This study intends to investigate the needs of study skills for English of Korean postgraduate engineering students in an academic community. In raising the issues, this research uses semi-structured interview to examine the perceptions of Korean engineering students themselves and subject lecturers. The research showed that expanded command of study skills in English integrated with academic practices of the engineering discipline was seen to be required for students in the community. Considering the demands of participation in the global academic community leads to the conclusion that the practice of EAP teaching should encompass integrative forms of literacy along with the particular academic culture and conventions of the engineering discipline.

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the importance and roles of English for Academic Purposes (EAP) for Korean postgraduate engineering students in the era of globalization. This research examines the perceptions of Korean postgraduate engineering students themselves and subject lecturers in an institution of science and technology in Korea by using semi-structured interviews. The research demonstrated that the role of English was considered as being pivotal for communication for Korean postgraduate engineering students in their academic sectors. English was recognized as a powerful medium of international communication, needed for acceptance as qualified members in the international engineering community. English was also considered as the dominant information carrier in engineering and an essential factor for efficient study and academic success.

This research focuses on analyzing characteristics and needs of engineering students in an EFL context, which is designed as a preliminary study of content-based language instruction to develop NURI English model. For the purpose of this study, I conduct surveys and interviews on 147 engineering students to find out students’ needs and interests as well as 9 professors to recognize their notions of what language skills would benefit engineering students. The results of surveys and interviews strongly suggest the need to adopt a learner-centered level approach with which NURI English can incorporate communicative English for general and specific purposes in the field of engineering as well as TOEIC instruction. The results of this study also lead to an instructional parameter for NURI English program that requires for taking into account an instruction model of the integration of language and content for engineering students. The present study offers a few pedagogical implications for language educators who want to design a content-based language instruction model for engineering students in EFL contexts.