The paper considers project work as a form of individual student activity in the course of English for specific purposes (ESP). This type of work contributes to the acquisition of professional knowledge and the search for certain information for solving practical problems and, thus, activates cognitive activity. The implementation of the project includes planning, forecasting, decision-making, development, research, and work with authentic materials, i.e. those aspects of the activity that are necessary for the formation of professional competence. This type of work also helps acquire knowledge on your own through individual work and self-education. The expediency of introducing such a task into the program for students with different levels of proficiency in a foreign language, including that in groups with a basic and intermediate level of proficiency in English (A2-B1), has been considered. The article systematizes the most typical mistakes that students make when writing abstracts and presenting the results of their research. The introduction of project work into the process of teaching a foreign language has contributed to the development of elements of research activity, which is a natural part of education since it provides a link between education and modern achievements of science and technology. The experiment showed a high motivation of students to carry out project work in English, their interest in the result, as well as the importance of this type of work for the formation of professional competencies.