Abstract:
This paper deals with the needs of IT students in ELT in the context of business
communication skills. The results presented in this paper are a part of much greater research.
The mix-method research was conducted at eight IT departments in five cities in Serbia during
the academic year 2011/2012. The quantitative sample included 775 IT students at II and III
year of their studies and 77 professors and assistants teaching domain content courses while
the subsample for the structured interview included 16 students, 10 professors and 10
assistants. One of the aims of this research was to establish a detailed framework of English
language courses suitable for IT students in Serbia. Among the courses that emerged, as the
ones that meet the needs of IT students in ELT at tertiary level in Serbia, was the course of
Business Communication. In this paper, the authors present the aims of the Business English
Communication Course and elaborate on the specific activities and genres that emerged
essential for this type of course. The findings may be useful for all ESP teachers teaching at
Technical faculties, especially the ones teaching IT students
