PRE-REQUIREMENTS: No knowledge of Business English is required to attend this subject although in order to make the most out of it, students must have at least a minimum level of English equivalent to B1. In addition, as an important part of the skills to be acquired are focused on being able to translate business letters, an intermediate knowledge of Spanish, that is, equivalent to B2, is a must.



Link to other subjects in the curriculum of the Degree in Business Management: this subject is actually complementary to other subject matters having to do with Marketing, Banking, Finance, Human Resources, International Trade and Business Communication, among others, as its contents deal with said areas.

This subject aims at achieving the following skills from students:



+ Using the Business English terminology required to be able to communicate in an efficient way within a business environment.

+ Being able to use the grammar and syntax structures being practised during the academic year in order to be able to communicate in written English in a clear and understandable way.

+ Being able to properly interpret texts written in English that fall within the area of Business Communication in order to enable attendants to carry out their future professional activities with all guarantees.

+ Being able to write with an acceptable degree of correction and accuracy business letters and e-mails.

+ Showing a favorable attitude towards the learning and use of Business English, making one’s best efforts to be able to communicate adequately and to overcome learning difficulties.



LEARNING OUTCOMES



+ Communicate intelligibly and accurately in business contexts



+ Write business communications effectively and correctly



+ Understand business communications written in English



+ Write business documents with minimal correction



+ Engage in business conversations on the topics addressed during the course in an appropriate and effective manner



+ Develop positive attitudes towards the use of the English language in the workplace

UNIT 1. Invoicing letters

UNIT 2. Payment letters

UNIT 3. Reminder letters concerning overdue payment

UNIT 4. Complaint letters and replies to them.

TRAINING ACTIVITIES DURING THE MASTER HOURS:



Teaching is designed to be taught face to face, so class attendance is highly recommended.



As written expression is one of the most important skills that students must develop in order to be able to express

themselves in writing with a level of correctness that allows them to work without problems in the business environment,

the time taken to develop it both inside and outside the classroom will be more than that dedicated to other skills (e.g. oral

expression).



+ Presentation of the teaching plan and the materials that will be used in the subject.



+ Explanation of the concepts and contents of the subject.



+ Explanation of the tasks that students must carry out outside the classroom with express indication of the type of task in

question, as well as the work methodology, the deadlines, the specific weight that will be given in the final evaluation to

each task, etc.



+ Resolution of the activities that the students have carried out in the non-face-to-face hours

DURING CLASSROOM PRACTICE HOURS:



+ Resolution by the students, individually or in groups, always under the supervision of the teacher, of varied and practical

exercises prepared by the teaching staff of the subject, for the internalization of knowledge and the specific application of

concepts and contents.



+ Completion by the students, under the supervision of the teacher, of practical exercises that serve as support for the

understanding and use of the contents of the subject.



+ Work oriented towards the understanding and/or writing of letters and emails with business content.



NON-FACE-TO-FACE TRAINING ACTIVITIES



The fundamental objective of the non-face-to-face training activities is not limited to the deepening or broadening of the

contents of the lectures or classroom practices, but also aims to achieve the development of the cross-curricular

competences provided for in the subject. To do this, it will be necessary to work personally on different types of exercises.

RESOURCES AND ACTIVITIES DURING NON-FACE-TO-FACE HOURS:



+ Explanatory documents of the tasks that students will have to carry out



+ Varied and relevant exercises on the syllabus that makes up the subject, both in class and in eGela



+ Recommended reading documents



+ Consultative (dictionaries and glossaries) and practical (exercise books) bibliography for the expansion of knowledge



+ Addresses of websites related to content and tasks



+ Material with varied exercises

• Continuous Assessment System
• Final Assessment System
• Tools and qualification percentages:
  • Multiple-Choice Test (%): 10
  • Realization of Practical Work (exercises, cases or problems) (%): 20
  • FINAL OVERALL WRITTEN EXAM (%): 70

FINAL OVERALL WRITTEN EXAM



The final overall written exam will be divided into two parts. Taking into account that the first part of the exam is intended to assess the minimum knowledge required to acquire the necessary basic skills, students must obtain a minimum of 60% of its total mark to pass it, and then be assessed regarding their second part. In that second part, the minimum percentage to be obtained in order to be entitled to have the mark for class attendance rate and active classroom participation recorded will be 50%.



The mark achieved in the Ordinary Examination Session is made up by the following:

1. Continuous assessment activities and active classroom participation: 20%

2. Continuous assessment midterm test: 10%.

3. Final overall written exam: 70%

4. Selective oral exam: POSSIBILITY TO HAVE YOUR MARK ADJUSTED UPWARDS. The addition of the marks achieved in the 3 previous sections will make it possible for the students to be awarded a maximum mark of 6.9/10 (C++ / Pass). In order to meet the requirements to take the oral exam, which will enable students to benefit from an upward adjustment of their mark and thus achieve the final mark of B, A or Distinction, the minimum mark to be obtained in the mixed assessment must be 6.5.



Please, note that the dates for the Final Exam (both ordinary and extraordinary calls) cannot be modified for any particular student or any personal reason.



Those students who wish to be assessed by means of the final assessment system, regardless of whether they have taken part in continuous assessment, are required to file with the lecturer in charge of the subject (i.e. Business English II) their waiver to the on-going assessment system, within a 9-week period from the beginning of the academic term, pursuant to the Faculty academic calendar dates.



Those students who have applied for and do meet the requirements to sit for the final exam will be assessed by means of a final overall written exam that will take place on the official dates passed at the Faculty Board Meeting and published in the official web page of the Faculty, and the mark that can be achieved shall be 100%. In order to pass this exam, students shall achieve in the first part a minimum of 60% of its maximum total, and in the second part a minimum of 50% of its maximum total.



Since the final exam will, in all cases, have a value higher than 50%, the regulations in force provide that failing to sit for this exam will, for all purposes, be understood to be a waiver to be assessed and the final mark in the student academic record shall be “NOT ATTENDED”.



DESCRIPTION OF THE FINAL OVERALL WRITTEN EXAM:



The Final Overall Written Exam will consist of two parts, which will be assessed as explained above:

1. Varied exercises about the business terminology learnt throughout the semester

2. A translation from Spanish into English of a business letter



EXAM REVISION



Students who want to have their exam revised or commented to them must take a slot on eGela for that purpose on the dates and times published. Changes on the revision calendar will only be allowed with a documented justification attesting to the students impossibility to attend on the scheduled dates.

Assessment of the subject in the extraordinary examination session will be made exclusively by means of the final exam system. Please, take notice that the marks achieved by means of the continuous assessment system shall not be added up and taken into account at this extraordinary examination session.



In order to pass the written exam at this extraordinary examination session, students must achieve at least 60% of the total of its first part and 50% of the second one.



The mark achieved at the written exam will entitle students to achieve a maximum mark of 6.9 out of 10 (C++- Pass). In order to be able to take the selective oral exam, students must achieve a minimum mark of 6.5 in the written exam, which will allow them to have their final mark adjusted upwards and then have the option to be awarded a mark of B, A or Distinction.



Please, take notice that the oral exam will, in no case, lower the mark students have achieved in the written exam.



EXAM REVISION



Students who want to have their exam revised or commented to them must take a slot on eGela for that purpose on the

dates and times published. Changes on the revision calendar will only be allowed with a documented justification attesting

to the students impossibility to attend on the scheduled dates.

Students must attend classes with the relevant teaching dossier which includes the teaching material designed by the lecturers specified below, which may be purchased at the Faculty Photocopying Centre placed at the basement - Elcano.

Castro, J.; Bilbao-Goyoaga, A. (2024-2025). “Business English II Class Dossier - Second Semester. UPV-EHU.

Basic bibliography

+ Castro, J.; Bilbao-Goyoaga, A. (2024-2025). “Business English II Class Dossier - Second Semester. UPV-EHU.

In-depth bibliography

+ Baude, D.-M. (2007). The Executive Guide to E-mail Correspondence. Franklin Lakes, NJ: Career Press.
+ Bond, A. (2005). 300+ Successful Business Letters for All Occasions. Hauppauge, NY: Barrons.
+ Emmerson, P. (2002). Business Grammar Builder. Oxford: MacMillan.
+ Geffner, A. B. (2007). How to Write Better Business Letters. Hauppauge, NY: Barrons.
+ Lindsell-Roberts, S. (2004). Strategic Business Letters and E-mail. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt.
+ Mascull, B. (2007). Business Vocabulary in Use - Advanced. Cambridge University Press
+ Murphy, R. (2016). Essential Grammar in Use. 4th edition. Cambridge University Press
+ Powell, M. (2004). In Company. Upper Intermediate. Oxford: MacMillan

DICTIONARIES

+ Alcaraz, E., Castro, J. (2007). Diccionario de Comercio Internacional. Barcelona: Ariel S.A.
+ Alcaraz, E., Hugues, B. (1997). Diccionario de términos económicos, financieros y comerciales Inglés-Español Spanish-English. Barcelona: Ariel S.A.

Journals

Web addresses

ONLINE DICTIONARIES

+ http://www.businessdictionary.com
+ www.linguee.es
+ www.yourdictionary.com
+ www.babylon.com
+ www.wordreference.com

ONLINE GRAMMAR

+ https://learnenglish.britishcouncil.org/grammar
+ https://www.ego4u.com/en/business-english/grammar
+ https://www.businessenglishsite.com/business-english-grammar-tests.html

GENERAL RESOURCES

+ http://www.businessenglishresources.com/
+ www.businessenglishonline.net/resources/in-company-second-edition-resources/worksheets/

VIDEOS

+ How to write a letter of complaint. Universitat Politècnica de València - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NuANolZ2TLc
+ Real English - How to complain about a problem - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ibbTbisWfJk
+ Debt Collection Letters Explained - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zx-ZAv6Z86I
+ IncoTerms 2010 International Trade Import Export Business Supply Chain https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NEY60B8Ocg4 (with subtitles)