University Writing Program

The University Writing Program (UWP) sees writing as both a way of thinking and a form of action that has real-world consequences. Our workshop-style classes invite students into the complex processes involved in the production of meaningful writing and encourage students to use their skills in new situations as they shape the many worlds they inhabit—academic, professional, public, and personal.

UWP Courses include:

• WRIT 1010 Academic Writing Workshop
• WRIT 1110 Seminar in Academic Writing
• WRIT 1120 Seminar in Research Writing

Key features of University Writing Program courses:

UWP courses are taught in workshop settings, which give students hands-on experience and frequent interactions with peers and faculty.

UWP courses provide frequent opportunities for deep revision—for re-visioning—ideas and the real effects they have in the world.

UWP courses provide frequent opportunities for deep reflection on one’s learning and how that learning can be advanced beyond the writing classroom.

UWP courses cultivate habits of mind characteristic of effective writers—including curiosity, engagement, openness, creativity, persistence, responsibility, flexibility, and metacognition.

UWP faculty bring a wealth of expertise and ingenuity to the writing classroom—developing new and innovative assignments, partnering with faculty and community organizations to provide interdisciplinary and experiential learning opportunities, creating spaces for students and faculty to explore new theories of learning and emerging technologies in relation to writing pedagogy.

University Writing Program courses contribute to students’ academic, professional, and public lives by:

• Encouraging systematic inquiry of the world through reading and writing
• Fostering students’ authentic, independent voices
• Connecting students with real-world audiences and resources, such as new digital communication tools and a wide range of genres
• Attending directly to the ways writing skills transfer to new situations
• Preparing students for writing in the disciplines, for graduate school, and for professions
• Supporting civil discourse and civic engagement
• Creating conditions for meaningful writing experiences