The ACCESS Program

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Phone: 703-993-4711
Fax: 703-993-3942
Email: cisa@gmu.edu
Web: cisa.gmu.edu

The ACCESS Program is an undergraduate pathway program offered through the Center for International Student Access (CISA) , which allows first-year students to develop their academic English language skills while taking a full-time academic course load toward a bachelor’s degree. For most students, participation in the ACCESS Program will not add more time to the completion of their bachelor’s degree.

Students enrolled in the ACCESS Program should review the ACCESS Program student guidebook for specific details related to program requirements and expectations.

Course Work

The ACCESS Program offers general education classes (designed to meet degree requirements) as well as courses designated under PROV in the Courses  section of this catalog.

Faculty

Students in the ACCESS Program study with highly qualified faculty members from both the university’s academic departments and the English Language Institute .

Admission

Admission to the ACCESS Program is usually offered to international and multilingual students based on the academic credentials submitted with the admissions application.

Students must be academically qualified for university enrollment and present English language proficiency scores between 68 and 88 on the TOEFL iBT or 5.5 to 6.5 on the IELTS. Students provisionally admitted to the university through the ACCESS Program are required to complete all program requirements it in order to maintain continuous enrollment.

New students are admitted to the ACCESS Program only in fall semesters.

International students on an F-1 or J-1 visa are permitted to enroll in the ACCESS Program by request to University Admissions.

Major

All students accepted to the ACCESS Program will have the ACCESS Program assigned by admissions as their primary program and major. The secondary major represents the intended major of study to which the student will transition upon successful completion of the program requirements. Any student who has not completed ACCESS Program requirements has not been fully admitted to the intended major.

Curriculum

The program curriculum is mostly general education or elective courses that are designed specifically to advance English language development and cultural adjustment for international students.

Required Core Courses (22 credits)

• ENGH 121 - Enhanced Composition For Multilingual Writers of English I Credits: 3
   
• ENGH 122 - Enhanced Composition For Multilingual Writers of English II Credits: 3
   
• COMM 100 - Public Speaking Credits: 3
   
• PROV 103 - Language Support for Public Speaking Credits: 1
   
• HIST 125 - Introduction to World History Credits: 3
   
• PROV 104 - Language Support for World History Credits: 1
   
• PROV 105 - American Cultures Credits: 3
   
• PROV 106 - Introduction to Research Methods for International Students Credits: 3
   
• UNIV 100 - Freshman Transition Credits: 0-2
    (for 2 credits)

Additional Requirements

Each ACCESS student must take one approved quantitative reasoning course depending on the intended major. Approved quantitative reasoning courses include: MATH 105 , MATH 106 , MATH 108 , MATH 113 , and STAT 250 .

Each ACCESS student must take at least one approved course in the intended major. Approved major courses include:

• BENG 101 - Introduction to Bioengineering Credits: 3
   
• BIOL 213 - Cell Structure and Function Credits: 4
   
• CHEM 211 - General Chemistry Credits: 4
   
• CEIE 117 - Information Technology for Engineering Credits: 3
   
• CONF 101 - Conflict and Our World Credits: 3
   
• CRIM 100 - Introduction to Criminal Justice Credits: 3
   
• CS 105 - Computer Ethics and Society Credits: 1
   
• ECON 103 - Contemporary Microeconomic Principles Credits: 3
   
• ECON 104 - Contemporary Macroeconomic Principles Credits: 3
   
• GOVT 101 - Democratic Theory and Practice Credits: 3
   
• GOVT 103 - Introduction to American Government Credits: 3
   
• GOVT 132 - Introduction to International Politics Credits: 3
   
• GOVT 133 - Introduction to Comparative Politics Credits: 3
   
• IT 101 - Introduction to Information Technology Credits: 3
   
• IT 103 - Introduction to Computing Credits: 3
   
• MATH 114 - Analytic Geometry and Calculus II Credits: 4
   
• PHYS 160 - University Physics I Credits: 3
    and 
  PHYS 161 - University Physics I Laboratory Credits: 1
   
• PSYC 100 - Basic Concepts in Psychology Credits: 3
   
• SOCI 101 - Introductory Sociology Credits: 3
   
• TOUR 110 - Professionalism and Civility Credits: 1
   
• Other courses are permitted with written approval from the center’s Academic Affairs representitive.

Each ACCESS student must maintain a grade point average of 2.00 or better and a grade of C or better in all coursework.

Each ACCESS student is required to achieve a satisfactory rating on the Student Development Portfolio/Capstone requirement, presented at the end of the spring semester.

Students in good standing are restricted to 16 credits per semester unless they obtain written approval from the center’s Academic Affairs representative

Each ACCESS student must achieve a minimum level of English language proficiency as evidenced by the e-Language Portfolio, the ELI-administered English proficiency examination, and the feedback from Individualized Language Study faculty as appropriate. The program reserves the right to require additional coursework in grammar or individual language study for students who need to progress more quickly.

Beyond ACCESS Program requirements, all students must satisfy the initial requirements of their intended college and major.

Living Learning Community

ACCESS students are strongly encouraged to live on campus in the ACCESS International Living Learning Community (LLC). Students who opt to live off campus are required to meet with a Student Success Advisor to discuss how this decision may affect their academic experience. All ACCESS students are considered part of the LLC and are required to participate in events and activities to actively engage in the campus community as part of the first-year experience.

Continuation at Mason

Students who do not meet all requirements for completion of the ACCESS Program at the end of the second term will be reviewed for dismissal. Students who are placed on academic warning because of a GPA below 2.00 may be ineligible to continue at Mason beyond the second term. Students who are unable to achieve the minimum level of English proficiency or other similar requirements may be granted an extension to enroll in summer or fall courses as an “ACCESS Plus” student to demonstrate necessary progress at the discretion of the Associate Provost for Undergraduate Education. Students who fail to meet the program requirements after such an extension will be dismissed.

Students who do not enroll after the first term or withdraw for reasons other than poor academic performance may return within one calendar year and continue working to satisfy the program requirements. Credits taken at another institution will be subject to Mason’s transfer credit policy .

Dismissal/Termination Appeals Process

Students may appeal academic dismissals in writing to the Vice Provost for Academic Affairs.

Transfer of ACCESS Program Courses

Within Mason: The majority of credits offered in the ACCESS Program count for credit in any discipline; however, some courses may only count as electives.

Outside Mason: Coursework in the ACCESS Program may not meet the general education requirements of other universities. As in all transfer situations, the receiving institution retains the right to determine what credit it will accept, and the applicability of such credit to its degree programs.