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Abstract: The article is devoted to the problem of building L2 phonological competence in the sphere of teaching public speaking to Russian engineering students. The great importance attached to the prosody of public speech stems from the strategic value of oral communication in engineering profession. The article provides a scientifically-sound model of selecting the content of prosody teaching to future engineers. The current and emerging global trends in teaching L2 pronunciation, and particularly suprasegmentals, are considered and interpreted in context of modern engineering education. The article brings forward the arguments in favour of particular principles of content selection, on which the process of determining what to teach could be based. The existing L2 intonation skills were examined with a view to verify whether they match those demanded by the international market. The methods used are the auditory analysis of students’ public speeches and questionnaires. From the collected data the conclusions are drawn about students’ insufficient L2 intonation skills, especially in using prosodic techniques of a higher level. The rationale for the targeted efforts to transfer the inadequate students’ skills into compliance with the requested skills is given. The results of the study are claimed to be implemented to teaching L2 prosody to students of related disciplines.