Professional Writing Certificate (changes for Fall 2007)
The Professional Writing (PW) Certificate attests to the holder's competency in one of two specializations: Professional Writing and Design or Professional Writing and Organizational Communication. Each track prepares students for positions as professional communicators and develops excellent verbal and visual communication skills. The PW Certificate consists of three required courses and three elective courses chosen from a specialization. You must pass each course taken with a grade of “B” or better to earn the PW certificate.
While both specializations emphasize the writing that students will do in the workplace, each additionally focuses on a different aspect of the production of professional documents.
The Professional Writing and Design specialization focuses on the visual elements of computer-mediated design and prepares students to enter fields that require expertise in writing and designing documents such as technical manuals, web sites, help files, and other forms of electronic media.
The Professional Writing and Organizational Communication specialization focuses on the management of large-scale, collaborative documents within an organization and prepares students to enter fields that require expertise in writing and producing documents such as business plans, product documentation, proposals, and various reports.
Students may also choose to create their own track by selecting three courses and writing a proposal that demonstrates how the three selected courses complement the Professional Writing core courses to form a cohesive specialization in Professional Writing. Students shall submit their proposal to the Director of the Professional Writing program for approval.
Students may complete an 18-credit certificate alone or as part of
- A Bachelor of Arts degree, or
- A Bachelor of Science degree.