The U.S. News Short List, separate from our overall rankings, is a regular series that magnifies individual data points in hopes of providing students and parents a way to find which undergraduate or graduate programs excel or have room to grow in specific areas. Be sure to explore The Short List: College, The Short List: Grad School and The Short List: Online Programs to find data that matter to you in your college or graduate school search.
Not everyone enters college with a mastery of the English language.
That’s why at many schools there are resources to help nonnative speakers improve their skills. Through a school’s English as a Second Language program, international students may receive guidance on conversing, reading and writing, either in an individual or small group setting.
[Discover how U.S. colleges gauge international students’ English skills.]
In an annual survey, 625 ranked colleges reported to U.S. News that they offer an ESL program. Among the 92 schools that submitted data regarding the proportion of 2016 graduating seniors who participated in ESL, the average was 2.4 percent.
But among the 12 ranked colleges, including ties, where the percentage of 2016 grads who participated in ESL was the highest, that average figure was 8.7 percent.
[Learn how U.S. college tutoring centers can help international students.]
A majority of the schools on the list are National Universities, which offer undergraduate as well as master’s and doctoral programs. That includes the University at Buffalo–SUNY, which tops the list at 14 percent.
Below are the 12 ranked schools where the highest percentage of 2016 graduating seniors participated in ESL. Unranked schools, which did not meet certain criteria required by U.S. News to be numerically ranked, were not considered for this report.
| School name (state) | Percentage of 2016 graduates who participated in ESL | U.S. News rank and category |
| University at Buffalo–SUNY | 14 | 97 (tie), National Universities |
| Saint Leo University (FL) | 10 | 61 (tie), Regional Universities (South) |
| Bentley University (MA) | 10 | 2, Regional Universities (North) |
| Marquette University (WI) | 10 | 90 (tie), National Universities |
| Syracuse University (NY) | 9 | 61 (tie), National Universities |
| Marietta College (OH) | 9 | 8 (tie), Regional Colleges (Midwest) |
| University of Utah | 9 | 110 (tie), National Universities |
| Lawrence Technological University (MI) | 8 | 38 (tie), Regional Universities (Midwest) |
| Binghamton University–SUNY | 7 | 87 (tie), National Universities |
| Mount Ida College (MA) | 6 | 26 (tie), Regional Colleges (North) |
| Lehigh University (PA) | 6 | 46 (tie), National Universities |
| Ohio State University–Columbus | 6 | 54 (tie), National Universities |
Don’t see your school on the list? Access the U.S. News College Compass to find ESL data, complete rankings and much more. Sign up for the U.S. News Extra Help: College Admissions free email newsletter to receive expert advice twice a month.
U.S. News surveyed more than 1,800 colleges and universities for our 2017 survey of undergraduate programs. Schools self-reported myriad data regarding their academic programs and the makeup of their student body, among other areas, making U.S. News’ data the most accurate and detailed collection of college facts and figures of its kind. While U.S. News uses much of this survey data to rank schools for our annual Best Colleges rankings, the data can also be useful when examined on a smaller scale. U.S. News will now produce lists of data, separate from the overall rankings, meant to provide students and parents a means to find which schools excel, or have room to grow, in specific areas that are important to them. While the data come from the schools themselves, these lists are not related to, and have no influence over, U.S. News’ rankings of Best Colleges, Best Graduate Schools or Best Online Programs. The ESL participation data above are correct as of Nov. 28, 2017.
More from U.S. News
How U.S. Colleges Gauge International Students’ English Skills
5 Questions to Ask the International Students Office at U.S. Colleges
Check Out the International Students Office Before Choosing a U.S. College
Colleges With the Highest Percentage of ESL Students originally appeared on usnews.com
