Professional Writing
Professional Writing Program Mission Statement
The Professional Writing program is grounded in principles of rhetoric, with emphasis on understanding audiences, contexts, and deliberation. Students develop real-world problem-solving, analytical, writing, and design capabilities by working independently or collaboratively to produce user-oriented print and digital documents for a variety of audiences. Our courses balance principles and practice, and students have opportunities to gain further practical experience through service-learning projects and internships. The program prepares students to be strategic and pragmatic decision makers; skilled and reflective researchers, writers, and editors; effective collaborators; and engaged members of society.
Professional Writing Program Objectives
By the conclusion of the program, students should be able to:
Demonstrate proficiency in designing, writing, and editing documents for a variety of audiences and purposes. Apply research and critical-thinking skills in order to identify and solve a variety of communication problems in professional writing. Create documents that demonstrate an understanding of common professional and technical writing genres, such as user documentation, proposals, letters and memos, reports, and websites. Demonstrate interpersonal communication and management skills, including teamwork, interviewing, and project management, that reflect an awareness of cultural contexts. Use the software tools of professional writers, such as word processing, desktop publishing, presentation, graphics, and web authoring software, to produce professional-quality print and electronic documents.