The class is an interesting mix of scholars coming from Cambodia, Indonesia, Lao PDR, Myanmar, the Philippines, Thailand, Timor Leste, and Vietnam. Various activities in the class aim to enhance the scholars' writing and speaking skills, which will help them in their graduate studies.
The Basic English Training Course is offered annually by SEARCA's Graduate Education and Institutional Development Department (GEIDD) to new and ongoing scholars as part of their mandate in capacity building of Southeast Asian scholars.