Engineering students' perceptions of the role of ESP courses in internationalized universities

• Published in: English for specific purposes (New York, N.Y.) Vol. 58; pp. 58 - 74
• Main Authors: Arnó-Macià, Elisabet, Aguilar-Pérez, Marta, Tatzl, Dietmar
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Elsevier Ltd 01.04.2020
• Subjects: Academic and professional communication; English-medium instruction (EMI); ESP courses; Needs analysis; Students' perceptions; Technical communication; Students' perceptions; English-medium instruction (EMI); Needs analysis; Academic and professional communication; Technical communication; ESP courses
• ISSN: 0889-4906; 1873-1937
• DOI: 10.1016/j.esp.2019.12.001

Recently there has been a trend towards English-medium instruction (EMI) with increasing numbers of programs taught in English (Wächter & Maiworm, 2014). At the same time, there has been a long tradition of ESP courses aiming at preparing students for effective academic and professional communication. In an increasingly internationalized context, it is necessary to reappraise current ESP courses in order to find out the extent to which they are adapted to the ever-changing needs of engineering graduates in a globalized world. Within this context, this study looks at the impact of ESP courses on university students of engineering in two European universities (Spain and Austria). Specifically, our research was based in three campuses: two campuses from Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya (Spain), UPC-Vilanova (n = 52) and UPC-Barcelona (n = 26), and a third campus at FH Joanneum University of Applied Sciences (FHJ) in Austria (n = 17). This research set out to track participants' perceptions of how ESP courses prepared them for academic communication in general and EMI in particular (N = 95). Data stem mainly from surveys administered both at the start and at the end of an ESP course. Students were asked about their perceived initial level of proficiency, their expectations, and their learning objectives (first survey, T1) as well as their perceived development in the different skills, the degree of fulfilment of their initial learning objectives, and their evaluation of the ESP course as preparation for international academic and professional communication (second survey, T2). These data were complemented with qualitative diary entries from students (n = 7) who reflected on their learning at different stages of their ESP course. Results point to overall satisfaction with ESP courses and greater awareness of the nature of specialized communication and yield deeper insights into students' strategies and areas where ESP can contribute to better student preparation and empowerment. •Students perceive their ESP courses as good preparation for future academic and professional communication.•Students show awareness of the importance of technical communication.•Students report boosted confidence in using English.•Students are aware of need to further improve their English.•Higher proficiency students also appreciate the ESP training received.