Engineering English and Communication Skills (5 ECTS)

Objective

The student is able to communicate fluently and efficiently in English in student and working life assignments in their field in Finland and abroad, and able to use English to develop their own professional skills. The student is able to act naturally in a multicultural environment, taking into account specific characteristics of the communication situations and the other speakers' cultural and linguistic circumstances. The student is able to obtain information required in their professional field from various sources and to process and communicate about it in writing and orally. The student has a realistic perception of their language and communication skills, and takes a positive approach to developing them as part of their professional skills.

Content

The field's key international and international-at-home interaction and presentation situations: individual and group communication
Key concepts and terms used in the field in texts appearing in the field
The professional field's text conventions and text types
Information acquisition, processing, application and dissemination and the reading of scientific information in a foreign language
Professional organisations, work environments, duties, processes and tools
Training and career planning in your own professional field
Self-assessment of language and communication skills, and development of your own learning strategies

Location and time

- According to the published timetable

Materials

- Teacher's material on Moodle
- Engineer your English (Isaacs, Pesso, Rasimus, Rönkä)

Teaching methods

- The course consists of two parts:
> part I: contact teaching in Myllypuro campus, autumn term 2025
> part II: student project together with students of Frankfurt University of Applied sciences, spring term 2026

Employer connections

N/A

Exam schedules

- Written electronic exam on Moodle, the schedule will be informed later
- Resit through Exam-system, schedule will be informed later

International connections

- Course communication in English.
- International cooperation with Frankfurt UAS.

Completion alternatives

- RPL (if previous studies at higher education level)

Student workload

- 5 cr. > 135 hrs. including contact teaching, written and oral assignments and examination.

Content scheduling

- Will be presented in the course.

Further information

- Required attendance 80%

Evaluation scale

0-5

Assessment criteria, satisfactory (1)

In communication situations related to their professional field, the student trusts their communication skills enough to manage professional language use situations by asking questions to check any unclear points, and thanks to their own short speeches are able to understand the other speaker's communication in order to act appropriately. The student expresses their thoughts in a simple way and for the most part coherently and reasonably understandably despite shortcomings in professional language and making grammatical errors that make it difficult for the message to get across. The student can produce simple texts of a specific format independently, and longer texts by means of language tools.

Assessment criteria, good (3)

In communication situations related to their professional field, the student trusts their communication skills enough to manage language situations in the field as expected from a professional. The student exchanges ideas on an equal basis with an independent language user, and if necessary, takes the initiative to communicate in professional language use situations, taking into account to some extent the other participants' language and cultural backgrounds and the circumstances. The student expresses themselves, without delay, clearly and in detail, using professional vocabulary accurately. The student pronounces English clearly so that the overall message is conveyed, and produces texts for different purposes, without any of the occasional weak points in the language stopping the message from getting across.

Assessment criteria, excellent (5)

In communication situations related to their professional field, the student trusts their communication skills to take part and take the initiative in language use situations in various communication situations in the field, following the conventions. The student exchanges ideas clearly and fluently on an equal basis with a skilful language user, and communicates, taking the initiative if necessary, also in demanding professional language use situations, taking into account the other participants' language and cultural backgrounds. The student expresses themselves efficiently and accurately, using demanding professional vocabulary accurately. The student pronounces English clearly with natural stress and rhythm so that the overall message is emphasised, and produces clear, well-structured and compelling texts in various text types.

Assessment criteria, approved/failed

In communication situations related to their professional field, the student trusts their communication skills enough to manage professional language use situations by asking questions to check any unclear points, and thanks to their own short speeches are able to understand the other speaker's communication in order to act appropriately. The student expresses their thoughts in a simple way and for the most part coherently and reasonably understandably despite shortcomings in professional language and making grammatical errors that make it difficult for the message to get across. The student can produce simple texts of a specific format independently, and longer texts by means of language tools.

Assessment methods and criteria

- Will be dealt with in the beginning of the course
> Part I: evaluation is mainly based on the written examination, and a spoken task (evaluation 0-5)
> Part II: evaluation is based on a completed project together with the students of Frankfurt UAS (evaluation pass/fail)
> In addition, all the set written tasks on Moodle should be returned and passed (evaluation pass/fail)

Qualifications

B2 of the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR)