A thesis submetted in partail fulfillment of the requirement for the degree of Licencié en Langue et Littérature Anglaises

RESUME

This work deals with the linguistic challenges of Burundi's integration in the EAC. It seeks to know the perceptions of English majors about Burundi's integration in the EAC preparedness as far as English is concerned. Freshmen and seniors English majors at the University of Burundi answered a questionnaire investigating their awareness of the linguistic challenges - with regard to using English - to Burundi's integration in the EAC, their perception of the need of mastering English in order to be competitive at the regional level ; in other words to explore the extent to which they feel well prepared for the regional competititon without any challenges in using English and the English aspects in which they would need more training to bie competitive if they deem so. Also, the questionnaire investigated their perceived role in helping Burundians and Burundi become fully integrated in the EAC. Results show that freshmen and seniors English majors feel that Burundi's integration in the EAC has not been well prepared ; they are not well prepared for the regional competition without any challenges in using English. They think English is a prerequisiste to be competitive at the regional level and, the language basic skills (Listening, Speaking, Writing, and Reading) ; social, political, cultural and economic issues ; Information Technology ; and Interpreting and Translation are the aspects in which they feel they need more training in English. On the basis of the findings, it has been found out that there is no significant difference of perceptions between freshmen and seniors English majors.