Business English 3.2

Business English 3.2 is an evening course of 56 hours at B2+ level.

The course gives students the bankable language skills required by any employer operating in the English-speaking world. It will help learners develop the confidence to communicate clearly in the corporate world, building English language skills through a variety of up-to-the-minute content. 

In lively and thought-provoking sessions, we will be talking about four main themes:

Relocating to and working in another country                                                                  
Business partnerships
Managing risk                                                                  
Decision-making

We will observe and put to use a wide range of advanced grammar, including:

Inversion                                                                          
Past perfect continuous
Past modals                                                                   
Different ways of expressing the future
Second, third & mixed conditionals                                                              
Alternatives to ‘if’
‘to’ + infinitive or -ing form                                                                        
Ways to avoid repeating words

Other grammar points will be reviewed as necessary.

We will be carrying out a range of activities aimed at honing business skills, including: 

Conducting performance reviews 
Presenting an argument for or against
Writing a summary of a negotiation 
Managing potential conflict between partners
Writing a formal report extract 
Writing a summary of your reasons for a choice
Discuss travel risks & place them in a matrix 
Writing an accident report
Writing a formal letter/email 
Writing a business strategy proposal

This is the second of two 56-hour courses (see also Business English 3.1). Its objective is to to continue students’ pathway towards proficiency in English, especially with a view to working in an English-speaking context in a wide range of fields, e.g. international banking, marketing, sales, communication, advertising, etc. At the end of the course, students should be able to operate in the business context in English as described by the Common European Framework for Reference for Languages, with particular capabilities in the business context:

• Can understand a wide range of demanding, longer clauses and recognise implicit meaning.
• Can express ideas fluently and spontaneously without much obvious searching for expressions.
• Can use language flexibly and effectively for social, academic and professional purposes.
• Can produce clear, well-structured, detailed text on complex subjects, showing controlled use of organisational patterns, connectors and cohesive devices.

In presence

This course is taught in person in the spring semester for a total of 56 hours (4 hours/week). We will be using a range of material including video, articles and audio. A wide range of online material is also available through MyEnglish Lab (see Bibliography) offering students a wealth of self-study opportunities. Learning is founded, as always, on the four language skills (reading, writing, listening and speaking), and there is a strong emphasis on active participation through discussion, practical business-related tasks, etc. 

Students who have attended 80% of classes or more will be invited to sit a final test in the last week of the semester, and on successful completion will receive a Business English certificate, which is a valuable addition to any job candidate’s CV. In addition, BECOI students who have earned two Business English certificates (level 2 and above) are eligible to take English for Economists in the BECOI programme.

Further information about language examinations at USI can be found on the LLM website.