Academic Reading

Aim

Provide participants with opportunities to practise and improve English academic reading skills. This self-study course ‘DigiTALENT-Academic Reading’ was designed by Taalcentrum-VU, Amsterdam, in collaboration with others, to meet the needs of HBO students who are transferring to a University Master’s programme. The course meets the specific needs of this group of students for more extensive and in-depth reading strategies required in academia and aims to smooth the transition from HBO to WO.

Aimed at

This course is for HBO transfer students whose current level of English is approximately CEF B2-C1. It is intended for BA and MA students who want to improve their academic reading skills. For more information about CEF levels please click the following link.

Content

Organisation

The web-based course has been organized into nine modules with theory and exercises covering each of the topics above. Before you commence you can do a short assessment to establish the level of your reading skills. The outcome of the assessment determines which and how many modules you are required to do in order to achieve the desired level of reading for entry into a University’s Master’s programme. If you pass the final assessment you will receive a certificate from the Taalcentrum-VU.

Admission Criteria

This is a self-study course. This means that you develop your reading skills at a time and place that best suit you. The online programme offers you a combination of testing and training; it gives you immediate feedback on how well you have done the assignments. Both testing and training can take place entirely independently of a teacher. However, TCP staff are available for additional help by phone, email or in person at set times, details below.

Study load

Students who want to improve their academic reading skills significantly and on all levels are advised to work with DigiTALENT-Academic Reading at least three times a week for two hours over a twelve week period. The intake assessment, as well as the final assessment, is included in this time allocation. The course is most effective when completed before or during your pre-master programme. However, you may benefit from this course at any time. The study load is equivalent to approximately 15 ECTS.