About this course: Welcome to English for Business and Entrepreneurship, a course created by the University of Pennsylvania, and funded by the U.S. Department of State Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs, Office of English Language Programs. To enroll in this course for free, click on “Enroll now” and then select "Full Course. No certificate." This course is designed for non-native English speakers who are interested in learning more about the global business economy. In this course, you will learn about topics and language necessary to succeed in the international workplace. You will explore business English through authentic readings and video lectures, while learning about business vocabulary, concepts, and issues. Unit 1 will provide an introduction to entrepreneurship by examining ideas, products, and opportunities. In unit 2, you will learn about the basics of market research, including how to identify an opportunity. The next unit in the course will focus on business plans, why these plans are important, and will give you a chance to practice composing a business plan. In the final unit of the course, we will present basics for funding a business and will help you create a persuasive presentation, or pitch, based on a business plan. There are two certificate options. The first is a Coursera Verified Certificate (CVC). This is the only system-wide certificate available for every Coursera course. If you cannot afford the fee, you may fill-in the financial aid form and complete the Verified Certificate track for free. You can apply for financial aid by clicking “Learn more and apply” in the financial aid section just below the ENROLL button on the course landing page. The second certificate option is a Statement of Accomplishment (SoA) available directly from Penn. Everyone who completes the course requirements is eligible for this Statement of Accomplishment and there is no charge associated with this type of certificate. A separate e-mail of congratulations from the course team will provide a link for participants to download the SOA. This is separate and different from the Coursera Verified Course Certificate. If you cannot locate this email – please check your Junk or Clutter folders. Unless otherwise noted, all course materials are available for re-use, repurposing and free distribution under a Creative Commons 4.0 Attribution license. Supplemental reading materials were provided by Newsela, which publishes daily news articles at a level that's just right for each English language learner.
Created by: University of Pennsylvania
Taught by: Amy Nichols, Manager of International Research and Program Development
English Language Programs
Taught by: James Riedel, Executive Director
English Language Programs
| Level | Beginner |
| Commitment | 5 weeks of study, 2-4 hours/week |
| Language | English, Subtitles: Mongolian |
| How To Pass | Pass all graded assignments to complete the course. |
| User Ratings |
Syllabus
WEEK 1
Unit 1: Becoming an Entrepreneur
In this unit, we will introduce course goals and logistics, then discuss basic concepts and vocabulary related to entrepreneurship.
23 videos, 14 readings, 9 practice quizzes
- Reading: Overview of the Unit
- Video: Welcome to English for Business & Entrepreneurship (Video 1)
- Video: Course Introduction Part I - Course Overview (Video 2)
- Video: Course Introduction Part II - Using the Course Site (Video 3)
- Video: Unlockable Achievement
- Video: What is Entrepreneurship? (Video 4: Part 1)
- Reading: Video/Listening: Elon Musk's Journey to Mars
- Video: What is Entrepreneurship? (Video 4: Part 2)
- Reading: Game 1: Unit 1 Vocabulary Flashcards
- Video: Language Focus - Reading Skills (Video 5 Part 1)
- Video: Language Focus - Reading Skills (Video 5 Part 2)
- Reading: BASIC: Entrepreneurship seen as solution to South Africa's unemployment crisis
- Reading: ADVANCED: Entrepreneurship seen as a solution to S. Africa’s unemployment crisis
- Video: Unlockable Achievement
- Video: Why Entrepreneurship? (Video 6 Part 1)
- Video: Why Entrepreneurship? (Video 6 Part 2)
- Video: Ideas, Products, and Opportunities (Video 7)
- Reading: BASIC: Women taxi startups gaining speed globally
- Reading: ADVANCED: Women taxi startups gaining speed globally
- Video: Unlockable Achievement
- Reading: “This recent grad brewed a startup by managing the details”
- Video: Unlockable Achievement
- Practice Quiz: Game 2: Identifying Different Types of Products
- Video: Creating Simple, One-Sentence Product Descriptions (Video 8 Part 1)
- Video: Creating Simple, One-Sentence Product Descriptions (Video 8 Part 2)
- Practice Quiz: Game 3: Creating Product Descriptions
- Video: Deciding on a Type of Startup (Video 9 Part 1)
- Video: Deciding on a Type of Startup,Guest Speaker (Video 9 Part 2)
- Video: Risk, Failure, and Important Steps (Video 10 Part 1)
- Video: Risk, Failure, and Important Steps (Video 10 Part 2)
- Video: Language Focus - Comparative Structures (Video 11 Part 1)
- Video: Language Focus - Comparative Structures (Video 11 Part 2)
- Video: Language Focus - Comparative Structures (Video 11 Part 3)
- Practice Quiz: Game 4: Correlative Connectors & Sentence Connectors
- Discussion Prompt: Assessment 2: Compare and Contrast Selling Goods to Selling Services
- Reading: “'Impact Entrepreneurship' places importance on social consciousness"
- Practice Quiz: Check Your Understanding: "'Impact Entrepreneurship' places importance on social consciousness"
- Practice Quiz: Game: Connector Practice Activity
- Reading: “Many paths lead to successful business startups”
- Practice Quiz: Check Your Understanding: "Many paths lead to successful business startups"
- Reading: “Entrepreneurs find new ways to address housing shortages"
- Practice Quiz: Check Your Understanding: Entrepreneurs find new ways to address housing shortages
- Reading: Video: “Ludwick Marishane: A bath without water”
- Practice Quiz: Check Your Understanding: "Ludwick Marishane: A Bath Without Water"
- Reading: “Broadway rallies to save a beloved diner"
- Practice Quiz: Check Your Understanding: "Broadway rallies to save a beloved diner"
- Reading: Game: Unit 1 Vocabulary Flashcards
Graded: Self-Assessment of Business & Entrepreneurship Vocabulary Knowledge
Graded: Check Your Understanding: "Entrepreneurship Seen as Solution to S. Africa's Unemployment Crisis"
Graded: Check Your Understanding: "Women taxi startups gaining speed globally"
Graded: Check Your Understanding: "This recent grad brewed a startup by managing the details"
WEEK 2
Unit 2: Identifying an Opportunity
This unit will cover how to do market research to determine whether a new product presents an opportunity in a market. We will focus on surveys and questions.
19 videos, 11 readings, 5 practice quizzes
- Reading: Overview of the Unit
- Video: Market Research and Testing to Identify Opportunities (Video 1)
- Reading: Game 1: Unit 2 Vocabulary Flashcards
- Reading: BASIC: Washington state's new apple joining a changing industry
- Reading: ADVANCED: Washington state's new apple joining a changing industry
- Video: Unlockable Achievement
- Video: Informal Research - Advantages and Disadvantages (Video 2)
- Video: Formal Research - Advantages and Disadvantages (Video 3 Part 1)
- Video: Formal Research - Advantages and Disadvantages (Video 3 Part 2)
- Practice Quiz: Game 2: More Practice with Comparative Language
- Video: Language Focus - Listening Strategies (Video 4 Part 1)
- Video: Language Focus - Listening Strategies (Video 4 Part 2)
- Reading: BASIC: Bugs are the new food
- Reading: ADVANCED: Bugs are the new food
- Video: Unlockable Achievement
- Video: Creating a Survey (Video 5 Part 1)
- Video: Creating a Survey (Video 5 Part 2)
- Practice Quiz: Game 3: Creating Survey Questions
- Video: Language Focus - Questions and Intonation (Video 6 Part 1)
- Video: Language Focus - Questions and Intonation (Video 6 Part 2)
- Reading: Samples of Question Forms and Intonation (for Assessment 1)
- Video: Unlockable Achievement
- Video: Collecting Data (Video 7)
- Video: Evaluating Results (Video 8)
- Video: Unlockable Achievement
- Video: Completing Assessment 2 (Video 9 Part 1)
- Video: Completing Assessment 2 (Video 9 Part 2)
- Reading: Assessment 2 Model
- Video: Unlockable Achievement
- Practice Quiz: Game: Question Matching Practice Activity
- Reading: “Taiwanese business seeks specialized markets”
- Practice Quiz: Check Your Understanding: "Taiwanese business seeks specialized markets"
- Reading: “People who bring their own grocery bags are more likely to buy junk food”
- Practice Quiz: Check Your Understanding: "People who bring their own grocery bags are more likely to buy junk food"
- Reading: Game: Unit 2 Vocabulary Flashcards
Graded: Check Your Comprehension: "Washington state's new apple joining a changing industry"
Graded: Check Your Comprehension: "Bugs are the new food"
Graded: Unit 2 Assessment 1: Questions and Intonation
Graded: Analyzing Sample Survey Data
Graded: Unit 2, Assessment 2: Your Survey and Results
WEEK 3
Unit 3: Creating a Business Plan (Part 1)
This first part of Unit 3 will review the importance of writing a business plan and will focus on the first two sections: operations and marketing.
10 videos, 8 readings, 4 practice quizzes
- Reading: Overview of Unit 3
- Video: Why write a business plan? (Video 1)
- Video: Strategic Language Focus - Intensifiers & degree complements in persuasive business writing (Video 2 Part 1)
- Video: Strategic Language Focus - Intensifiers & degree complements in persuasive business writing (Video 2 Part 2)
- Practice Quiz: Game 1: Practice with degree complements and intensifiers
- Reading: BASIC: Nigeria's Wecyclers works for reusable future in Lagos
- Reading: ADVANCED: Nigeria’s Wecyclers work for reusable future in Lagos
- Video: Unlockable Achievement
- Discussion Prompt: Assessment 1: Business ideas for your local community
- Video: Business description, including management and operations (Video 3)
- Video: Marketing: Part One (Vocabulary and Concepts) (Video 4 Part 1)
- Video: Marketing: Part One (Vocabulary and Concepts) (Video 4 Part 2)
- Video: Marketing: Part One (Vocabulary and Concepts) (Video 4 Part 3)
- Reading: BASIC: Chinese go to Los Angeles for Kobe Bryant, but skip the beach
- Reading: ADVANCED: Chinese go to Los Angeles for Kobe Bryant, but skip the beach
- Video: Marketing: Part Two (Business Plan) (Video 5 Part 1)
- Video: Marketing: Part Two (Business Plan) (Video 5 Part 2)
- Practice Quiz: Game 2: Sorting the 4 Ps
- Reading: “50 business ideas you can start for under $100"
- Practice Quiz: Check your Understanding: "50 business ideas you can start for under $100"
- Reading: "Chilean government seeks to boost female-led start-ups"
- Practice Quiz: Check Your Understanding: "Chilean government seeks to boost female-led start-ups"
- Reading: Game: Unit 3 Vocabulary Flashcards
Graded: Check Your Understanding: "Nigeria's Wecyclers for reusable future in Lagos"
Graded: Check Your Understanding: "Chinese Go to Los Angeles for Kobe Bryant, But Skip the Beach"
WEEK 4
Unit 3: Creating a Business Plan (Part 2)
In this second part of Unit 3, we will learn about the Financials section of a business plan and how to create a simple, brief business plan of our own.
9 videos, 3 readings, 4 practice quizzes
- Video: Financials: Part One—Startup Costs, Operating Costs & Sales Projections (Vocabulary & concept focus) (Video 6)
- Practice Quiz: Game 3: Vocabulary: Word problems matching numbers with words
- Video: Financials: Part Two - Income statement (Vocabulary & concept focus) (Video 7)
- Practice Quiz: Game 4: Vocabulary: Word problems matching numbers with words
- Video: Financials: Part Three - Startup Costs, Sales & Revenue Projections, Cost Projections & Income Statement (Calculations) (Video 8 Part 1)
- Video: Financials: Part Three - Startup Costs, Sales & Revenue Projections, Cost Projections & Income Statement (Calculations) (Video 8 Part 2)
- Video: Financials: Part Three - Startup Costs, Sales & Revenue Projections, Cost Projections & Income Statement (Calculations) (Video 8 Part 3)
- Video: Strategic Language Focus - Describing Financials (Video 9)
- Practice Quiz: Game 5: Interpreting Results
- Video: Creating a brief business plan (Video 10 Part 1)
- Video: Creating a brief business plan (Video 10 Part 2)
- Reading: Template and Model for Brief Business Plans (for Assessment 2)
- Video: Unlockable Achievement
- Reading: "Ethiopians hope start-ups turn into business success"
- Practice Quiz: Check Your Understanding: "Ethiopians hope start-ups turn into business success"
- Reading: Game: Unit 3 Vocabulary Flashcards
Graded: Unit 3 Assessment 2: Written Business Plan
WEEK 5
Unit 4: Attracting Investors and Obtaining Financial Support
In this unit, we will discuss different ways to get the money needed to start a business. At the end you will create a "pitch" to present your business ideas.
22 videos, 10 readings, 5 practice quizzes
- Reading: Overview of the Unit
- Video: Financing a Business: Bootstrapping versus Outside Funding (Video 1 Part 1)
- Video: Financing a Business: Bootstrapping versus Outside Funding (Video 1 Part 2)
- Video: Unlockable Achievement
- Video: Debt-Financing: Bank Loans and Microloans (Video 2 Part 1)
- Video: Debt-Financing: Bank Loans and Microloans (Video 2 Part 2)
- Reading: BASIC: Microfinance gives voice to rural Indian women
- Reading: ADVANCED: Microfinance gives voice to rural Indian women
- Video: Unlockable Achievement
- Video: Equity-Financing: Venture Capital (Video 3 Part 1)
- Video: Equity-Financing: Venture Capital (Video 3 Part 2)
- Video: Finding Investors in the Social Network (Video 4)
- Video: Crowdfunding (Video 5 Part 1)
- Video: Crowdfunding (Video 5 Part 2)
- Video: Listening: Crowd-sourced funding provides kickstart to new business ventures
- Video: Unlockable Achievement
- Video: Making a Pitch to Attract Investors (Video 6 Part 1)
- Video: Making a Pitch to Attract Investors (Video 6 Part 2)
- Video: Creating an Effective Hook (Video 7 Part 1)
- Video: Creating an Effective Hook (Video 7 Part 2)
- Practice Quiz: Game 1: Be brief!
- Video: Adding Impact: Word Stress, Body Language,& Eye Contact (Video 8)
- Video: Listening: How to Pitch a Business
- Video: Unlockable Achievement
- Reading: Instructions for Assessment 2: Persuasive Elevator Pitch
- Reading: Sample Elevator Pitch and Elevator Pitch Template
- Video: Unlockable Achievement
- Video: Course Conclusion (Video 9)
- Reading: BASIC: Tech startups boom in India, attract big investments
- Reading: ADVANCED: Tech startups boom in India, attract big investments
- Practice Quiz: Check Your Understanding: "Tech startups boom in India, attract big investments"
- Reading: "Crowdfunding for business growing in Africa"
- Practice Quiz: Check Your Understanding: "Crowdfunding for businesses growing in Africa"
- Reading: "The original social network: How global diasporas can mean big business"
- Practice Quiz: Check Your Understanding: "The original social network: How global diasporas can mean big business"
- Practice Quiz: Game: Build a Pitch - Structure Practice
- Reading: Game: Unit 4 Vocabulary Flashcards
Graded: Unit 4 Assessment 1: Reflective Response
Graded: Check Your Understanding: "Microfinance gives voice to rural Indian women"
Graded: Check Your Understanding: "Crowd-sourced funding provides 'Kickstart' to new business ventures"
Graded: Check Your Understanding: "How to Pitch a Business"
Graded: Unit 4: Assessment 2: Persuasive Pitch
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University of Pennsylvania
The University of Pennsylvania (commonly referred to as Penn) is a private university, located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. A member of the Ivy League, Penn is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States, and considers itself to be the first university in the United States with both undergraduate and graduate studies.
Ratings and Reviews
Great course, I could not finished because of my work, I just only had pending few videos. Is there any possibility to finished those videos? Thank you in advance.
is a very exciting course, thanks for the class and with this i have more skills for understand the english of business, the teachers are very good.
I like the course. The things I have learned are really valuable. Thank you.
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This is a very structured course and gave me very important knowledge.