HCMC University of Technology,VNU-HCM

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Faculty of Chemical Engineering
Department of Organic Chemical Engineering SUBJECT SYLLABUS

TECHNICAL ENGLISH FOR CHEMICAL ENGINEERING
Subject code : 606002

1. AIMS AND OBJECTIVES
The course aims to introduce Chemical Engineering students to the principles and basic skills in
presenting or writing a scientific report using proper technical English.
2. COURSE OUTLINE
The course includes three sections:
How to read a scientific report in the field of Chemical Engineering.
How to make an oral presentation in the field of Chemical Engineering.
How to write a scientific report in the field of Chemical Engineering using proper technical
English.
3. REFERENCES
[1] John W. Little and Roy Parker, How to Read a Scientific Paper, University of Arizona,
Tucson, USA, 2007.
[2] Jiri Srba, How to Read and Present a Scientific Paper, Aalborg University, Aalborg, Denmark,
2007.
[3] Philip E. Bourne, Ten Simple Rules for Making Good Oral Presentations, PLoS
Computational Biology, San Diego, USA, 2007.
[4] Edward G. Wertheim, Making Effective Oral Presentations, Northeastern University, Boston,
USA, 2007.
[5] Charles H. Brueske, Writing a scientific paper, Mount Union College, Alliance, USA, 2007.
[6] David Stephenson, Scientific research and communication skills, University of Reading,
Reading, UK, 2004.
[7] Karen Gocsik, Writing the Academic Paper, Dartmouth College, Hanover, USA, 2004.

Number of Credit : 2 (2.1.4 ) Credit for tuition calculation 2
Hours Total Theory

Exercise Labs/Practice Project Seminar/Others
42 28 14

Assessment Mid-term test 20% Multiple choice or formal examination, 45 min.
(10-point grading
scale)
Final examination 80% Including: seminar: 30% - assignment: 30% -
final multiple-choice exam: 20%.
Required courses None Code:
Pre-requisites : Basic English Code:
Co-requisites : None Code:
Major : Chemical Engineering
Level Undergraduate - Year 3 or Year 4
Remarks : - A number of students per class are limited under 40.
- Both teachers and students must not use Vietnamese in classes under any
circumstances.
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4. LEARNING OUTCOMES:
At the end of the course each student is expected:
To be able to read comprehensively a scientific report in the field of Chemical Engineering.
To be able to make an oral presentation using proper technical English or join the discussion in
a scientific seminar in the field of Chemical Engineering.
To be able to write a scientific paper in the field of Chemical Engineering, using proper
technical English.
5. LEARNING STRATEGIES:

As the lecture is presented in the form of powerpoint, every student should have the handouts
from the course instructor at least one week before the lecture is given.
Students should read the handouts and the text book carefully before attending classes and be
prepared to join the discussion effectively.
Students are expected to do all the tests and assignments as soon as possible after each chapter.
Do not wait until the end of the semester to do the homework. Students are also advised to
contact the course instructor as soon as possible if they have any question regarding the course
contents, the tests, or the assignments.
During the seminar hours, students are asked to explain the solution to each problem and each
assignment they have done, as well as to join the discussion effectively under the supervision of
the course instructor.
The course grade will be determined as follows: (i) midterm multiple-choice exam counting for
20%, (ii) seminar counting for 30%, (iii) assigment counting for 30%, and (iv) a final multiple-
choice exam at the end of the semester counting for 20% of the course grade.

6. INSTRUCTOR
Dr. Phan Thanh Son Nam, associate professor
Dr. Le Thi Hong Nhan, lecturer
Dr. Huynh Khanh Duy, lecturer
Dr. Le Thanh Dung, lecturer

Division of Organic Chemical Engineering, Faculty of Chemical Engineering, Ho Chi Minh City
University of Technology, VNU-HCM

7. LECTURE TOPICS
Week Content REF. Remark
1-3 Chapter 1: Reading a scientific report in the field of
Chemical Engineering (9 hours)
1.1. Regular grammars in a scientific report in the field of
Chemical Engineering
1.2. Significant steps in reading a scientific report in the
field of Chemical Engineering
1.3. Assessment methodology for a scientific report in the
field of Chemical Engineering
1.4. Common errors in reading a scientific report in the field
of Chemical Engineering
1.5. Samples of scientific reports in the field of Chemical

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Week Content REF. Remark
Engineering
4-6 Chapter 2: Making an oral presentation in the field of
Chemical Engineering (9 hours)
2.1. Regular grammars in an oral presentation in the field of
Chemical Engineering
2.2. Basic rules in preparing an oral presentation in the field
of Chemical Engineering
2.3. Basic rules in making an oral presentation in the field of
Chemical Engineering
2.4. Common errors in making and/or preparing an oral
presentation in the field of Chemical Engineering
2.5. Basic rules in giving questions and joining in the
discussion in a scientific seminar in the field of Chemical
Engineering

7-10 Chapter 3: Writing a scientific paper in the field of
Chemical Engineering (10 hours)
3.1. Regular grammars in a scientific paper in the field of
Chemical Engineering
3.2. Basic rules in writing a scientific paper in the field of
Chemical Engineering
3.3. Basic content of a scientific paper in the field of
Chemical Engineering
3.3.1. Setting the title of a scientific paper
3.3.2. Writing an abstract
3.3.3. Writing an introduction section
3.3.4. Writing an experimental and/or materials/methods
section
3.3.5. Writing a results/discussion section
3.3.6. Writing a conclusion
3.3.7. Writing a references section
3.4. Common errors in writing a scientific paper in the field
of Chemical Engineering

10-14 Chapter 4: Seminar (14 hours)
4.1. Rules:
Students work in group (2-3 students/group) to
prepare for oral presentations.
Students make an oral presentation in class using
English.
Students join in the discussion using English.
Presentations occur under the supervision of the
course instructor.
4.2. Requirements for students/groups:
Each group of students is required to complete an
oral presentation in class by English within 15 min.
References of results being used for presentations are
dropped from thesis in the field of Chemical
Engineering or other sources.
Each group of students is required to complete a
scientific paper in the field of Chemical Engineering
by English (the length of each paper is
approximately 5 pages). References of results being

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Week Content REF. Remark
used for papers are dropped from thesis in the field
of Chemical Engineering or other sources.
4.3. Seminar topics:
Students are encouraged to choose themselves what they
prefer, especially topics in the field of Chemical
Engineering for making presentations and papers, including:
Organic Chemical Engineering
Inorganic Chemical Engineering
Petrochemical & Gas Processing
Physical Chemical Engineering
Processes and Equipment
Students are also able to get the articles being published
in scientific databases, including www.sciencedirect.com,
www.rsc.org, http://pubs.acs.org,
http://www3.interscience.wiley.com or another reliable
sources.
8. EVALUATION AND GRADE ASSIGNMENT
The final course grade will be based upon the following weights for categories of assessments:
Midterm multiple-choice exam: 20%
Oral presentation: 30%
Writing scientific paper: 30%
Final multiple-choice exam: 20%
For honor program:
-Students will be introduced some technical skills for searching information from internet and in
scientific databases as well as softwares for managing references.
-These skills have to be used for preparing presentations and writing reports as scientific papers.
9. CONTACT INFORMATION
Phone contact:
+ Faculty of Chemical Engineering: 5689
+ Department of Organic Chemical Engineering: 5681


Date: May 2nd, 2013

DEAN INSTRUCTOR
FACULTY OF CHEM. ENG.