1. Autobiography to the Year 2020. A relatively free-form essay (past versions have averaged 3 pages) in which you review selected real events from your past and project a "realistic" forecast of what your near-term future might hold. The objective is to (a) use personal and Finnish institutional terminology and (b) provide a diagnostic sample of your writing ability.

   NB: While the subject matter and style of writing of the Autobiography and Free-form (see the following) can be chosen by the student, conventional English structures and wordings are recommended rather than highly colloquial expression. This is not to say that 'colloquial' expressions cannot be used — they may be quite effective when skillfully employed in special contexts — but rather that the less-conventional the language, the more open it is to misunderstanding by those who are not familiar with the particular slang, colloquialisms or other expressions. Conventional educated English expression is also more appropriate for the objectives of a university course in English professional writing.

2. Free-form Writing. An opportunity to demonstrate your English writing ability when the choice of topic and style is yours. One Free-Form is required; two may be submitted for grade averaging. Past versions have averaged 3 pages; they should not exceed five pages. The text must be prose (no poetry or lyrics), and be "original" for AK2.

3. Directions Letter. Using standard English social letter layout, write directions to reach where you live in the Tampere area for a foreign English-speaking visitor who has not previously been to Finland. Begin your directions from a train, bus or air terminal or elsewere as desired. The letter should include linguistic variety in "procedural" prose, as well as cultural-context, perspective and other detail useful to help understand the directions. Objectives include social letter style, smoothness and detail of procedural writing, and objective clarity when describing Finnish institutional terminology and procedures which are well-known to you, but would not be to a non-Finnish reader.

   NB: If your directions letter is being sent to a user of British English, then it should be written in British English (as concerns which assignments are written in which English variation(s) — see below). Likewise with the Application Letter and Letter of Recommendation, produce the assignment in American English if it is being sent to the U.S. or British English if it is being sent to the U.K.

4. Application Letter. Write a cover letter to accompany a standard English 'freestyle' application for a job, scholarship, or other competitive selection. An actual situation may be used, or an invented situation in which you apply for a job translating, interpreting, or otherwise using English professionally in a realistic job situation in Finland or abroad. The grading emphasis will be on letter layout plus propriety of Finnish personal and institutional application content when viewed in the context of English language and culture — in short, would your letter and its accompanying résumé likely be successful in a real situation.

5. Personal Résumé (c.v.). Catalogue your personal data in a standard English résumé form to accompany your application letter for the position in question. Grading will be on organization and layout for such a résumé, plus use of appropriate, effective terminology to describe and "sell" your qualifications.

6. Letter of Recommendation. Write a reference letter to complement another person's application. Students should pair-off, exchange data from assignments #4 and #5 above, and base the recommendation letter on your partner's qualifications for the position. You may assume any 'identity' you feel appropriate. Grading will be on general writing plus content, phrasing and format for such letters.

Labelling Your Assignments as "UK" or "US"

As consistency of writing within British or American English is one of the course evaluation criteria, each assignment should be labelled "UK" or "US" in the upper-right corner, to indicate whether the writing is intended to be British or American English. At least one assignment should be written in the "other" variety of English from that in which the student normally writes. Please also see the note at the end of the Directions Letter assignment.

Bear in mind generally with AK2 assignments (and otherwise when writing in English) that the structures and styles of English and Finnish writing differ. In particular, while relatively long and complex sentence structures may be regarded as "good writing" in Finnish, English generally favors expressing complex relationships in a series of related, shorter sentences, rather than one longer sentence. The objective in English professional writing for international audiences is always to express the idea as clearly and unambiguously as possible, making it easy for readers to quickly see and understand your point — e.g., by using shorter, simpler sentences rather than longer, more complex ones.

Assignments should be carefully written and amply revised (see Background Overview). Up to two assignments may be "re-done" at the student's discretion. If work is re-done, it must be 'substantially different' from the original version (meaning that new content must be added, rather than just 'correcting' the problems which have been marked on the original version). When submitting the new version, please also include the original version with it.

All work must be submitted as printouts, printed on only one side of a sheet of A4 paper, following the AK2 Text Layout and Usage Guidelines. See also the AK2 Class Background Overview. Students should use class web resources at <www.uta.fi/FAST/AK2> and subscribe to the AK2-L e-mail list.