Public Speaking in Business English academic courses. From university requirements to workplace needs

University programmes in English for business must meet the demands of the market, which is looking for graduates that are ready to communicate orally in English in international contexts. In this sense, Business English courses, as well as all courses aimed at preparing for specific areas of English for Special Purposes (ESP), need to be adapted to meet the demands of the business world. One of the priorities is the ability to speak in public (public speaking, or PS) in international professional realities: this practice has been very common in the USA since the end of the nineteenth century, both academically and non-academically, but does not have a structured profile in Italy and more generally in Europe, for various reasons explained in the contribution. The article suggests a detailed diachronic and synchronic analysis of the problem and an educational model of PS teaching in a university course of Business English.