Established in September 2008, the School of English for Specific Purposes (SESP) offers English language courses to the non-English majors of Beijing Foreign Studies University (BFSU) at the undergraduate and graduate levels as well as the Master of Translation and Interpreting (MTI) program. It also engages in the research on teaching English as a Foreign Language (EFL) to non-English majors and English for Specific Purposes (ESP). The School aims to groom students with a local concern and international vision and to hone their English and intercultural competence, critical thinking abilities, team spirit, and independent learning skills. In addition, its mission is to build an ESP teaching and research system in line with the university’s goal of cultivating BFSU students into interdisciplinary and multilingual talents with an international perspective.
     
     The School’s General Affairs Committee drafts and implements policies on staffing, finance, teaching, research, and international exchange and cooperation. The Academic Committee recruits talent and reviews the faculty’s research, and applications for academic promotion. The Degrees Committee formulates the policies on writing the master thesis and awarding the master’s degree and reviews the qualifications of master candidates. The Faculty Development Center organizes teaching contests, classroom observations, and workshops on pedagogy and specific academic disciplines. The ESP Center develops ESP textbooks and teaching methods, and publishes the biannual Chinese Journal of ESP.
     
     The SESP has three tracks of English teaching. The first track includes non-English major teaching, which consists of the Double Degree/Major teaching, College English teaching, and Business English teaching. The second track is graduate teaching for non-English majors. And the third is MTI teaching.
     
     We provide EFL courses for over 2,000 undergraduate students who intend to expand their English skills or seek a double degree/major in English, as well as over 500 graduate students who do not major in English. Our MTI program is a professionally oriented program of translation and interpreting at the graduate level.
     
     Our professors are highly qualified and experienced educators. The SESP has 50faculty members and 2 full-time administrative staff. Of the 50 faculty members, 17 have a PhD degree and the remaining 33 have a master’s degree. Over the past eight years, the SESP faculty members have published around 190 academic papers and journal articles and 85 theoretical works, translations and textbooks. They have completed 39 research and teaching projects of different levels and 37 are in progress.
     
     Since 2008, we have established close and long-term relationships with a number of overseas colleges and universities. We maintain an annual exchange of faculty members with Skagit Valley College in Washington State, USA. Recently, we have initiated the study abroad and faculty exchange programs with the University of Cambridge, the University of Nottingham, and the University of Kansas.
     
     Who we are determines what we do. We value differences and encourage unique ideas and perspectives. Through the SESP curriculum that emphasizes English language proficiency, liberal arts knowledge, intercultural competence, and critical thinking, we prepare our students to become the well-rounded people who are increasingly sought in the workplace.