The major difference between ESP and GE (General English) is that it only focuses on the specific needs of students. In GE, the design of specific learning materials is not always necessary because it is largely predetermined by the school, government, or other institution. In ESP, teachers themselves must develop the entire course or at most the teaching materials (Hutchinson and Waters, 1987). However, “what distinguishes ESP from GE is not the existence of a need as such but rather the awareness of this need” (ibid.: 53). Being aware of students' needs can have a great and positive influence on both the development of materials and the teaching process itself. Hutchinson and Waters argue that it is not the content of the specific sphere that is the most relevant aspect in an ESP course, but the English language itself and the reasons and situations in which students are required to use it. However, interviews with the professor who teaches English to students of glass and metal design, textiles and ceramics at the Latvian Academy of Fine Arts showed that in this institution both aspects are almost equally important. needs and how to define them. Dudley-Evans and St John (1998: 123) offer a synthesis of various authors on the issue who distinguish needs as follows: • “Objective and subjective (Brindley, 1989: 65); • Perceived and felt (Berwick, 1989: 55 ). );• Target situation/goal and learning oriented, process oriented and product oriented (Brindley, 1989: 63);• Needs, wants and lacks (Hutchinson and Waters, 1987: 54)'. Each distinction represents a distinct need. analysis philosophy and it would be too voluminous to provide an analysis of ...... middle of paper ...... both their personal and professional needs and these were grammar, spoken vocabulary and writing. The detailed discussion of the results of the needs analysis questionnaire is discussed in sub-chapter 4.1. In conclusion, starting the development of PES materials is a very detailed and time-consuming process. Several aspects of requirements analysis must be considered before beginning the hardware design process. First, the objective and subjective needs of students must be examined. Second, former teachers, former students and stakeholders should be interviewed to gain a broader view of the course content needed and the results should be cross-referenced with findings from student responses. Finally, different theories need to be studied regarding the target language itself, students' perception of it, and language teaching methodology...