English is Essential for Success with MUST Academics
Misr University for Science & Technology (MUST) is a private institution based in Egypt. More than 20,000 students in 13 schools matriculate annually earning undergraduate and post graduate degrees in engineering, medicine, business, biotechnology, and more. MUST is among the most technologically advanced educational institutions in the country.
Every student is required to demonstrate proficiency in English to pursue a
degree. Study at MUST, in fact, cannot begin until a student can demonstrate their ability to communicate in English at academic levels. To that end, the university assesses the speaking, listening, reading, and writing skills of every incoming student. The result of the test determines the level of English course that each student must take, if any. Students lacking in English communication skills are required to take remedial non-credit English courses and demonstrate proficiency before they can begin working on their academic curriculum.
Large English Testing Program Requires Advanced
Technology Solution The MUST Test Centres are responsible for assessing the English proficiency skills of more than 5,000 students every year. This testing must be completed in the six weeks immediately prior to the start of term to ensure the accurate placement of students.
Tests previously used by MUST were pen and paper, and did not assess speaking skills. MUST needed a technology solution that could assess all four The VEPT was so easy to skills: speaking, listening, reading, and writing. Moreover, they required a system that could simplify registration and administration. Finally, they also administer that we were needed to receive the results within minutes so that all 5,000 or more new able to surpass our goal students could be placed quickly in the proper training interventions. of testing 4,000 students MUST turned to Pearson and its Versant™ English Placement Test (VEPT) within the first year. for a solution. The VEPT is an English proficiency test that measures the We completed more speaking, listening, reading, and writing skills of individuals whose native language is not English. The test takes 50 minutes to complete and questions than 5,000!” are randomized to ensure maximum security. Results for this web-delivered ~ Khaled Khorshed, test are available within minutes. With a 0.99 correlation, Pearson test scores Manager of the generated by the Versant™ testing system are virtually indistinguishable from MUST Test Centres expert human scoring, ensuring confidence in the results. Case Study
“Our previous test was a manual solution that was too Fast Implementation Necessary Despite time consuming,” said Khaled Khorshed, Manager of Complexity the MUST Test Centres. “We did not have the resources As part of adopting the VEPT, MUST also elected to to thoroughly and accurately assess so many students implement the Pearson Learning Management System in so little time. We needed a computer-based test (LMS) to manage a host of educational resources, that was easier to administer, had a secure testing and including English assessments. The integration with scoring process, and provided accurate and reliable MUST’s backend systems began in the summer and had results. We got all of that with the Versant English to be ready for the fall semester. Placement Test.” “Our e-program is large and complex and in only a The MUST English Test Centre team now manages the few months, Pearson was able to not only deploy the entire English assessment process for each new group VEPT, but also integrate their LMS with our backend with a single system. Using Versant’s test management systems, which enabled us to easily deploy many other tool, ScoreKeeper™, a roster can be uploaded into the Pearson learning products for our 20,000 students,” said system, automatically assign a unique identification Khorshed. “They were with us every step of the way and number to each student, administer the test, and then that is why the integration was completed so quickly.” deliver the results. What previously took hundreds of hours is now done in minutes. MUST is the first university in Egypt to have an English assessment center and the first to implement the VEPT. “The VEPT was so easy to administer that we were able Their single sign-on LMS enables staff and students to to surpass our goal of testing 4,000 students within the access all tests in one place. “MUST is one of the most first year. We completed more than 5,000!” exclaimed technologically advanced universities in Egypt,” said Khorshed. Ahmed Samir, Pearson’s Technology Delivery Manager for Egypt. “Their LMS integration is seamless throughout the organization and one of the most sophisticated in Egypt. It is also helping them to meet their goal of going completely paperless.” Case Study
English is Critical for MUST Students About the Versant English Placement Test Although Arabic is the national language of Egypt, The VEPT is an English proficiency test which measures English is used throughout the university. MUST believes speaking, listening, reading, and writing skills of that to properly prepare students, they must be fluent individuals whose native language is not English. in English. “Students who wish to be successful in an Universities, private language schools, and corporate advanced career in Egypt or anywhere in the world, training programs around the world use the test to: must have English,” said Khorshed. • Evaluate a test taker’s English communication skills for Students that cannot demonstrate proficiency must take course placement or exit exam. non-credit English classes before they can be placed • Monitor test taker or employee progress and measure into their chosen academic track. This delay can be instructional outcomes. costly and time-consuming so a precise understanding • Benchmark the language levels of students and staff. of their limitations with the language is critical. If they are placed too high, they may not be able to perform in Test questions reflect many different situations in the classes. If placed too low, their academic career could classroom and real world including reading aloud, be unnecessarily slowed. The VEPT provides detailed conversations, and writing summaries and opinions. results for each student’s performance in the four skill Independent industry experts have found that the areas—speaking, listening, reading, and writing—so that VEPT correlates highly with the TOEFL iBT and IELTS, the MUST team knows precisely which interventions and score concordances are available for those tests were necessary. as well as the Global Scale of English (GSE) and Common European Framework of Reference (CEFR). “If we don’t correctly assess each student’s English The VEPT can be taken on a computer that is installed proficiency, it will result in a poor educational with Pearson’s Computer Delivered Testing software or experience for them,” said Khorshed. “The Versant delivered over the worldwide web. English Placement Test has been extremely accurate and helped us to consistently place students in the proper curriculum. This has resulted in happier students and teachers.”
Before graduation, every student that has taken English
classes is assessed again using Pearson’s high stakes test, PTE Academic . MUST also offers a certificate program for students to demonstrate their excellence with English for employers.
To try a sample test or get more information, contact us at:
sales@pearsonkt.com or visit us online at www.pearson.com/versant
