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Graduate

Photo: Erika Schulte

The Department of Writing Studies offers three graduate degrees and a post-baccalaureate certificate:

• Doctor of Philosophy in Rhetoric and Scientific and Technical Communication (RSTC)
• Master of Arts in Rhetoric and Scientific and Technical Communication (RSTC)
• Master of Science in Scientific and Technical Communication (STC)
• Post-baccalaureate Certificate in Technical Communication

Engaged Faculty

The Writing Studies faculty consists of thirteen members who explore and expand our understanding of writing and the ways people use written texts to shape the world. Our research and teaching interests range widely to include rhetorical theory and history, scientific and technical communication, writing pedagogy, textual analysis, digital literacies, and the relationships between writers, readers, and broader social and cultural contexts.

World-class Resources

Our students benefit from being at a vital university that offers courses in related, supporting fields such as cultural studies, history, literature, and the social sciences, and to work with professional schools of education, law, engineering, and public health. This diversity of options also enables students to study with affiliated faculty with expertise in rhetoric of science, communication studies, journalism and mass communication, feminist studies, human-computer interaction, curriculum and instruction, and literacy and rhetorical studies, among others. The University also has a superb library system with extensive electronic resources and print holdings.

Individual Attention

The number of graduate students in our programs is small, so students receive close, individual attention as they work through the course requirements, examinations, capstone projects, and for Ph.D. students, the dissertation.

Learning Plus

The University of Minnesota is located in the Twin Cities of St. Paul and Minneapolis. This location combines the entertainment and recreational opportunities of a major city with a compact footprint that makes it convenient to get from school to home and beyond.

Graduate News

• Kudos, Trent Kays!

  Trent Kays had a proposal, "Wikipedia, Ethos, and the Production of Knowledge," accepted to Wikimania 2012 in Washington DC.

  He also had a proposal accepted to the 2012 National Council of Teachers of English Conference in Las Vegas, NV. He will be presenting "Twitter and Social Media for Igniting Professional Learning Connections" with colleagues from across the country.

  Trent was also a finalist for a UMN Board of Regents Student Representative position.

  Congrats, Trent!

  May 2nd, 2012

• Timothy Oleksiak published in Composition Studies

  Congratulations to Timothy Oleksiak whose article "Incendiary Discourse: Reconsidering Flaming, Authority, and Democratic Subjectivity in Computer-mediated Communication" has been accepted for publication in the journal Composition Studies.

  April 5th, 2012