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Description
English proficiency is crucial to academic success and international engagement, particularly at the university level. This study investigates the English proficiency levels of university entrants at the University of Mataram over three years (2022–2024) using English Proficiency Test scores. It aims to map students' proficiency across key language skills—Listening Comprehension, Grammar knowledge, and Reading Comprehension—while analyzing trends based on admission pathways, faculties, and academic programs. Findings indicate that overall proficiency scores remained relatively stable, with minor fluctuations from year to year. Moreover, differences were observed across admission pathways, with SNBT students consistently outperforming SNBP and Mandiri students. Faculty-level analysis reveals that students in the Medical Education and Engineering programs demonstrate higher English proficiency, whereas those in Agriculture and Animal Science programs face greater challenges. Additionally, scores on the Grammar section were consistently the lowest among the three tested skills, highlighting the need for targeted grammar and academic writing interventions in language learning programs. Mapping students' English scores to the Common European Framework of Reference (CEFR) shows that most first-year students’ scores fall within the A1–A2 (Basic User) range, indicating a basic level of English proficiency. These findings argue for the necessity for structured language support programs, such as intensive English courses and tutorials, remedial grammar instruction, and curriculum-integrated English for Academic Purposes (EAP) modules. By addressing these challenges, the university can enhance students’ language competencies, which will lead to improved academic performance and strengthen its internationalization efforts.
