English is a compulsory subject in secondary education in Japan, but most students, as well as teachers, do not have a clear goal for learning it because the number of people who actually need English in their lives is rather small. However, there is a certain demand for training of English for Specific Purposes (ESP) in such fields as engineering, medicine, and business, where communication in English is sometimes unavoidable. Such a demand is best accommodated at universities and colleges where the curriculum is set to help students develop skills to work in certain professions. In this talk I will first provide an overview of research and practice in ESP in Japan. I will then share my own experience as a teacher and curriculum developer at my workplace, where students learn English for business purposes.
