive starts a year across fall, spring, and summer, plus evening sessions beginning roughly every eight weeks, students can begin in almost any month and continue from one term into the next without a break. Because content does not repeat within an academic year, continuous enrollment always means new material. Private tutoring can start on any day the College is open.

Q: Do you offer evening English classes?

A: Yes, and they are separate from the Intensive English Program. Evening classes are standard English classes for adults who work during the day and cannot commit to an 18-hour week, with a new session beginning roughly every eight weeks. They generally run at the A2 to B1 level, which suits students who already have some English and want to keep improving without leaving their job.

Most evening students are already using English all day at work and around the neighborhood, so the class builds on exposure they are getting anyway rather than supplying all of it. Evening classes are not intensive, do not follow the six-level pathway, and do not include the TOEFL ITP test. Students in F-1 status cannot use evening classes to meet their enrollment requirement. Contact the ELI office for the current evening schedule and price.

Q: Should I take the Intensive English Program or evening classes?

A: Take the intensive program if your schedule allows it. Contact hours drive progress, and 18 hours a week is what moves a student through roughly three CEFR levels in a year. Evening classes exist for people who cannot do that. They meet a few hours a week at the A2 to B1 level, with a new session about every eight weeks, and progress is slower because fewer hours cover less ground.

Evening students are usually using English all day at work, so their total exposure is greater than the class schedule suggests. What the class adds is structure. Everyday exposure builds listening and conversational fluency and then tends to level off, which is why people who have lived here for years can still feel stuck: organized instruction is what carries a student into accurate grammar, writing, and academic English.

That is the honest arithmetic and worth knowing before you choose. It is not a reason to wait. Many local students begin in the evening because it is what their work allows, and move into the intensive program when their schedule opens up.

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Cost, Registration, and Certificates

Q: How much do the English courses cost?

A: Daytime tuition is US$3,520 for a full 16-week term and US$1,740 for a 6-week summer session. Local students pay US$3,160 and US$1,560. Eight-week half sessions are US$1,760, or US$1,580 for local students. There is a one-time US$100 application fee, and textbooks are not included. Private tutoring is US$75 an hour with a 24-hour minimum. Evening classes are priced separately.

Q: Are payment plans or financial assistance available?

A: Local students can divide the total tuition and pay monthly. Contact the ELI office to set up a plan. Returning students receive a 20% tuition scholarship on continued study, and local residents pay a reduced rate. As a non-credit language program, the Intensive English Program is not eligible for federal or state financial aid. Sponsored students whose tuition is paid by a government agency, employer, or university abroad are welcome, and the ELI invoices sponsors directly.

Q: How do I apply or register for classes?

A: Email elistudy@csi.cuny.edu or message the ELI on WhatsApp at +1.929.376.8302. Local students can apply, pay the application fee, and register by email or in a single visit. International students applying for an F-1 visa should begin at least two to three months before the term starts, since the I-20 and visa interview take time.

Q: Do I need to take a placement test before registering?

A: Placement is online. Every student takes an online placement test and then a short speaking interview with an ELI instructor before classes begin. There is no pass or fail. The purpose is to place you where you will learn fastest.

Q: Will I receive a certificate after completing the program?

A: Yes. Certificates of completion are issued by the College of Staten Island / CUNY and the English Language Institute at the end of the fall, spring, and summer terms, with graduation ceremonies each December and May. Students also receive a final evaluation.

Q: Who can I contact if I need help choosing a course or registering?

A: Contact the English Language Institute in Building 2A, Room 206, College of Staten Island, 2800 Victory Boulevard, Staten Island, NY 10314. Office hours are Monday to Friday, 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Email elistudy@csi.cuny.edu, call 718.982.2100, or use WhatsApp at +1.929.376.8302. Our staff answer in English, Spanish, Portuguese, and French.

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Why an Intensive Program

Q: How many hours of study does it take to learn English?

A: Language learning is measured in contact hours. Cambridge English estimates roughly 200 guided learning hours to move from one CEFR level to the next: about 350 to 400 cumulative hours to reach B1, 500 to 600 to reach B2, and 700 to 800 to reach C1.*

The Foreign Service Institute (FSI) is the U.S. Department of State school that has trained American diplomats in foreign languages since 1947, and its records are one of the largest datasets on adult language acquisition anywhere. FSI puts professional working proficiency in a language close to English at roughly 600 to 750 classroom hours.** The State Department's own Foreign Affairs Handbook explains why the training is delivered the way it is: FSI teaches languages primarily as intensive full-time instruction, to get the most out of the time available, and students in full-time language study are released from their other duties for the duration.**

A student who completes a fall and a spring term at the ELI accumulates 576 classroom hours in about eight months, within the range the federal government uses as its own benchmark.

Q: Why should I pay for an intensive program when free English classes are available?

A: Free community classes are a genuine public good, and for someone who needs conversational English for daily life they can be the right choice. But they are built for a different goal, and the arithmetic of contact hours is unforgiving. A class meeting four hours a week delivers about 200 hours, one CEFR level, in roughly 50 weeks of continuous attendance.* Most community programs do not run 50 weeks a year, so one level often takes a year and a half.

The ELI delivers 288 hours in a single 16-week term and 132 hours in a 6-week summer session. A student enrolling across a full year accumulates roughly 840 contact hours and advances about three CEFR levels. One ELI term delivers what a twice-weekly free class delivers in about seventeen months.

Q: Isn't the free option still cheaper?

A: Only if your time has no value. Research on immigrant earnings in the United States consistently finds a substantial wage premium associated with English fluency, even after controlling for education and work experience, commonly measured at roughly 15 percent or more.***

Three years in a free class instead of one year in an intensive program is not a saving of a few thousand dollars in tuition. It is two extra years of earning less, two extra years before you can enroll in a degree program, and two extra years before you can apply for the work you trained for at home. Tuition is the visible cost. Delay is the larger one.

Q: What makes the ELI's teaching method different?

A: The ELI is built around oral communication and speaking confidence. Many programs treat speaking as the reward for finishing the grammar syllabus. We treat it as the engine of the course. Students communicate in English from the first lesson, and every level has a daily Communications class devoted to fluency, accuracy, and pronunciation.

We also use project-based learning. Students work toward regular public speaking presentations that require them to research a topic, organize an argument, and deliver it to an audience. This demands two registers at once: the conversational English of discussion and questions, and the academic English of evidence and formal explanation. Students present at ELI Culture Day each term and deliver graduation speeches in December and May. They leave able to speak in front of a room, which is the skill that most determines success in an American university classroom or a job interview.

Q: Can I apply to a CUNY degree program after finishing the ELI?

A: Yes. Students take an official TOEFL ITP test at the end of each daytime term at no extra cost. Students who reach the TOEFL score required by the program they want then apply through the standard undergraduate or graduate admissions process and are considered against the usual admissions criteria. Studying at the ELI does not create a separate admissions track and does not waive admissions requirements. What it does is get you to the score, and Center for Global Engagement staff assist ELI students with the CSI application and admission process.

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F-1 Student Visas and International Students

Q: Do you provide F-1 student visa application guidance for language programs?

A: Yes. The English Language Institute provides F-1 visa guidance as part of admission for international students. Our Designated School Officials advise applicants on required documents, financial evidence, the SEVIS I-901 fee, the visa interview, entry to the United States, and the rules governing full-time enrollment once a student arrives. The Center for Global Engagement also assists with housing, health insurance, and the CUNY application process. Students already in another immigration status, or needing to change status, should contact the ELI office before applying.

Q: Can the ELI issue a Form I-20 for intensive English study?

A: Yes. The College of Staten Island is certified by the U.S. Student and Exchange Visitor Program (SEVP) to enroll nonimmigrant students, and the English Language Institute issues the Form I-20 for its Intensive English Program. Federal regulations define a full course of study in a language training program as at least 18 clock hours of classroom attendance a week.**** The ELI meets that standard with 18 hours a week in fall and spring, and exceeds it with 22 hours a week in summer. Admitted students receive an I-20 once they have submitted acceptable evidence of financial support.

Q: What do I need in order to get an I-20 from the ELI?

A: A completed ELI application and application fee, a copy of the biographical page of a valid passport, and financial documentation showing sufficient funds for tuition and living expenses for the period of study. Financial evidence must be liquid and available: bank statements, signed sponsor affidavits accompanied by the sponsor's own bank documentation, or government sponsorship award letters. Credit cards, available credit lines, and funds not yet transferred from a matured investment are not acceptable. Students bringing F-2 dependents must document additional funds for each dependent. Contact the ELI office for the current financial requirements worksheet.

Q: Can F-1 students study part time or online at the ELI?

A: No. F-1 students must maintain a full course of study, meaning the daytime Intensive English Program of 18 hours a week in fall and spring or 22 hours a week in summer, attended in person. F-1 students must register for a complete term and cannot join a term already in progress, and cannot meet the enrollment requirement through evening or online options. Students in other visa categories and local residents have more flexibility.

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Programs for Institutional Partners

Q: Do you design customized English programs for universities, governments, and organizations abroad?

A: Yes. Customized programs are one of the ELI's core offerings, designed for groups of ten or more. The Center for Global Engagement and the ELI contract directly with universities, government ministries, education agencies, and companies to build programs combining intensive English with academic content, professional training, or cultural orientation. A program can run one week or one year, on the CSI campus or online, and can include airport pickup, housing, transportation, health insurance, cultural excursions in New York City, and lectures by CSI faculty.

Q: What customized programs do you currently run?

A: The ELI currently delivers several discipline-specific programs for institutional partners:

English + STEM — with the Government of the State of Paraná, Brazil, for undergraduates in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics, combining intensive English with a lecture series delivered by CSI faculty.
English + Business — with Chuo University, Japan, combining intensive English with business content and New York City site visits.
English + Liberal Arts and Leadership — with ICPNA in Lima, Peru, combining language instruction with liberal arts coursework and leadership development.

Each began as a conversation about what a specific partner's students needed.

Q: How can my institution start a partnership with the ELI?

A: Contact us directly. The ELI is actively seeking new institutional partners: universities, ministries of education, scholarship agencies, and language institutes abroad that want a New York City program for their students. We can develop a proposal covering curriculum, academic content in your students' field, dates, housing, budget, and visa documentation, in either F-1 or J-1 frameworks. Email elistudy@csi.cuny.edu to begin.

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Sources

*Common European Framework of Reference for Languages, Council of Europe. Estimated study hours per level are from Cambridge English, "Guided learning hours," which places roughly 200 guided learning hours between adjacent CEFR levels: coe.int/en/web/common-european-framework-reference-languages and support.cambridgeenglish.org. Cambridge describes these as guidelines rather than guarantees; individual progress varies with prior study, first language, and time spent using English outside class.

** U.S. Department of State, Foreign Service Institute. Hours to professional working proficiency are from FSI's published foreign language training information: state.gov/national-foreign-affairs-training-center/foreign-language-training. The description of intensive full-time instruction is from the Foreign Affairs Handbook, 13 FAH-1 H-221.1: fam.state.gov/FAM/13FAH01/13FAH010220.html. FSI hour ranges describe instruction for U.S. government employees learning foreign languages and are cited here as a benchmark for adult language acquisition generally, not as a measure of English study.

*** Chiswick, Barry R., and Paul W. Miller. "Immigrant earnings: Language skills, linguistic concentrations and the business cycle." Journal of Population Economics 15, no. 1 (2002): 31–57. doi.org/10.1007/PL00003838. Estimates of the earnings premium associated with English fluency vary across studies and specifications; the figure cited here is a general range from this literature rather than a projection of any individual student's earnings.

**** 8 CFR 214.2(f)(6), governing a full course of study for F-1 students. See U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, SEVP governing regulations: ice.gov/sevis/schools/reg. This page is general information and is not legal or immigration advice. For guidance on your own situation, contact an ELI Designated School Official.

Contact the English Language Institute

English Language Institute, Center for Global Engagement, College of Staten Island / CUNY. Building 2A, Room 206, 2800 Victory Boulevard, Staten Island, NY 10314. Monday to Friday, 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Email elistudy@csi.cuny.edu. Phone 718.982.2100. WhatsApp +1.929.376.8302. The ELI is a member of EnglishUSA, the American Association of Intensive English Programs.

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