Bemiddelaar of Doe-Het-Zelver

A taxonomy of ESP Courses by Peter Strevens is used to classify eight requests for cooperation received in a single day by the author, director of a teaching institute for translators. The classification shows that there is a need for a great variety of ESP courses. Especially jurists, economists, engineers and medical men often have to appeal to 'mediators' in cases in which they should be able to use the foreign language themselves. Unfortunately the need for this tool is not recognized in their initial training.