Abstract:

Globalisation has led to a more internationalised professional world. Professionals are not only performing their work in local contexts, as in ancient times, but also travelling and relocating, which is becoming an added value for many companies. In this context, learning languages is becoming a very positive skill for professionals. This means that speaking another language, besides their mother tongue, will improve their possibilities when they apply for an attractive position. This knowledge must allow them to not only communicate in everyday life, but to gain command in the professional context.

Many Higher Education Institutions offer degrees in a second language (usually English) besides the country’s own language. While this is common in countries with minority languages (i.e., Denmark, Holland, Sweden, etc.), it rarely occurs in countries with widespread languages, such as the UK, Ireland or Spain. This means that their students are at a disadvantage as they will be limited to work in places where their own language is spoken, unless they learn it outside the University.

The Universitat Jaume I (UJI) of Castellón Spain, is firmly committed to implement English in its Degrees in order to enhance their students’ future possibilities. Obviously, this is not an easy problem to tackle. First of all, both students and staff must be appropriately prepared, and that requires time (“Rome wasn’t built in a day”). A plan has been designed in the UJI Technical Architecture degree (TA) that aims to progressively increase the number of credits taught in English and to broaden graduates’ opportunities to find a job. The plan focuses on the field of Architecture and, in order to be realistic, it has been developed by considering current starting conditions.

This paper focuses on the short-terms targets to be performed. In order to be successful, major actions to analyze will be knowing the teachers’ level of English; asking students for their opinions and suggestions on implementing English during their degree studies, and acquiring information from the experience of those students who obtained international exchange grants or who currently work in international companies.

Keywords:

Globalisation, Internationalisation, Teaching in English, satisfaction.