English for Software Engineers

This page is for non-native English-speaking software engineers who want American accent coaching. We work on the sounds, stress, rhythm and intonation of American English, using the technical vocabulary from your own work.

I'm Julie Cunningham, MA, CCC-SLP, a licensed speech-language pathologist. Sessions are one-to-one and live on Zoom.

Does this describe you?

• Teammates ask you to repeat yourself in daily stand-ups.
• You want to be easy to follow in code reviews and design discussions.
• Technical interviews make you think hard about how you sound.
• You present to non-technical stakeholders and want your points to land clearly.

If one or more of these sounds familiar, we can look at the specific sounds and patterns behind them. A small number of habits often repeat across a conversation, so we start there and add more as you go.

What we work on

• Vowels and consonants: the American English sounds that are hardest to hear and to say.
• Word stress in technical terms: where the emphasis falls in words such as algorithm, database and architecture.
• Rhythm and reductions: how native speakers shorten and link words in fast conversation.
• Intonation: the rise and fall of your voice when you explain a design, ask a question or give a status update.
• Pacing and pausing: how to group your ideas so listeners can keep up.

Technical English has its own rhythm too. Abbreviations, product names and long compound terms are easier to say clearly once the stress pattern is clear, and we practice them in full sentences, not only as single words.

Private sessions can incorporate your own technical vocabulary and real work scenarios. Bring a stand-up update, a pull request description or a slide from a recent presentation, and we practice with it.

Each session is a mix of listening, repeating and recorded practice. I give you specific feedback, and you leave with exercises to practice before we meet again.

We start slowly with one sound or pattern, then move to short sentences, and then to the longer explanations you give in your own work. The goal is for the new habit to carry over into real conversations.

How it works

1. Send me a message through the contact form.
2. I reply within 1–2 business days and we schedule a free Planning Session.
3. We design your course and book your sessions on Zoom.

Your first conversation is about your goals, your schedule and the situations where you want your English to be clearer. There is no cost for the Planning Session, and I reply to every message myself.

After the Planning Session we set your focus areas and your schedule. Sessions are by appointment, so you can plan them around your work hours. If you want a clear picture of your starting point first, you can add the optional evaluation.

Price

• $250 an hour
• $1,875 for a 10-hour package
• Free Planning Session

You can pay by the hour or choose the 10-hour package. Every private program includes a fully customized course, detailed feedback on home practice assignments, weekly personal vocabulary recordings, and continued assessment of your accent and pronunciation during every session.

An optional Comprehensive Speech and Accent Evaluation is $375.

Other ways to learn

If you prefer a group class or a self-paced course, these options are available too, and each one has its own page with the details:

• 5-Week Intensive Accent Class: $399. A live group class with daily feedback.
• English Pro: $49.99 a month or $479 lifetime, with a 10-day money-back guarantee. For intermediate learners and above.
• English Pro Lite: free. 45 video lessons to get started.