Mission Statement
The Pathway Programs provide international students with highly structured, full university credit courses of study at the freshman and pre-master levels, empowering students to succeed through language, cultural and academic support.
About the Pathway Programs
Undergraduate Pathways
INTO Oregon State University’s Undergraduate Pathway programs combine intensive English language study, academic skills development and academic course work. The carefully constructed programs are designed to move students successfully through the first one or two terms, or first year, of an undergraduate degree program. The Pathway Programs have three components: English language skills classes, OSU content courses, and content course bridge classes. Although the various pathway programs are broadly similar, they differ in detail depending on the student’s major area of interest. The two most common programs are shown in the table below. All INTO OSU courses with the ALS prefix (Academic Learning Services) are taught by INTO OSU ESL instructors, and are OSU credit-bearing courses that apply towards undergraduate elective credits for graduation.
Initial Assessment of Pathway Students
To enter an Undergraduate Pathway, students must meet specific language and GPA requirements. Students who lack the required TOEFL score can meet Pathway entry requirements by successfully a specific level in the AE program (minimum C in all graded classes and pass in pass/no pass classes):
- 3-term Standard Pathway: TOEFL score of 60/500 (or completion of AE level 4) and a high school GPA of 2.5.
- 3-term Advanced Pathway: TOEFL score of 70/525 (or completion of AE level 5) and a high school GPA of 2.5.
- 2-Term Accelerated Pathway: TOEFL score of 70/525 (or completion of AE level 5) and a high school GPA of 3.0.
- 1-Term Accelerated Pathway: TOEFL score of 75/540 (or completion of AE level 6) and a high school GPA of 3.0.
Newly arrived pathway students are given diagnostic tests in their Reading/Writing and Listening/Speaking classes. If it seems that a student has lower than expected English proficiency, the student will be advised toward other options. Pathways instructors need to pay careful attention to student performance during the first weeks of each pathway so as to help the pathway management team to identify any other students who may not be ready.
Two Examples of Undergraduate Pathway Programs
Business | h/w | Cr | Engineering | h/w | Cr | ||
Term 1 | Term 1 | ||||||
ALS 150 | Academic Rdg & Wrtg | 6 | 3 | ALS 150 | Academic Rdg & Wrtg | 6 | 3 |
ALS 151 | Academic List & Spkg | 6 | 3 | ALS 151 | Academic List & Spkg | 6 | 3 |
MTH ___ | Variable | 4 | 4 | MTH ___ | Variable | 4 | 4 |
HHS 231 | Lifetime Fitness for Health | 2 | 2 | ENGR 111 | ENGR Orientation I | 3 | 3 |
HHS 241 | Lifetime Fitness | 1 | 1 | ALS 181 | ENGR Orientation 1 ESL Bridge | 2 | 2 |
ALS 181 | Lifetime Fitness ESL Bridge | 2 | 2 | ||||
21 | 15 | 21 | 15 | ||||
Term 2 | Term 2 | ||||||
ALS 162 | University Reading and Writing | 6 | 3 | ALS162 | University Reading and Writing | 6 | 3 |
COMM 111 | Public Speaking | 4 | 3 | ||||
MTH ___ | Variable | 4 | 4 | MTH ___ | Variable | 4 | 4 |
ANTH 210 | Cultural Diversity | 4 | 4 | CH 231+261 | General Chemistry + Lab | 4 | 5 |
ALS 181 | Cultural Diversity ESL Bridge | 1 | 1 | ENGR 112 | Engineering Orientation II | 4 | 3 |
19 | 15 | 22 | 17 | ||||
Term 3 | Term 3 | ||||||
WR 121 | English Composition | 4 | 3 | WR 121 | English Composition | 4 | 3 |
MTH ___ * | Variable | 4 | 4 | MTH ___ | Variable | 4 | 4 |
BA 101 | Business Now | 6 | 6 | CH 232+262 | General Chemistry + Lab | 4 | 5 |
ALS 181 | Business Now ESL Bridge | 4 | 3 | COMM 111 | Public Speaking | 4 | 3 |
18 | 16 | 16 | 15 | ||||
*Or ECON 201 Introduction to Microeconomics *OR another Bac Core course |
Graduate Pathways
The INTO OSU Graduate Pathway Programs are designed for students who have undergraduate degrees but who need additional preparation before beginning graduate work. The graduate pathway in Business leads to admission to the MBA program; the graduate engineering pathways lead to admission to any one of 12 Master of Engineering degree options. A sample grad pathway is below.
Environmental Engineering Pathway | |||||
Fall | CBEE 211 | ENGR 321 | ALS 161 | ALS 162 | |
Winter | CBEE 212 | ENVE 322 | COMM 111 | WR 121 | GRE Prep |
Spring | ST 511 | ENVE 425 | BIOE 320 | WR 327 |
Pathways Course Description/Syllabus
On the first day of each term, instructors distribute a basic summary of course content, objectives, and grading. The idea here is to make such matters clear to students, giving them the information necessary to set their own goals and priorities. Having clear policies early helps avoid problems later. The syllabus also lists required and recommended texts and instructor office hours.
Course descriptions and syllabi should be consistent across multiple sections. A digital copy of each class syllabus should be placed on the server at the beginning of each term.
The development of course descriptions and syllabi for bridge courses must be based on the approved templates for ALS 150, 151, 161, 162 and 181, which are available on the server in the Pathways Curriculum folder.
Grade Requirements for Undergraduate Pathway Programs
Grades A-F are used for Pathway listening/speaking and reading/writing courses. In these courses, a grade of C- is considered a passing grade and will allow progress to next term’s courses. Grades of at least 70% on the mandated assessment activities are required in order to receive the passing grade.
Engineering Pathway students must earn at least a C grade in Math and Chemistry courses; all pathway students must receive at least a C- in Comm111, WR 121, and MTH 111.
ESL bridge courses (ALS 181) are graded Pass/No Pass, with grades of at least 80% on the mandated assessment activities being required in order to receive the passing grade.
Note that although grades of C or C- are sufficient to pass individual courses, an overall cumulative grade average of 2.25 is required for successful completion of a Pathway program and automatic transition to fully admitted status.
Students who receive any course grade below C- may be counseled to retake that course, to leave the current Pathway program and make additional preparatory study, or to explore other options.
Monitoring Student Progress
Pathway instructors should carefully monitor student progress and will be asked to make occasional reports regarding any circumstances that might negatively affect the student’s chances of achieving the course objectives. Such signs would include any of the following:
- Frequent late arrival to class
- Failure to complete assignments
- Evidence of insufficient language proficiency (despite best efforts)
Attendance is reported weekly via Blackboard.
Student Evaluation of Classes
ALS course instructors use the OSU online course evaluation system (eSET), rather than the paper-based system used in AE and GE. Instructors can access completed evaluations through Online Services, and will receive a notification email when completed evaluations become available.
Updated September 2014