News

A Leap Forward for LCC: First Master's Program Launched

22 June 2010

LCC International University reached a new stage in its development - on June 21st a long-expected Master's program became a reality. 11 students from Lithuania, Latvia and the United States - mainly English language teachers - had their first set of classes. Two years from this day, after completion of this unique program of study, they will be holding a diploma for and MA degree in TESOL (Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages).

According to Academic Vice President Dr. Marlene Wall, who is one of the professors in this program, Master's in TESOL programs are common in many parts of the world, but they are new to Lithuania. She says that the core of this program consists of sociolinguistics and linguistics, which are combined with program administration and language teaching pedagogy. This program is meant for a wide variety of professionals - high school teachers, individuals who are interested in language program administration and management, as well as those interested in research in the field of applied linguistics. Also, this program utilizes a mixed model of distance learning, where online studies are combined with intensive summer sessions on campus in Klaipėda, Lithuania.

Dr. Wall comments on the launch of the first Master's program at LCC. "It is interesting to note that this summer we host our 20th Summer Language Institute (which began in the summer of 1991), and at the same time we launch a Master's program in TESOL. We have deliberately chosen to build on areas of strength as an institution, and we hope that this advanced degree will prepare students as professionals in an ever-changing global market requiring quality English instruction and program design."

Students of the first MA in TESOL class come from a variety of backgrounds. Surprisingly, five of them are LCC's graduates from the year 1999. Three others graduated from LCC in later years. Three more students graduated from other universities.

A Lithuanian Estera Jurgutytė is a 2001 LCC graduate, who has just moved to Klaipėda after spending nine years in Finland. She says studying is a perfect opportunity to combine motherhood (her daughter is only 5 months old) and professional development. She had already been studying online several years ago, when she had her first baby. That time she enrolled in an online Business program that was taught in Swedish.

Cathy Broersma, an American who now lives in Moscow (Russia), confesses she has always regretted not having a pedagogical degree. A mother of four, Cathy holds a degree in biology, though she says a degree in TESOL will definitely help her to do her current job better - for the last four years she has been teaching English to Russian and Korean women in addition to coordinating the Russian language program at a Christian school in Moscow.

Andris Lanka who comes from Liepaja (Latvia) is among the first international students to graduate from LCC. In 1999, he and another Latvian student were the first non-Lithuanians to receive diplomas at LCC. At the moment he runs several businesses. One of those is a language school that at different times of the year has up to 700 students and is well-known not only in the region, but also in the rest of Latvia.

For more information about the MA in TESOL program at LCC International University, please explore our website at http://www.lcc.lt/masters-degrees, e-mail us at graduatestudies@lcc.lt or call to +370 46 31 04 60.