This study investigates the reading strategies of Ethiopian first year universityrnstudents who use English as a foreign language and who are at high and low levels ofrnEnglish (the L2) language proficiency. Based on the think-aloud protocols of thernstudents, the study examines individual differences in the types and frequency of usernof the strategies, and considers the appropriateness and effectiveness of the strategiesrnfor the reading task (reading a passage) and the assigned reading purposern(summarising the passage and taking a short-answer reading comprehension test).rnData were elicited using a three-stage procedure: a pre-reading elicitation of thernstudents' awareness of their own strategies before reading using a metacognitivernquestionnaire; a during-reading elicitation of strategies based on the think-aloudrnprotocols of the students; and a post-reading assessment of the students' strategiesrnbased on the students' reflections about their strategies and reading performance.rnThe study also consists of a case study which was designed to inspect closely thernstrategy use of a sample of successful subjects (subjects at high and low levels ofrnEnglish language proficiency who achieved the highest reading comprehensionrnscores) and less successful subjects (subjects at high and low levels of proficiencyrnwho achieved the lowest reading comprehension scores).rnThe results show that the subjects at the high and low language levels were notrnmarkedly different in the number of strategy types they used and/or the frequencyrnwith which they used them. The findings demonstrate that the key difference betweenrnthe students at the high and low levels of English language proficiency is the result ofrna combination of three interrelated factors: the presence or absence of an awareness ofrneffective strategy use, language ability and processing difficulties.rnThe study concludes that the key to successful reading does not lie in the merernpossession of a repertoire of strategies nor in the frequent use of such strategies; norrndoes it lie merely in having a high level of linguistic proficiency. Successful readingrnresults from knowing how appropriately and effectively the strategies are used inrnreading.rnThe dissertation concludes by suggesting the pedagogical implications of the study.