Course detail

Business English

FEKT-NJA4Acad. year: 2015/2016

The course develops the students' skills - speaking, reading, listening and writing for business situations, business correspondence, using telephone in business, talking about the company, its organization, staff responsibilities, products and services, money matters, non-payment problems, taking part in interviews, meetings, negotiations, and for making presentations about the company and its products.Students will work in class with the department´s textbooks.

Language of instruction

English

Number of ECTS credits

6

Mode of study

Not applicable.

Learning outcomes of the course unit

The students will learn to communicate in business situations - to speak on telephone, to write business letters, to talk about the company, its products and money matters, to make presentations.

Prerequisites

The subject knowledge on an intermediate level is required.

Co-requisites

Not applicable.

Planned learning activities and teaching methods

Teaching methods depend on the type of course unit as specified in the article 7 of BUT Rules for Studies and Examinations.

Assesment methods and criteria linked to learning outcomes

1.winter semester test and summer semester test, 75% attendance, assignments given during the semester, the maximum number of points for each test is 20 + 5
2.written and oral examination - 25 + 25 points, 6 credits

Course curriculum

Talking about a company, its structure, premises and facilities
Describing jobs and responsibilities
Talking about a company´s targets, activities, achievements, reporting
Letter of application, CV
Talking about education, work experience, interests, achievements, expectations
Making telephone calls, messages, contacting people, exchanging information, confirmation in writing
Arranging meetings, appointments, schedules, invitations
Size and dimensions, shapes, materials, main features, specifications
Offering goods, placing orders, deliveries, prices
Making complaints, faults, letter of complaint, letter of apology
Process description, oral and written
Instructing people how to do things, asking people to do things
Revision , test
Taking people round the company, giving information
Social conversation with business contacts, entertaining guests
Chairing a meeting, suggestions, agreement, disagreement
Negotiating prices, delivery times, terms of sale
Forms of money, currencies, prices
Income and expenditure, budget cuts
Invoicing customers, acknowledgement of payment, requesting payment
Preparing a presentation, addressing the audience, introduction, main points
Preparing the main parts of a presentation, explanations to figures
Describing graphs, mathematical expressions
Concluding a presentation, summarizing
Asking and answering questions
Revision, semester test

Work placements

Not applicable.

Aims

The course develops the students´ language skills for talking to people in business situations, business correspondence, presentation of the company and its products, talking about money matters, applying for jobs,taking part in meetings, and negotiations. Note: this is a two-semester course.

Specification of controlled education, way of implementation and compensation for absences

The content and forms of instruction in the evaluated course are specified by a regulation issued by the lecturer responsible for the course and updated for every academic year.

Recommended optional programme components

Not applicable.

Prerequisites and corequisites

Not applicable.

Basic literature

L.Jones and R.Alexander:New International Business English,Cambridge University Press, 1998
D.Cotton, D.Falvey, S.Kent: Market Leader, Pearson Education Ltd., 2005
S.Sweeney:English for Business Communication, Cambridge University Press, 2003

Recommended reading

I.Mackenzie: Financial English, Language Teaching Publications, Hove, England, 1996
B.Mascull: Business Vocabulary in Use, Cambridge University Press, 2002
I. Mackenzie: Management and Marketing, Thomson Learning Inc., 1997
A.Ashley:Commercial Correspondence, Oxford University Press, 1993

Classification of course in study plans

  • Programme EEKR-MN Master's

    branch MN-BEI , 1. year of study, winter semester, general knowledge
    branch MN-TIT , 1. year of study, winter semester, general knowledge
    branch MN-KAM , 1. year of study, winter semester, general knowledge
    branch MN-EVM , 1. year of study, winter semester, general knowledge
    branch MN-EST , 1. year of study, winter semester, general knowledge
    branch MN-MEL , 1. year of study, winter semester, general knowledge
    branch MN-SVE , 1. year of study, winter semester, general knowledge
    branch MN-EEN , 1. year of study, winter semester, general knowledge
    branch MN-BEI , 2. year of study, winter semester, general knowledge
    branch MN-TIT , 2. year of study, winter semester, general knowledge
    branch MN-KAM , 2. year of study, winter semester, general knowledge
    branch MN-EVM , 2. year of study, winter semester, general knowledge
    branch MN-EST , 2. year of study, winter semester, general knowledge
    branch MN-MEL , 2. year of study, winter semester, general knowledge
    branch MN-SVE , 2. year of study, winter semester, general knowledge
    branch MN-EEN , 2. year of study, winter semester, general knowledge

Type of course unit

 

Language exercise

26 hours, optionally

Teacher / Lecturer

Syllabus

Talking about a company, its structure, premises and facilities
Describing jobs and responsibilities
Talking about a company´s targets, activities, achievements, reporting
Letter of application, CV
Talking about education, work experience, interests, achievements, expectations
Making telephone calls, messages, contacting people, exchanging information, oonfirmation in writing
Arranging meetings, appointments, schedules, invitations
Size and dimensions, shapes, materials, main features, specifications
Offering goods, placing orders, deliveries, prices
Making complaints, faults, letter of complaint, letter of apology
Process description, oral and written
Instructing people how to do things, asking people to do things
Revision , test
Taking people round the company, giving information
Social conversation with business contacts, entertaining guests
Chairing a meeting, suggestions, agreement, disagreement
Negotiating prices, delivery times, terms of sale
Forms of money, currencies, prices
Income and expenditure, budget cuts
Invoicing customers, acknowledgement of payment, requesting payment
Preparing a presentation, addressing the audience, introduction, main points
Preparing the main parts of a presentation, explanations to figures
Describing graphs, mathematical expressions
Concluding a presentation, summarizing
Asking and answering questions
Revision, semester test