This course teaches INCOSE-aligned requirements writing — a step-by-step system for crafting clear, precise, text-based statements that drive project success.
Requirements Writing
Gain insight into a topic and learn the fundamentals.
354 reviews
Beginner level
No prior experience required
4 hours to complete
Flexible schedule
Learn at your own pace
What you'll learn
Apply INCOSE guidelines for writing clear requirement statements.
Identify and correct ambiguity in requirement statements.
Develop precise, text-based requirements for various projects.
Enhance project communication and outcomes through effective requirements.
Skills you'll gain
- System Requirements
- Engineering Documentation
- Business Requirements
- Project Documentation
- Verification And Validation
- Requirements Analysis
- Product Requirements
- Technical Writing
- Editing
- Requirements Management
- Business Writing
- Systems Engineering
- Functional Specification
- Skills section collapsed. Showing 9 of 13 skills.
Details to know
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Assessments
5 assignments
Taught in English
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There are 4 modules in this course
Welcome to the Requirements Writing course. Over five weeks, you will learn rules for writing clear requirements. Each week, complete a module and practice with quizzes drawn from a large question set. This helps you prepare for the course exam in Week 5. This module introduces the course structure and how to get started. You will understand the course flow and assessment methods. To succeed, plan your weekly study time.
What's included
2 videos4 readings1 assignment
Building on our previous module, this week focuses on removing ambiguity from requirement statements. You will learn key rules for writing requirements, specifically addressing vague and superfluous words. By the end, you will identify and correct common wording issues. To succeed, pay close attention to word choice examples.
What's included
1 video1 assignment
Continuing from our last module, we address more rules for developing clear requirement statements. This module focuses on avoiding conjunctions without formal logical conditions, unbounded statements, and escape clauses. You will learn to identify and correct these issues. To succeed, practice applying these rules to various requirement examples.
What's included
1 video1 assignment
This module concludes our rules for writing requirements. You will focus on precision, using units, ranges, and tolerances correctly. Also, learn to avoid common pitfalls like cross-references, pronouns, and negative requirements. By the end, you will apply these final rules to create robust requirements. For success, review all rules and practice applying them.
What's included
3 videos2 assignments
Instructors
Instructor ratings
(85 ratings)
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Status: Free TrialUniversity of Colorado System
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Showing 3 of 354
TM
Reviewed on Jun 23, 2020
Make sure you take notes, a lot of this material is so handy to refer to and explained a lot easier than in the INCOSE Guide
BB
Reviewed on Sep 7, 2022
The Course is good to get familiar with requirement writing in simple way. Thanks to Capgemini and Coursera for providing better opportunities.
LW
Reviewed on Jul 14, 2020
Thank you. This course will become a guidelines for me to avoid ambiguous requirements for future projects.
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Frequently asked questions
Requirements writing is the art and science of crafting clear, precise, verifiable statements that define exactly what a system, product, or project must deliver. It's the foundation that turns stakeholder visions into actionable engineering reality.
Vague requirements kill projects — they breed misunderstandings, trigger costly rework, and leave teams building the wrong thing. Crystal-clear specs align everyone, minimize risks, and ensure the final product actually solves real problems.
You'll master INCOSE-aligned technical writing, learn to surgically spot and eliminate ambiguity (even in complex, multi-layered cases), and practice rewriting messy specs into precise, testable statements — plus defend them in stakeholder role plays.
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