CROSS-FUNCTIONAL TEAM DYNAMICS IN ESP DIGITAL PROJECTS: A CASE STUDY OF GRAPHIC ENGINEERING STUDENTS

English for Specific Purposes (ESP) courses in vocational higher education need to connect technical content with authentic workplace communication. This study explores students' perceptions of Project-Based Learning (PjBL) through digital multimodal portfolios and the relationship between functional-role participation and perceived ESP learning among Graphic Engineering students. An exploratory descriptive mixed-methods design combined twelve five-point Likert-scale items and open-ended post-project reflections from 57 students across three scenarios: technical onboarding, client education, and business-to-business pitching. Students reported favourable perceptions of technical vocabulary development (M = 4.23) and speaking fluency and confidence (M = 4.19). Lecturer script feedback (M = 4.35) and peer review (M = 4.33) were the highest-rated components. Respondents undertaking all three project functions generally reported higher vocabulary and speaking-confidence ratings than single-role participants; however, these group differences were descriptive and cannot establish causal effects. Reflections highlighted pronunciation difficulties, precise technical vocabulary selection, and appropriate professional language, alongside experiences of collaboration and coordination across scripts, recordings, and visual media. The findings indicate that scaffolded multimodal projects can provide perceived opportunities to practise industry-relevant English and collaborate across media-production functions. As the evidence is based on post-project self-reports rather than proficiency tests or inferential comparisons, the study recommends structured feedback and cross-role interaction while calling for further performance-based evaluation.