Complete an English language proficiency test (i.e. CAEL, TOEFL, or IELTS).  Please note: test results are only valid for two years. 

Undergraduate and/or Special student applicants should click here to see the required English Language test scores needed before you can be considered for admission.  If your test results are within the acceptable mid-range, apply to become an undergraduate degree student or a Special student.  Submit your English language test results to the university along with all other required documents.  Applications are not processed until English test results have been received.  Applicants with acceptable mid-range scores do not need to apply for the Foundation Program separately. Graduate students should check requirements for admission in section 3.6 (Proficiency in English) of the online Graduate Calendar.

If you are admitted with an ESLR to an undergraduate program you will receive an ESLA placement prior to receiving your offer.  You must accept your offer of admission before you are able to register in any courses. Special students do not need to accept any offer.  They will receive their ESLA placement after the Registrar’s Office processes their admission.

Make sure you have activated your Student Computing Account (which includes your MyCarleton email account).   The university only communicates with students via this official email account. Remember to check your email account regularly for important messages.

In order to be allowed to register in an ESLA course, you must first have an ESLA placement. Your ESLA placement is made by the School of Linguistics and Language Studies (SLaLS) and is viewable on Carleton Central under ‘VIEW HOLDS’ or ‘DISPLAY HOLDS’.  Placements indicate the level of ESLA in which a student with an ESLR must register and also the maximum course load they are permitted to take. Please note: course loads may differ from the amount shown in the ESL Hold in Carleton Central. Your first ESLA placement is based on the English test results submitted as part of the application process (i.e. CAEL, TOEFL, or IELTS).  If you are submitting a subsequent higher English language test result (with the exception of the CAEL Assessment), results must be officially received by SLaLS no later than two weeks prior to the start of classes for the term. After this deadline, submissions will not be reviewed for the current term unless the results are high enough to satisfy the English as a Second Language Requirement (ESLR). Placements made using CAEL results are as follows: ESLA 1300 (introductory level) – overall band of 30 or 40 (with no band below 30); an overall score of 30 must also have 40 in writing OR 50 in reading or listening, OR 50 in speaking AND 40 in reading or listening); ESLA 1500 (intermediate level) – overall band of  50; ESLA 1900/1905 (advanced level) – overall band of 60. Placement generalizations can not be made for IELTS and TOEFL scores as the overall and all subtest results are taken into account. If you are a returning student, your ESLA placement will depend on your student status and your previous ESLA final grade (more information).

Students admitted with an ESLR are required to study their ESLA course from their very first term of study. Any student admitted with an ESLR (Foundation Program required) who has not registered appropriately will be deregistered from all courses at the end of the registration period. This includes those students registered in credit courses without the correct ESLA registration, those registered in more credits than their ESL Hold type indicates, and those registered with out of date placements. For more information about registering with an ESLR see the following websites: Fall/Winter & Summer.  For general registration information:  Fall/Winter & Summer. TIPS for Registering:

• Space in ESLA courses is limited; register as soon as possible.
• Students registered in summer ESLA courses are permitted to register in the next level of ESLA course in the fall and winter terms before they receive their summer ESLA final grade.
• If you plan to study in both the fall and winter terms, please remember to register in the winter term immediately after completing your fall term registration.  You do not have to wait until you have your fall ESLA final grade before you can register.
• If ALL SECTIONS of an ESLA course level are full, please contact the School of Linguistics and Language Studies to see about a possible waitlist.

Attendance in ESLA courses is mandatory.  Register before the start of classes and intend to be on campus in time for the first class offered in the term.  It is not recommended to switch sections of an ESLA course after classes have started as arriving late in an ESLA course can jeopardize your success in the course and your final grade.

If you have received a B- or higher as your ESLA final grade, you may be eligible to study additional credits in your next term of study.  Click here to find out more about course loads and advancing through ESLA courses.