POST-GRADUATE COURSE OF ENGLISH

Exam program for Non-attending students

Introduction to the course

This is a course using ‘blended language learning’ which aims to bridge the gap between the university and
the world of work. It is a new type of course based on the latest educational concept of ‘blended learning’,
and will be taught using a mix of in-class guided learning and autonomous multi-media activities. It has
been designed for high intermediate and advanced students of English who need to develop their academic
writing skills along with the language, interpersonal and intercultural skills required for academic and
professional needs in the field of international relations.

A major focus is on practising the kinds of writing typical of a postgraduate course of study in international
relations, from summaries and commentaries to reports, critiques and argumentative essays. You will
engage in critical reading/listening activities followed by discussion/debate, role plays and simulations as a
preparation for critical writing, which entails developing your own informed analysis of the issue at hand.
You will also develop professional communication skills, such as giving presentations, negotiating and
participating at meetings.

Non-attending students:

Students who have been waived from attending the course will complete the non-attenders program and
sit the exam in the second or third exam sessions. They must have completed and submitted all work to
their course professor no later than two weeks before the exam date.

Before preparing the Exam, the student will contact their course professor (contact the language center at
cla@luiss.it for the name of your course prof) who will provide teaching materials, assign exercises and
essays and provide follow up as the students completes the program. It is highly recommended that the
work be done progressively and submit the assignments and essays as they are completed so as so benefit
from the guidelines, corrections and comments.

Oral exam: the oral exam consists of two parts:

1) Portfolio: discussion of the work collected in the student’s Portfolio containing all the teaching
materials, assignments, essays etc as assigned by the course professor

2) Research project: The presentation of a brief research project on an issue related to the student’s
field of study or career path. All elements of the project (see below) must be submitted to the course
professor no later than two weeks prior to the exam date.

The choice of topic should be submitted to the course professor for approval before beginning the
research.

The purpose of the research is to take an analytical (NOT descriptive) approach to the problem.
This should be done in ONE of the following ways:

 analyze the causes behind an issue

 present a case study
 propose possible solutions to a problem
 make a comparative analysis of two different systems
  weigh the advantages and drawbacks of a policy or system

To be submitted to the course professor not less than 2 weeks before the exam date:

- Read at least 5 sources (approx 20 pages) in English on the topic. The sources should be reliable
and academic in nature (see LUISS library webpage)
- draw up a brief bibliography in correct form with name of author, publisher, date, etc
- draft a short introduction (one paragraph) stating the purpose of the research, methodology,
explanation of sources chosen, and the overall structure of the development
- draft an outline including: Introduction, Development (parts 1, 2, 3, etc.)
draft a short conclusion making a brief summary of the main points and stating your final
conclusion (one paragraph)

NB Only the introduction and Conclusion should be written in discursive form. The outline should use
only key words and phrases

To be admitted, the student should bring the following to the exam:

1) Portfolio with all teaching materials, essays and assignments completed and seen by course professor
2) The Research Project:
- First page of each of the five sources in English
- Brief bibliography
- The Outline
- Introduction and Conclusion in discursive form (one paragraph each)

Evaluation: Students are expected to be able to present their research findings in Academic English and
support any ideas or conclusions made. They should be able to define or explain any specialized language.
The objective of the exam is to show that the student is able to discuss the chosen issues with the
Commission in Academic English at their acquired level of language proficiency.

Visual aids are welcome but Power Point presentations are not necessary

The exam lasts approximately 30 minutes (Discussion of Portfolio: 15 mins/Research Project: 15 mins)

At the end of the exam each student will be attributed a language level according to the European
Framework. (minimum level: B1). A final mark over 30 will be attributed according to the quality of the
work, the commitment and ability to communicate effectively in fields related to the student’s field of
interest at their acquired level of language proficiency.