Old Dominion University

The English Language Center (hereafter ELC) at Old Dominion University is a language study program affiliated with Old Dominion University. Every year, many international students from around the world enroll in the ELC. Established in 1981, the ELC aims to provide the best English education to students and working adults who want to learn English. It offers a variety of programs to deepen understanding of American culture and improve English skills, and strives to provide the most suitable learning environment for students to learn English effectively. In addition, ELC English instructors continue their own professional development through research and study in English education and specialized English teaching courses in order to respond to the changing needs of international students. The ELC's goals are to satisfy students' desire to learn, to improve each student's English ability, and to help students understand the differences between American culture and other cultures. The ELC promotes English study through active interaction between students and teachers, ESL computer CD-ROMs, audio and video cassettes, TOEFL preparation materials, and the ELC student library, and it does its best for each student's English education by introducing a variety of up-to-date English teaching methods. The ELC is a member of UCIEP (the Consortium of University and College Intensive English Programs) and AAIEP (the American Association of Intensive English Programs), educational associations made up only of language programs that meet certain standards.

The campus of Old Dominion University covers 157 acres (635372 m²) and is located in a residential area of Norfolk, Virginia. Norfolk, selected as the largest city in the American South, is one of the five famous Hampton Roads cities of Virginia. Norfolk is about 30 minutes by car from the Atlantic Ocean and Chesapeake Bay beaches, and it is also famous as a lively cultural city, with galleries, museums, and performing arts theaters spread throughout downtown. Geographically, Norfolk, a historic port city located midway along the Atlantic coast, has pleasant weather, with an average annual high of 30 degrees and a low of 9 degrees. Hampton Roads, which surrounds Norfolk, offers special experiences such as whale and bird watching, winery tours, fishing, camping, horseback riding, and walks (in autumn), and Norfolk is 3 hours from Washington, D.C., the U.S. capital. Residential areas in Virginia offer a quiet, country-home atmosphere while also being close to a lively, bustling city, so it has both advantages: a quiet atmosphere ideal for studying and a city with many opportunities to meet Americans.