UMGC in Asia brings flexible language learning to workplaces
When Japanese-speaking emergency operators at Kadena Air Base in Okinawa needed help understanding English jargon they encountered on the job, University of Maryland Global Campus (UMGC) tailored language instruction to their workplace. It is one example of how the university's English as a second language (ESL) program is helping learners across Japan and South Korea build English skills for work, daily life, and further education.
“With ESL, everyone's a learner,” said Paul Koch, UMGC in Asia’s associate director of enrollment. “The ESL classes are a big part of helping with the academic journey towards getting your associate and bachelor’s degrees. But it goes beyond just the typical, ‘I'm going for a degree’ student. It greatly supports the missions on the military bases as well.”
Learning around work and life
The noncredit ESL program requires no prerequisite and offers courses focused on speaking, writing, reading, and listening skills. Many students are working adults, and evening and online options allow them to fit classes around other responsibilities.
“Most [of the students] have jobs. So, having night classes allows them to take care of their family and then take classes,” said Nozomi Ochiai, a UMGC advanced military education coordinator. “Before COVID, classes were on-site and we had a hard time finding students. With the online Zoom classes, students from Korea, mainland Japan, and Okinawa can join the same class.”
English skills in the workplace
UMGC also offers classes tailored to the needs of workplaces, coordinating with managers and organizations on timing and content. For example, UMGC in Asia maintains key partnerships with Torii Station in Okinawa and Marine Corps Community Services (MCCS), among others.
For the Kadena emergency operators, that meant focusing instruction on the English expressions they could encounter at work. For example, a phrase like “someone went down,” meaning that someone has passed out, might make sense to a native English speaker; however, it might not have a direct equivalent for someone who only speaks Japanese.
Recent classes at American Forces Network (AFN) Korea provide another example. At Camp Humphreys, UMGC in Asia offered a three‑course ESL sequence inside the AFN building, scheduled around the newsroom clock so engineers and producers could attend between broadcasts. UMGC in Asia also provides MCCS’s ESL programs for frontline staff who work in financial, equipment, maintenance, and customer service operations.
A pathway to university study
For some learners, English courses also can provide a path toward university study. UMGC in Asia’s Bridge Program is a five-course academic English program for learners who have studied English before but have not yet reached the proficiency scores required for admission as degree-seeking students. The curriculum builds university‑level English speaking, listening, reading, and writing skills and prepares students to transition into UMGC or another U.S. degree program.
Over the past year, Ochiai has focused on incorporating ESL into the Bridge Program.
“We’ve added academic ESL courses. We’ve had them for a little while, but we’re really going to start running them with the tie‑in to the Bridge Program,” said Koch. “With the updated Bridge Program we're launching this month, ESL is going to become an integral part. If students need additional support, they're going to have ESL courses built in for them.”
For Koch and his colleagues, English learning can be a starting point, giving learners skills they can use at work and, for those who choose it, a path toward further study.
In 2026, UMGC marks 70 years in Asia, celebrating a legacy of serving U.S. military-connected learners in the Pacific and the people and experiences that helped shape the university’s global mission. Read some of their stories.
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