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Abstract
Adjustment in an alien culture is one of the major problems all over the world. It becomes more concerned when young people with less exposure, experience and knowledge go to other countries to seek higher education. The prime objective of this study is to focus upon the role of the English Language Proficiency Test (ELPT) in the social as well as academic adjustment of Pakistani postgraduate students abroad. The uniqueness of this study is that the examination of Pakistani students' adjustment abroad has been highlighted for the first time. Data were collected from 225 postgraduate Pakistani students who studied in 20 various educational institutions in London with the help of a questionnaire. Chi-square test was applied to examine association between English Language proficiency Test and adjustment of the Pakistani postgraduate students abroad. Adjustment of the Pakistani postgraduate students was found to be high with respect to those students who obtained high IELTS score. In light of the study findings it is recommended that Pakistani students, while seeking higher education abroad, should acquaint themselves with the educational standards in the United Kingdom by having a mastery over the English language. This will help in the smooth adjustment in an English speaking country both socially as well academically.
Keywords: English Proficiency, Adjustment, Academic Performance, Students Sojourners, Social Relations and Social Interaction
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Introduction
Language has to be assumed as one of the major barriers encountered by an international student while living in an alien land (Yieh , 1932; Fatima, 2001; Parker, 1999; Chen, 1996; Meyer, 2001; and Tomich, McWhirter, and King, 2000; Trice, 2003). A number of research studies have been carried out regarding language competency in respect of adjustment to both the academic settings and social integration. Regarding the importance of proficiency in a second language, Mallinckrodt & Leong (1992), Constantinides (1992), Antwi and Ziyati (1993), Wan et al. (1992), Surdam & Collins (1984), Chen (1996) and Ward & Kennedy (1999) widely considered language competency as one of the vital components for international students in their adjustment abroad. Poyrazli and Kavanaugh (2006) asserted that those international students in the United States of America (USA) who secured low grades in their academics were due to their insubstantial English competency and...