For those working on their Competency-Based Assessment (CBA), competency 2.2 – Written Communication focuses on your ability to clearly and professionally communicate technical and non‑technical information in writing.
Across the files we see, 2.2 is one of the competencies that assessors most frequently flag or ask applicants to revise – usually because the writing is hard to follow, inconsistent, or full of avoidable errors.
This competency covers formal reports, technical memoranda, field reports, specifications, and emails that explain complex details and analyses. It goes beyond short status updates or brief notes.
Assessors expect you to tailor your writing to different audiences (technical and non‑technical), use a professional tone, and show that you can document work so others can rely on it to make decisions.
Important: Assessors read your entire CBA as evidence of 2.2. If your examples are hard to read, inconsistent, or full of errors, it will lower their confidence in your overall application.
What assessors do not like in 2.2
From actual assessor comments shared by applicants, common concerns include:
- Significant spelling and grammar errors that make some submissions difficult to interpret.
- Very uneven English quality across the application (some sections look polished, others look rushed), which raises questions about who wrote which parts.
- Poor punctuation and sentence structure, suggesting low attention to detail in written communication.
When this happens, assessors often ask applicants to redraft their examples, have them proofread, and resubmit. That can delay your application by months.
What assessors want to see instead
For a strong 2.2 submission, aim to show that you can:
- Write clear, logically structured documents (introduction, body, conclusion; headings; short paragraphs).
- Tailor the content to the audience (e.g., senior managers vs. design team vs. contractors).
- Explain technical topics in plain language without losing accuracy.
- Use common tools effectively (Word, Excel, email, shared documents) to prepare and share written material.
- Check and correct your own work so spelling, grammar, and formatting are consistent across the whole CBA.
A simple way to structure each example is to use Situation – Action – Outcome (SAO) and clearly describe the written documents you produced.
Weak vs stronger examples for 2.2
Example A – Technical report
Weak example:
I was involved in preparing a design report for a pumping station project.
Stronger version:
I authored the 45‑page design report for a municipal pumping station, organizing it into clear sections (scope, design criteria, hydraulic calculations, drawings, and recommendations) and tailoring the executive summary for non‑technical city staff.
Example B – Field reports and emails
Weak example:
I wrote field reports and sent emails to update the client about site issues.
Stronger version:
After each site visit, I prepared a structured two‑page field report with photos, observed deficiencies, and recommended actions, then summarized key items in a concise email to the client and contractor so decisions could be made before the next shift.
Example C – Using tools to improve written communication
Weak example:
I used Word and Excel to help with my reports.
Stronger version:
I used Word styles and an automatically generated table of contents to keep a 60‑page specification consistent, and Excel tables with conditional formatting to present design checks, which I then pasted into the appendix so reviewers could quickly verify calculations.
Checklist before you submit 2.2
Before submitting your CBA, review competency 2.2 with this quick checklist:
- Have I described a specific document I wrote (reports, emails, specs, field reports) instead of just saying “I communicated”?
- Is it clear who the audience was and how I adapted my writing for them?
- Did I explain my role (what I wrote, reviewed, or edited) rather than only team actions?
- Have I shown at least one concrete outcome from my writing (e.g., decision made, risk clarified, work instruction understood)?
- Have I run the entire application through a spelling/grammar checker and, if possible, asked a strong English speaker to proofread it?
Strong writing in 2.2 supports every other competency. It reassures assessors that your day‑to‑day communication as a professional engineer will be clear, accurate, and reliable.
Next step: get structured help for all competencies
If you would like step‑by‑step help with all competencies (1.1 to 7.3) and their indicators, you can start with our free CBA Blueprint mini course.
It walks you through common pitfalls, provides examples, and gives you a clear structure for drafting your CBA so you are not guessing what assessors want to see.