Abstract:

The English preparatory program organized by the School of Foreign Languages is a yearlong English teaching program offered for students who plan to study in one of the departments at Necmettin Erbakan University. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effectiveness of compulsory English preparatory program at Necmettin Erbakan University School of Foreign Languages. A mixed-method research design was employed in which both quantitative and qualitative approaches were used. In the quantitative part of the study, the proficiency test administered at the beginning of the academic year was used as the post-test to assess the students' progress in English. A total of 70 students participated in the quantitative phase of the study. Also, semi-structured, face-to-face interviews were conducted with 20 preparatory class students in the qualitative part. The results of the quantitative data showed that students' scores improved significantly over the academic year. The results of the qualitative data analysis supported the quantitative findings. It can be concluded that English preparatory program improved students' proficiency in English although some deficiencies were noted.

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