phd writing and rhetoric

English (Writing, Rhetorics, and Literacies), PHD

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At a Glance: program details

• Location: Tempe campus
• Second Language Requirement: No

Program Description

Degree Awarded: PHD English (Writing, Rhetorics, and Literacies)

The PhD program in English with a concentration in writing, rhetorics and literacies promotes the study of rhetorical strategies, production, distribution and interpretation of oral, written, digital, visual, discursive, material and symbolic texts.

Students study the history, theories and methods of inquiry as well as pragmatic and social actions of writing, rhetoric and literacies. With theories and methods from both historical and contemporary contexts, students learn strategies for inquiry; the ways in which communication creates knowledge and action; and how communication is constructed, circulated, reacted to and repurposed over time and across space. Program requirements are designed to encourage a full understanding of theoretical and applied aspects of writing studies, rhetorical studies and literacy studies. Students also are provided many opportunities to explore the intersections and tensions that exist within and between the three different areas of inquiry.

The program encourages transdisciplinary study, and its flexible requirements enable students to pursue those aspects of the disciplines that interest them the most.

The PhD in English, concentration in writing, rhetorics, and literacies at Arizona State University promotes the study of the production, distribution, and interpretation of texts (oral, written, digital, visual, discursive, material, symbolic) and the rhetorical strategies involved in such processes. Students draw on composition/writing theory, rhetorical theory, and literacy studies to examine the ideological, pedagogical, pragmatic and social dimensions of words, symbols, texts, images, and artifacts. Using theories and methods from both historical and contemporary contexts, we teach students strategies for inquiry; the ways in which communication creates knowledge, meaning and action; and how texts, meanings, and communication are constructed, circulated, reacted to, and repurposed over time and across space. Program requirements are designed to encourage students to develop a nuanced understanding of the role of critical inquiry and rhetorical analysis in framing problems, advocating for change, exploring solutions, or disrupting the status quo. With a sophisticated understanding of how words work in the world, student pursue avenues of original inquiry that have relevance and implications for the challenges and opportunities of an increasingly complex and dynamic landscape. The program encourages interdisciplinary study, and its flexible requirements enable students to pursue areas of inquiry that interest them the most and tailor those pursuits to their career goals. The program prepares students for multiple career paths including in academia, the public sector and private industry--as teachers, scholars, advocates, professionals, and public intellectuals.

Mark Hannah, Director

Sheila Luna, Program Manager

Faculty in Writing, Rhetorics and Literacies

Doctoral Examinations

Doctoral Procedures and Timeline

Teaching Assistantships

Degree Requirements

84 credit hours, a foreign language exam, a written comprehensive exam, a prospectus and a dissertation

Required Core (3 credit hours) ENG 501 Approaches to Research (3)

Concentration (9 credit hours) ENG 551 Rhetorical Traditions (3) ENG 552 Composition Studies (3) ENG 556 Theories of Literacy (3)

Focus Area (9 credit hours)

Electives or Research (48 credit hours)

Other Requirements (3 credit hours) writing for publication/scholarly writing coursework (3)

Culminating Experience (12 credit hours) ENG 799 Dissertation (12)

Additional Curriculum Information When approved by the student's supervisory committee and the Graduate College, this program allows 30 credit hours from a previously awarded master's degree to be used for this degree. Students who do not hold a master's degree are required to take additional elective and research credit hours to reach the 84 credit hours required for this program.

Admission Requirements

Applicants must fulfill the requirements of both the Graduate College and The College of Liberal Arts and Sciences.

Applicants are eligible to apply to the program if they have earned a bachelor's or master's degree from a regionally accredited institution. Applicants with bachelor's or master's degrees in fields such as anthropology, applied linguistics, cognitive science, communication, comparative languages and literatures, English literature, education, history, law, linguistics, modern languages, philosophy, political science, psychology, religion, rhetoric, composition, sociology, and speech and hearing science will be considered.

Applicants must have a minimum cumulative GPA of 3.00 (scale is 4.00 = "A") in the last 60 hours of their first bachelor's degree program, or a minimum cumulative GPA of 3.50 (scale is 4.00 = "A") in an applicable master's degree program.

All applicants must submit:

• graduate admission application and application fee
• official transcripts
• statement of purpose
• resume or curriculum vitae
• three letters of recommendation
• academic writing sample relevant to the field
• proof of English proficiency

Additional Application Information An applicant whose native language is not English and has not graduated from an institution of higher learning in the United States must provide proof of English proficiency regardless of their current residency. Applications will not be processed without valid proof of English proficiency; official scores must be sent to ASU in order for the application to be processed.

The well-considered, one- to two-page statement of purpose should explain the applicant's scholarly background and training, career goals, proposed research specialization, any secondary field of interest, and why the applicant wishes to pursue a PhD in English with a concentration in writing, rhetorics and literacies at Arizona State University. Applicants applying for funding must also submit a statement of teaching philosophy.

Courses and Electives

The Doctor of Philosophy is a total of 84 hours. In general, a student with an appropriate master's degree must complete a minimum of 54 credit hours of approved graduate work, which includes 12 hours of dissertation. Research hours may be used towards course work in consultation with the advisor. A student without an appropriate master's degree usually must complete 84 hours of work at ASU. At the advisor’s discretion, students may include up to 12 hours of appropriate, graduate-level course work undertaken at another university, and not previously counted towards any other degree.

Approaches to Research (3) : Students are required to take ENG 501 Approaches to Research during their first semester in the program.

Writing, Rhetorics, and Literacies Concentration Coursework (9) : Students are expected to complete the following courses within their first three semesters. If a student has taken a very similar course elsewhere (e.g., while pursuing an MA), the student may bring the syllabus for the completed course to the Writing, Rhetorics, and Literacies (WRL) Program Director (or the faculty member scheduled to teach the course) and request that it be waived.  If any of the concentration courses are waived because they were previously taken under the MA in English, the students must take additional elective or research methods coursework to reach the 84 credit hours.

•     ENG 551 Rhetorical Traditions
•     ENG 552 Composition Studies
•     ENG 556 Theories of Literacy

Focus Area (9) :  Students are encouraged to consult with their advisor or the WRL Program Director when selecting additional courses for their focus area as these courses provide the depth of training needed for dissertation research. Students should take at least two 600-level courses.  Students may choose to take most of their courses from one area of study (e.g., writing/composition studies, rhetorical studies, or literacy studies), from two areas of study, or from all three areas. All ENG 500 and ENG 600 level courses may be repeated for credit when topics vary. Thus, two classes with the same course number (e.g., two ENG 651s, two ENG 654s, or ENG 655s) may count toward this requirement when the topics vary.  To fulfill the focus area requirement, students may choose from the following:

•     ENG 525 Teaching Second Language Writing
•     ENG 553 Technologies of Writing
•     ENG 554 Rhetorics of Race, Class, and Gender
•     ENG 560 Genre Studies
•     ENG 625 Advanced Studies in Second Language Writing
•     ENG 651 Advanced Studies in History and Theories of Rhetoric
•     ENG 652 Advanced Composition Studies
•     ENG 654 Advanced Studies in Rhetoric, Writing, Technology & Culture
•     ENG 655 Disciplinary Discourses
•     ENG 656 Studies in Cross-Cultural Discourse

Research Methods (3) : Students are expected to take at least one additional course in research methods (beyond ENG 501) and are strongly encouraged to consider enrolling in an advanced research methods course offered by graduate faculty in the Writing, Rhetorics, and Literacies program. With the approval of their advisor, students may choose to take a research methods course outside of the area/unit to fulfill the advanced research methods requirement.  Students who take more than 6 credits of research methods may count any additional course in research methods as an elective.

Electives (15) :   Students may fulfill the Elective requirement by taking additional 500 or 600-level courses from Writing, Rhetorics, and Literacies faculty (e.g., courses listed under Specialization Concentration), by taking ENG 594 Conference and Workshop (the Teaching Practicum), or by taking courses from other programs in English or programs outside the area. With the approval of their advisor, students may choose to take additional research methods courses from faculty outside of the area or the department if needed to pursue their research agenda. Students have the option of taking ENG 792 Research, on an individual basis, for the purpose of working independently in preparation for the doctoral examination. This is an alternative to be selected by the student with the approval of the advisor and supervisory committee. Satisfactory completion of ENG 792 is indicated by the grade of "Y."

Writing for Publication/Scholarly Writing (3) : Students are encouraged to enroll in ENG 598 Topic: Writing for Publication/Scholarly Writing after they have completed both 15-18 credits of coursework at ASU and an acceptable draft paper.  In this course (to be capped at 15), students will read about, discuss, and practice strategies that will help them prepare manuscripts for publication. In a supportive environment and under the guidance of faculty, students will become more adept at identifying a potential venue for their work, using effective strategies for revision, and soliciting and give critical feedback. This course provides a structured opportunity to revise a paper for the portfolio and/or for submission to a journal or edited volume.

Other Requirements

PhD Examinations : Portfolio, oral or written exam, colloquy on the dissertation prospectus.

Dissertation : Students must include 12 (and only 12) credit hours of ENG 799 on the doctoral plan of study.

Language Requirement : PhD students must demonstrate evidence of a competent knowledge of a natural language other than modern English, to be selected by the student, subject to the approval of the chair of the dissertation committee. The language requirement must be completed before the student is eligible to take the doctoral exams. This requirement may be met by

• Earning a “B” (3.00) or higher in a 400- or 500-level course in an appropriate (approved) language.
• Demonstrating comparable proficiency by taking a language examination, administered by the School of International Letters and Cultures, in a language approved by the student’s supervisory committee.
• Demonstrating native-speaker proficiency, as determined by the School of International Letters and Cultures, in a language approved by the student’s supervisory committee.
• Earning a “B” (3.00) or higher in both ENG 530 Old English and ENG 531 Old English Literature or their equivalent.
• Holding a bachelor’s degree in an approved foreign language.
• Having fulfilled a foreign language requirement towards a previously awarded master’s degree that has been completed within five years of the semester for which the student has been admitted to the doctoral program. This foreign language must be in a language approved by the student’s doctoral supervisory committee.
• For languages which the School of International Letters and Cultures does not offer or does not offer above the 200 level, two years (4 semesters) of successfully completed college level coursework at least at the 100 and 200 level with a C or better would fulfill the requirement. The coursework must have been successfully completed no more than six years prior to admission to the degree program.

The Graduate College also requires that students be enrolled every semester, excluding summer sessions, until they have completed all requirements for the degree. Continuous enrollment may be satisfied by registration for one hour of ENG 799, or, in cases where dissertation or other credit hours are not needed, Continuous Registration (ENG 595 or 795). If students wish to interrupt their programs of study for one or more semesters, they may apply for a leave of absence, not to exceed one year. Failure to enroll or obtain leave status for the semesters in which they are not enrolled will result in dismissal from the program.

Doctoral Supervisory Committee

The doctoral supervisory committee consists of a minimum of three members from the graduate faculty selected at the time the student files a program of study. In consultation with the director of the doctoral program, the student will select the committee chair, who also serves as the student's advisor. Once a graduate faculty member has agreed to serve as the student's chair, the student and chair will then consult before recommending two other members to the director of the doctoral program. Ideally another member of the supervisory committee in addition to the chair should be in the area of specialization. It is the responsibility of each student to form a supervisory committee very early in the program so that the chair and members of the committee may be involved in shaping the course of study, for example, in determining such matters as the choice of foreign language(s) and in specifying courses that will be required for the student's particular area of concentration.

Important Notice to Current International Students

In order for international students to maintain good standing for their VISAs, they must take a minimum of 9 credit hours per semester (i.e., 3 classes), 6 credits (2 classes) should be face-to-face classes.

Next Steps to attend ASU

Learn about our programs, apply to a program, visit our campus, application deadlines, learning outcomes.

• Evaluate competing knowledge claims within rhetorical studies and draw relevant interdisciplinary connections between those claims and one's own research topics.
• Design and carry out an original research study that produces data, findings and applied strategies for publication in professional, scholarly venues.
• Evaluate and draw from relevant disciplinary histories, theories and methods to support rhetorical inquiry into their research topics.

Career Opportunities

Professionals with expertise in written communication, research and knowledge management are in high demand across sectors and industries, including business, media, law, entertainment, politics, nonprofits and community organizations. Skills in the measurement and analysis of data for the development of multimodal content (digital, print, oral, visual) are valuable to businesses, organizations and institutions relying on data-driven strategies to address and communicate complex, knowledge-rich issues to broad professional audiences.

Graduates are prepared for work as teachers, scholars and communications professionals. Career examples include:

• editor and content manager
• English or communications professor
• human resources specialist
• market research analyst
• public relations specialist
• publishing copyeditor or proofreader
• social media manager
• technical writer

Global Opportunities

Global experience.

With over 250 programs in more than 65 countries (ranging from one week to one year), study abroad is possible for all ASU students wishing to gain global skills and knowledge in preparation for a 21st-century career. Students earn ASU credit for completed courses, while staying on track for graduation, and may apply financial aid and scholarships toward program costs. https://mystudyabroad.asu.edu

Program Contact Information

If you have questions related to admission, please click here to request information and an admission specialist will reach out to you directly. For questions regarding faculty or courses, please use the contact information below.

• [email protected]
• 480/965-3194

Rhetoric and Writing (Ph.D.)

Campus:   Virginia Tech Blacksburg Campus,  Instructions: Residential/On Campus

Program Overview

Carolyn Commer, Director, Ph.D. Program in Rhetoric and Writing

The PhD Program in Rhetoric and Writing at Virginia Tech focuses on rhetoric in society. We study language use and rhetorical activity in public, academic, corporate, and governmental settings in a collective effort to engage pressing social and cultural issues through academic discourse, public policy, and community outreach. 

Why choose this program?

• Virginia Tech’s Rhetoric and Writing doctoral program has distinguished faculty whose research attends to social problems, disciplinary questions, and the information demands of a cyberconnected world. Areas of strength include medical rhetoric, data visualization, human rights, human-computer interaction, user experience, and cultural and feminist rhetorics. 
• Virginia Tech is a top-notch research institution and the College of Liberal Arts & Human Sciences where English is housed possesses a variety of opportunities available to students which enable students to excel. 
• Our small program enables students to get individualized attention with award-winning and research active faculty. 
• We engage in rhetoric and writing research that contributes to social progress, examines how literate practices create, circulate, and prioritize societal values and the public policies based on those values, and examines how rhetoric and writing empower and control access to power in these social systems. 

What You'll Study

Degree requirements will include 60 hours of graduate coursework past the bachelor's degree plus 30 hours of research and dissertation. Of those 60 hours of coursework, up to 30 may be transferred from an appropriate Master's degree. Because rhetoric and writing are inherently interdisciplinary subjects, this program invites students to complete some coursework in related fields such as Language and Literature, Communication, Science and Technology Studies, Political Science, Human-Computer Interaction, Women's and Gender Studies, Science and Technology in Society, ASPECT, and Engineering Education, as well as courses in preparing the future professoriate offered by the Virginia Tech Graduate School.

Admissions Requirement

• Minimum GPA 3.0 (4 Scale)
• GRE Optional
• TOEFL/ IELTS score Required  (If Applicable)

Learn more 

Tuition and Fee

Tuition & Fee Rates

Funding Opportunities

The Department of English has a limited number of  graduate assistantships and fellowships  available for students applying for full time study on the Blacksburg Campus. Entering students can apply for such funding as part of their admissions application.  No separate application  required.

Find out what loans are available as a graduate student and other opportunities.

How to Apply

Visit this page for information on how to apply, including requirements, deadlines, and application fee.

Course List

• Course List (Blacksburg)

Applications Deadlines

Priority deadline:  January 16 for consideration for funding Final deadline:  January 16

Visit Campus

Visit Campus / Attend an Open House

Contact Program Leader

Carolyn Commer , Director, Ph.D. in Rhetoric and Writing 416 Shanks Hall  181 Turner Street NW  Blacksburg, VA 24061 [email protected]

Contact Program Specialist

Marie Trimmer Graduate Programs Coodinator 310 Shanks Hall 540-231-4659  [email protected]

Current Students

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• Timetable of Classes

Rhetoric and Writing (Ph.D.) Faculty 

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Center for Rhetoric in Society

At the Center for Rhetoric in Society, we examine multiple rhetorics, bridging academic and public discourses to enact engagement and social change. Our mission is to investigate language use through rhetorical and narrative analysis to understand significant social problems. Graduate research assistants participate in all aspects of the Center, including grant writing, assisting faculty in research, organizing research symposia, and writing scholarly articles. 

Faculty Bookshelf

Related Programs

Creative Writing (M.F.A.)

English (M.A.)

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PhD in Rhetoric, Writing, & Professional Communication

Combine theory and the practice of effective communication with a phd in rhetoric, writing, and professional communication.

Are you a recent graduate looking for a career as a scholar and teacher specializing in persuasive writing and effective communication? Are you a working professional with experience teaching writing or communicating technically with a wide variety of audiences? If so, earning a PhD in rhetoric, writing, and professional communication from East Carolina University will help you master advanced skills and knowledge in professional communication, composition, and rhetoric to prepare for a rewarding career in academia.

Our PhD program in professional communication, rhetoric, and writing studies is ranked among the top composition and rhetoric PhD programs in the country, thanks to the expertise that our faculty bring into the classroom and the many successes of our graduates throughout the nation.

What is a PhD in rhetoric, writing, and professional Communication?

You might be wondering what professional communication, composition, and rhetoric studies entails. Simply put, when you study rhetoric, writing, and professional communication, you learn about the theories and tools to better understand messages, audiences, contexts, and organizations. You then apply this understanding to develop or improve the theories and practice of rhetoric, writing, and professional communication.

No GMAT or GRE required

100% job placement within 1 year

Committed to social justice and equity

Among the top rhetoric and writing PhD programs

Why earn a PhD in rhetoric, writing, and professional communication at ECU?

When you join the doctoral writing and rhetoric studies program at ECU, you become a vital member of one of the best PhD programs in writing studies in the country. You will also surround yourself with world-class faculty and engaged peers who will help you achieve more every day.

Professionalism

At the core of our professional communication, composition, and rhetoric PhD program is our commitment to professional development. That’s why you’ll enjoy three semester hours dedicated solely to professional development—including a structured jobs group to help you prepare for and navigate the academic job market.

Distinguished faculty

With the small classes and interactive courses in our professional communication, writing, and rhetoric studies program, you’ll have many opportunities to work closely alongside professors who are leading researchers and scholars in their respective fields. Their research interests speak to the interdisciplinarity of the program: From technical communication to social justice, our faculty mentors’ expertise help make us one of the best PhD programs in rhetoric studies in the nation.

Career preparation

By the time you graduate with your rhetoric, writing, and professional communication PhD, you’ll have a journal-ready article or bibliographic essay as well as a full dissertation that you can then turn into a publishable manuscript. You can also gain experience teaching through our valuable teaching assistantships. With at least one past publication and a dissertation written under the mentorship of our faculty, you’ll be among top competitors for faculty jobs in rhetoric and writing around the world.

Courses you will take in the PhD in rhetoric, writing, and professional communication program

We are among the best rhetoric writing, and professional communication PhD programs in the U.S. for many reasons, including our engaging and diverse courses.

When you join the rhetoric, writing, and professional communication PhD program at ECU, you’ll enjoy courses that engage a broad range of important topics, including critical race theory, social justice, and gender equity approaches to rhetoric and writing studies.

Some of the courses that help make us one of the top PhD programs for writing and rhetoric studies in the country include:

• ENGL 7780 – Theory of Professional Communication
• NGL 8600 – Seminar in Writing Studies and Pedagogy
• ENGL 8630 – Seminar in Community and Cultural Rhetorics
• ENGL 8615 – Seminar in Rhetorical Theory

Hear from our PhD in rhetoric, writing, and professional communication program students

“Teaching in this program has been the most enjoyable and fulfilling thing I’ve done since I’ve been at ECU or before. I’ve always wanted to teach, and this experience showed me I had a chance to do it on a level I had never really considered for myself.”

– Zac Singletary, PhD in Rhetoric, Writing, and Professional Communication, 2024

What can you do with your PhD in rhetoric, writing, and professional communication?

You may be wondering how earning a PhD in professional communication, composition, and rhetoric can help you find a rewarding career. At ECU, the expertise and experience you’ll gain in rhetoric and writing studies will make you an impressive candidate for tenure-track positions in colleges and universities around the nation.

You’ll have the opportunity to gain teaching experience that will prepare you to design and run your own classes even before graduation.

Master the skills to teach and inspire others

As one of the best PhD programs in professional communication, writing, and rhetoric studies in the nation, our graduates leave with the expertise to be exceptional scholars, teachers, and leaders.

The professional development you work on in classes will help you in job interviews, at conferences, and when you stand up in front of a class every day.

Where are PhD in rhetoric, writing, and professional communication graduates working?

Thanks to their teaching and research experience, our rhetoric studies graduates find tenure-track positions at many prestigious colleges and universities around the globe, including University of Maryland, Syracuse University, Missouri Science and Technology, University of Rhode Island, and Rochester Institute of Technology. In fact, about half of our rhetoric, writing and professional communication phd graduates are employed in tenure-track positions.

Get started on your rhetoric, writing, and communication PhD degree

Take the next step toward joining one of the most respected rhetoric and writing studies PhD programs in the nation. Still wondering how a PhD in professional communication, composition, and rhetoric can help you find a great career? We have the resources to answer all your questions and help you get started.

Degree programs related to our PhD in rhetoric, writing, and professional communication

If you’re considering joining our rhetoric, writing, and professional communication PhD program, you may also be interested in learning more about these similar programs.

• Ethnic Studies
• Gender Studies
• Multicultural and Transnational Literatures Graduate Certificate
• Professional Communication Graduate Certificate
• Teaching English in the Two-Year College Graduate Certificate

Accreditation for East Carolina University

When you join the rhetoric, writing, and professional communication PhD program at ECU, you’ll enjoy an educational experience that is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges (SACSCOC). This means that the degree you earn will be nationally recognized for meeting the high standards for excellence set by SACSCOC.

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Department of English Language and Literature

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PhD in Rhetoric and Writing

We have faculty members with a broad range of interests including language diversity, second language writing, writing program administration, K-12 composition, public rhetorics, community writing, multimodal composition, and technical communication. With a limited amount of core requirements, our students are able to select courses that best suit their research and teaching interests. In addition to gaining valuable face-to-face and online teaching experience at a diverse flagship Hispanic-serving institution in courses ranging from first-year writing to technical writing and professional communication, students have the opportunity to engage in program building efforts via a variety of administrative positions connected with first-year writing, online writing instruction, and technical writing and professional communication. Please contact Program Faculty if you have any questions.

About the Degree

The PhD concentration in Rhetoric and Composition requires 51 hours of coursework, comprehensive exams in three areas, a Foreign Language requirement, and a doctoral dissertation. Typically, PhD students have recently completed a Master’s degree in English with something in excess of 30 semester hours. The English department accepts up to 24 of those hours toward the PhD degree, leaving students 30 hours of regular course work to complete from the time of matriculation.  The PhD requires a minimum of four years of extended study to master a specific subject completely and to extend the body of knowledge about that subject. Applicants should already possess a Master’s degree in English or a related discipline. 

Note: Students who did graduate work in a discipline other than English likely will not transfer the full 24 hours to the PhD program. Such students will need to complete more than 30 hours of regular course work before moving on to the dissertation. The Associate Chair of Graduate Studies (ACGS) and the Committee on Studies (COS) determine the number of hours students are able to transfer to the PhD.

Required Coursework (51 hrs)

(for complete requirements, see the Graduate Handbook)

As explained above, PhD students must take 51 hours of course work before taking the Comprehensive Examinations and moving on to the dissertation. These hours must be distributed as follows:

Core Course (3 hrs)

• Engl. 542: Major Texts in Rhetoric (3 hrs)

Distribution Requirements (15 hrs) 

Students must take 15 hours of coursework in Language, Theory, and Pedagogy, as described below.

Language and Theory (9 hrs) 

Students must take a total of nine hours from Language and Theory courses, at least three of which are from Language and three from Theory courses.

Language (at least 3 hrs from the following)

• Engl. 541: English Grammar (3 hrs)
• Engl. 545: History of the English Language (3 hrs)
• Engl. 547: Old English (3 hrs)
• Engl. 548: Beowulf and Other Topics (3 hrs)
• Engl. 549: Middle English Language (3 hrs)

Theory (at least 3 hrs from the following)

• Engl. 510: Criticism and Theory (3 hrs)
• Engl. 511: Special Topics: Criticism and Theory; Literacy and Cultural Movements (3 hrs)
• Engl. 540: Topics in Language or Rhetoric (3 hrs)
• Engl. 543: Contemporary Texts in Rhetoric (3 hrs)
• Engl. 610: Studies in Criticism and Theory (3 hrs)

Pedagogy (6 hrs) 

Students must take six hours of pedagogy courses from the following or from approved substitutions in other departments. (All new Teaching Assistants, including those who have previous teaching experience or similar course work elsewhere, are required to take Engl. 530, which is offered every Fall semester, in the first semester they begin teaching at UNM.)  In addition to the courses here, we also offer practica in online writing instruction and stretch/studio writing instruction.

• Engl. 530: Teaching Composition (required of all new TAs) (3 hrs)
• Engl. 533: Teaching Professional & Technical Writing (3 hrs)
• Engl. 534: Composition Theory (3 hrs)
• Engl. 592: Teaching Literature (3 hrs)

Seminars (9 hrs) 

All PhD students must take at least three seminars offered in the English Department. RW students typically take three versions of ENGL 640, which are offered at least once a year and which vary in topic. Recent topics have included New Media Literacies for the 21st Century, Teaching Diverse Student Populations, and The Sociopolitical Contexts of Writing Instruction.

• Engl. 640: Studies in Language and Rhetoric (3 hrs)
• Engl. 650: Studies in British Literature (3 hrs)
• Engl. 660: Studies in American Literature (3 hrs)
• Engl. 680: Studies in Genre, Backgrounds, Forces (3 hrs)

Electives (24 hrs) 

The required courses above total 30 hours; students who have transferred 24 hours from the MA into the PhD will have fulfilled the minimum course requirements, excluding dissertation hours, required for the degree. Students who need more course credits, should fulfill their remaining hours with approved graduate courses in English or related disciplines under the advisement of the COS and the ACGS.

All 54 regular course requirements must be completed before enrolling for dissertation hours, Engl. 699.

Dissertation (no fewer than 18 hrs)

• Engl. 699: Dissertation (3-12 hrs, no limit).

Language Skill Requirement

With the approval of the ACGS and COS, PhD students may satisfy the language skill requirement in one of three ways.

By demonstrating competency in two language skills. “Competency” can be demonstrated with a grade of B or better through a second semester, second-year level undergraduate course or through a graduate-level reading course in a language other than English. Students may use English 547 (Introduction to Old English) and 548 (Advanced Old English) to fulfill competency.

By demonstrating fluency in one language skill. “Fluency” can be demonstrated in one of several ways with a grade of B or better: through the second-semester, third-year level undergraduate course in a language other than English; or through two graduate-level reading courses in a language other than English. Students may use English 547 (Introduction to Old English), 548 (Advanced Old English), and an Old English 650 or another 548 to fulfill fluency.

By combining competency in one language skill with a similar competency in a research skill such as a computer-programming language or Statistics. Competency in the research skill can be established by the completion of a second-semester, second-year course with a grade of B or better or two graduate courses.

Competency and Fluency can be demonstrated through coursework from previous institutions, coursework at UNM, or tests administered either by UNM or CLEP. The decision as to which research skills courses such as a computer-programming language and Statistics will satisfy the Department’s language requirements will be negotiated between the ACGS, COS, and appropriate faculty from other departments; other research tools may be approved in exceptional cases in which similar provisions must be made for rigorous academic study in the subject.

Note: Course credits for classes used to complete the language skill or research requirement cannot normally be counted toward the 51 credit hours of regular course work required for the degree..

Comprehensive Examinations

To ensure a thorough and broad knowledge of English as a discipline, the Department of English requires PhD students to take comprehensive examinations in three different fields. Under the advisement of the COS, PhD students should select their three fields of study early in the course of their doctoral program, so that they can take course work that enhances their understanding of their three fields. 

Dissertation Prospectus and Its Defense

After passing the Comprehensive Examinations, PhD students must organize a Dissertation Committee, write and submit a Dissertation Prospectus, and successfully defend the prospectus before the Dissertation Committee. The prospectus defense must be completed no later than six calendar months after passing the Comprehensive Examinations.

The PhD Dissertation

A dissertation is a formal, scholarly document, seldom less than 150 double-spaced pages and often much longer, which makes an original contribution to its field and shows a professional mastery of academic methods and materials. Few dissertations are written in less than a calendar year. PhD students who are also Teaching Assistants commonly find that the process takes two years. UNM requires that students must complete all degree requirements, including the dissertation and defense, within five years of advancing to candidacy (i.e. passing the Comprehensive Examinations). 

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Dietrich college of humanities and social sciences, ph.d. in rhetoric program, the ph.d. program in rhetoric is distinguished by its focus on rigorous method and the diversity of specialized methods/contexts (traditional-scholarly, empirical, discourse-based, classroom-based, legal, digital) in which rhetoric can be studied. students are encouraged to pursue their interests in rhetoric in conjunction with an accomplished and supportive faculty..

The Doctor of Philosophy in Rhetoric at Carnegie Mellon University is one of the oldest Ph.D. programs in Rhetoric in the United States and one of the most prestigious. Ph.D. candidates focus on how discourse broadly conceived functions across social, legal, political, cultural, gendered, embodied, and material contexts in schools, workplaces, local communities, and larger publics. Students study current theory, history, and field-leading pedagogical practices of rhetoric and discourse as core foundations that will serve them as they develop more specialized analytic methods, both qualitative and quantitative. The foundation and specialized study support dissertation work that frames and seeks to address fundamental and pressing questions in three broad and fluid areas of rhetoric, specifically (1) Civic, Political, and Public Engagement; (2) Corpus-based Writing Pedagogy Across the Disciplines; and (3) Digital Tools & New Media. Students prepare for academic careers in rhetoric and writing pedagogy, including writing program administration, careers as administrators in non-profits, or as qualitative and quantitative data analysts. Fundamental questions addressed in the PhD program including the following: 

• How does power circulate in communication? 
• How do historical and cultural assumptions about language conceived broadly influence the choices rhetors make in designing messages and the choices audiences make in interpreting them?
• What role does/can technology play in shaping these choices?
• How has the study of rhetoric and writing instruction functioned historically in the academy
• How can we develop new models for writing and communication instruction that prepare students to respond to contemporary rhetorical challenges in their own practice?
• What is the importance of rhetorical acumen in non-academic communities, both in the workplace and in civic society?
• What is the relationship of rhetoric to ethics and good citizenship and how do answers to this question vary across different frameworks?

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Rhetoric Science and the Public Sphere

Explore PhD in Rhetoric

Application requirements, funding and finances, careers and placement, rhetoric faculty, current students.

• Graduate Student Handbook
• Ph.D. Rhetoric Dissertations

Questions? Reach out to Jen Loughran , Assistant Director of Graduate Programs. 

Want To Visit? Schedule a visit to the Ph.D. Rhetoric program through  this form.

Join our Graduate Newsletter! The CMU English Graduate Newsletter features stories about our alumni, current graduate students, and award-winning faculty. Join through THIS FORM .

Find Ph.D. Projects & Graduate Teaching Awards

• Find select Ph.D. graduate Publications and Projects here.
• Find Graduate Teaching Award opportunities here.

Faculty Spotlight

James wynn associate professor, rhetoric program director.

James Wynn has been with the Department of English at CMU since 2006. His research and teaching explore the intersections of rhetoric, science, mathematics, and public policy. He teaches course on climate change, science and the public sphere, argument, and science writing. Starting in 2023 James will be exploring the theme of planetary hospitality with his colleague  Kathy Newman thanks to a grant from the Center for the Arts in Society (CAS) . This exploration is part of his larger scholarly project on the rhetorics of astrocolonialism.

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Rhetoric PhD

The Department of Rhetoric offers an interdisciplinary PhD program focusing on the study of rhetorical theory and the interaction of the historical concerns of rhetoric with contemporary critical theory across a broad spectrum of disciplines. Crucial to the department's approach is an investigation into the rhetorical constitution of the arguments of such fields as law, politics, literature, philosophy, performative practices, global studies, critical race studies, and science, technology, and media studies. The interests of faculty and graduate students thus range throughout these fields and are informed by a critical interest in the rhetoric of disciplines. During their first two years, graduate students explore major areas in the history and theory of rhetoric and pursue a variety of special topics in seminars. Beginning in their fourth semester, they concentrate in greater depth on preparation for their doctoral qualifying examinations and dissertation research.

Contact Info

[email protected]

7408 Dwinelle Hall #2670 University of California

Berkeley, CA 94720-2670

At a Glance

Department(s)

Admit Term(s)

Application Deadline

December 4, 2023

Degree Type(s)

Doctoral / PhD

Degree Awarded

GRE Requirements

Graduate Studies

Graduate concentrations in Rhetoric and Digital Literacies and Literatures are offered through the Department of English. Admissions requirements can be found here . For the 2020-2021 cycle, applicants to both the rhetoric and DLL concentrations will be considered for admittance to the rhetoric concentration.

The Ph.D. concentration in Rhetoric in the English Department at the University of Texas at Austin is prestigious for good reason: we have an excellent placement rate; our alumni have become leaders of the discipline; our faculty are engaged, collegial, and productive; and we offer students a broad range of teaching and administrative opportunities.

The faculty, one of the most productive in the nation, has particular strength in the history of rhetoric, rhetorical theory, research methodology, composition, pedagogy, and digital technologies.

Seminars in rhetoric and writing focus on strands such as  the history of rhetoric, rhetorical theory, research methodology, composition, pedagogy, and digital technologies, as illustrated in the list of previous course offerings . Students regularly supplement their coursework in English, with related courses in departments such as anthropology, classics, computer science, education, linguistics, philosophy, and speech communication.

In any given year, about 15 graduate students are pursuing degrees in the specialization. As illustrated by the profiles of previous students , students in Rhetoric and Writing write dissertations that

use a variety of methods (discourse analysis, field research, quantitative analysis, and textual analysis)

examine civic, pedagogical, professional, and political topics

investigate these topics from the perspectives of history, theory, and practice.

Students gain experience in planning and administering writing programs by teaching writing courses for the Department of Rhetoric and Writing (DRW) and as serving as consultants in the University Writing Center  (UWC). Students with an interest in digital rhetorics teach in state-of-the-art networked-computer classrooms belonging to the Digital Writing and Research Lab (DWRL). Students may also apply to serve as assistant directors (ADs) of each of these units.

The Rhetoric concentration is closely associated with the concentration in Digital Literacies and Literatures (DLL). Students in both concentrations may focus their teaching and research in the DWRL, which has a long history of innovative research and development. The graduate students staffing the DWRL are introduced to lively conversations trending in the digital humanities and get hands-on training in a wide array of digital resources, including A/V equipment, multimedia software appropriate to the rhetoric classroom, content management systems, online pedagogical resources, and other digital tools.

The Rhetoric and Writing concentration has an excellent placement history. Our alumni are among the leaders of the discipline, deeply involved in scholarship, innovative teaching, and national policies on writing instruction.

• Boyle, Casey
• Charney, Davida
• Davis, Diane
• Diab, Rasha
• Ferreira-Buckley, Linda
• Graham, Scott
• Hill, Annie
• Longaker, Mark
• Roberts-Miller, Trish
• Sackey, Donnie
• Spinuzzi, Clay
• Woods, Marjorie Curry

To view the faculty profiles, please visit the Rhetoric faculty listing . 

Over the past few decades, digital technologies have reconfigured the possibilities for making, exploring, changing, and sharing the world. To be functionally literate in this age of constant updates and always on media, one must be able to do more than read the morning paper and write a letter to a state representative; one must be able to manage and synthesize multiple streams of multimodal information as well as find, produce, analyze, evaluate, and share information in various digital formats. While these demands require most citizens to keep up a continuous literacy practice, those perusing academic professions are compelled to double their efforts to productively contribute in an ever-changing media landscape.

In the Digital Literacies and Literatures concentration, students develop, research, and teach these twenty-first century literacies in practical, pedagogical, historical, and theoretical contexts, continually assessing the impact of the technologies they're using on the construction of their objects of study and the field of inquiry itself. Recent courses offered in this concentration have covered topics such as spatial rhetorics & locative media, networked writing, digital humanities, accessible rhetorics, extrahuman rhetorical relations, text ecologies, and performative rhetorics.

Recent and current dissertation projects in the DLL concentration focus on fan fiction and networked writing; networked hospitality; writing ecologies of food rhetorics; subjectivity and trigger warnings; irony and online education; online humor; networked subjectivity; parasitic digital communication; online shaming culture; and media archeology and forgetting.

In addition to fostering rich research environment, the DLL program affords students several opportunities to teach in state-of-the-art networked-computer classrooms and help staff the Digital Writing and Research Lab (DWRL). In the DWRL, students join lively conversations trending in the digital humanities and get hands-on training with a wide array of digital resources, including A/V equipment, multimedia software, content management systems, online pedagogical resources, and other digital tools for 21st academic research and pedagogy.

The placement record for DLL graduates is high. Recent graduates have gained Tenure-Track positions, for example, at Penn State, Texas Tech, Wayne State, Rutgers-Camden, UT-Rio Grand, St. Bonaventure, James Madison, West Virginia, Christopher Newport, Ohio University, UT-Tyler, Clemson University, and Middle Tennessee State University.

• Hinrichs, Lars

To view the faculty profiles, please visit the Digital Literarcies and Literatures faculty listing . Graduate students and faculty who are preparing for a field exam, please visit the Digital Literacies and Literatures Field Exam reading . 

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Graduate Program Overview

The PhD program in Rhetoric trains students in the skills of the academic profession and provides a framework to develop the expertise necessary to produce a doctoral dissertation that meets the highest standards of research excellence. Our diverse faculty investigate and teach a wide range of topics and discourses, with various theoretical approaches and research methodologies. We have particular strengths in the following areas of concentration: Ancient Thought and Rhetoric; Continental Philosophy and Critical Theory; Legal, Social and Political Thought; Gender and Sexuality; Literature, Text and Narrative; Colonial, Post-Colonial and Global Studies; Image, Performance and Sound; Science, Technology and Media Studies. The Rhetoric PhD program is best suited for students who wish to approach a specific area of academic inquiry, research objects or archive while working critically within and between academic disciplines in order to pose questions that transcend disciplinary divisions.

Areas of Study

Ancient thought and rhetoric.

  Faculty: Ramona Naddaff, James Porter, Mario Telò, Anthony Long (affiliated)

Colonial, Post-colonial, and Global Studies

The Rhetoric Department supports research on colonialism, postcoloniality, empire, nationalism, transnationalism, cosmopolitanism and globalization from the early modern period to the present. Our faculty work on topics such as colonial encounters and scientific practice, colonial law and post-colonial legalities and politics, freedom, decolonization, revolution, the question of the human, transnational human rights, global art and world literature from the disciplinary perspectives of history, literary studies, visual studies, law, and politics. Their research focuses on non-western traditions including the Islamic world, the Ottoman empire, Sinophone East Asia, Southeast Asia and Africa. Faculty: Pheng Cheah, Samera Esmeir, Fumi Okiji,  Winnie Wong, Sharad Chari (affiliated), Cori Hayden (affiliated)

Continental Philosophy and Critical Theory

The Rhetoric Department has strengths in contemporary French and German thought and the history of modern European continental philosophy and is especially interested in the pertinence of these intellectual traditions to fundamental problems of the contemporary world. The faculty work in fields such as aesthetics, psychoanalysis, ethics, phenomenology and philosophy and literature. Major figures of special interest include Kant, Hegel, Marx, Heidegger, Arendt, Foucault, Derrida and Deleuze.    Faculty: Anthony Cascardi, Pheng Cheah, Marianne Constable, Samera Esmeir, Ramona Naddaff, Fumi Okiji, James Porter, Nasser Zakariya, Wendy Brown (affiliated), Judith Butler (affiliated), Hans Sluga (affiliated)

Gender and Sexuality

Our faculty work in diverse areas of study that include gender theory, transnational feminisms (French, Third World, US-of Color), feminist (de)aesthetics, feminist cultural politics, representations of race, gender and sexuality, and the history of sexuality (ancient and modern). Faculty: Shannon Jackson, Pheng Cheah, Fumi Okiji, Mario Telò, Mel Y. Chen (affiliated).

Image, Performance and Sound

Several faculty members concentrate on the theoretical and cultural dimensions of images with a particular emphasis on the rhetoric of contemporary arts, media and digital technology. The fields we offer in this area include visual culture, film theory and criticism, film aesthetics, spectatorship, photography, and representations of race, gender and media. Faculty: Shannon Jackson, Michael Mascuch, Fumi Okiji, Winnie Wong, Mary Anne Doane (affiliated), Anton Kaes (affiliated), Damon Young (affiliated).

Legal, Social and Political Thought

The Rhetoric Department supports research and teaching in interdisciplinary approaches to the law and in social and political thought from classical antiquity to contemporary times. Faculty integrate theories and methods from the humanities and the social sciences to approach such issues as justice, language, violence, revolution, personhood, evidence, technology, post-coloniality, nationalism, cosmopolitanism and human rights, in various legal traditions and their histories. They work in canonical political and social theory as well as critiquing it. Faculty: David Bates, Pheng Cheah, Marianne Constable, Samera Esmeir, Wendy Brown (affiliated), Stefan-Ludwig Hoffman (affiliated)

Literature, Text and Narrative

With faculty working in literary and other discursive traditions that span the ancient, early modern, modern, and contemporary world, Rhetoric supports research that emphasizes textuality, interdisciplinary theoretical approaches, poetics, narratological, and historical and cultural studies. In particular, we support work in fields such as literature and philosophy, law and literature, post-colonial literatures, autobiography, and social and political dimensions of literature. Faculty: Anthony Cascardi, Pheng Cheah, Marianne Constable, Michael Mascuch, Ramona Naddaff, Fumi Okiji, James Porter, Nasser Zakariya, Judith Butler (affiliated), Donna Jones (affiliated), Colleen Lye (affiliated).

Science, Technology and Media Studies 

Several of our faculty members have research interests in different aspects of science and technology studies and media theory and practice. Their work and that of their students intersects with fields of study in history and philosophy of science and technology, anthropology of science, law and science, and new media, from the ancient world to the digital age. Faculty: David Bates, Marianne Constable, Michael Mascuch, Winnie Wong, Nasser Zakariya, Cori Hayden (affiliated). 

Program Timeline

An outline of the minimal requirements for completing the doctoral program in Rhetoric with a typical timeline follows.

A more detailed version can be found  here

• Rhetoric 200, 205, and 2 other seminars, at least one of which is a Rhetoric seminar
• Rhetoric 375 (Pedagogy) by the first semester of the first GSI appointment
• Rhetoric 220 (Proseminar, 2 units) is offered every other year for first- and second-year students; check with the GSAO to confirm which year it will be scheduled.  
• Year 1 Review (early in the 1st semester)
• Minimum of 4 seminars. By the end of Year 2, at least 3 elective seminars must be taken in Rhetoric
• Note: Rhetoric 220 will no longer be required starting in Fall 2024. 
• Rhetoric 375 (Pedagogy) by the first semester of the first GSI appointment (if not already taken in Year 1)
• Rhetoric 221 (Research Seminar, 2 units)
• Fulfillment of the foreign language requirement (ideally by the end of the 1st semester)
• Successfully pass the Qualifying Examinations (by the end of the 2nd semester) for advancement to candidacy

Years four—six

• Year four: File an approved dissertation prospectus (by the end of the 1st semester) 
• Years five and six:  Dissertation underway; annual Dissertation Candidacy Reviews; Prospectus and Dissertation Workshop (recommended)

Meet Faculty

Meet Students

Qualifying exams.

Dissertations

Graduate student instructors (gsis).

Each PhD student must serve as a teaching assistant or instructor for at least one year and complete the introductory pedagogy seminar (Rhetoric 375) prior to or during the semester of their first graduate teaching appointment. Students who meet the timetable requirements will be eligible  although not guaranteed appointment  as Graduate Student Instructors for four years.

For Graduate Division rules and regulations regarding GSIs, visit this page .

Guidelines and Best Practices for Students and Examiners 

The aim of the linked document (available  here ) is to set out some guidelines to help ensure that the expectations of students and examiners are mutually aligned with what the Rhetoric Department considers to be best practices for various milestones in the graduate program and with the requirements of the Graduate Division. The sections address: the assignment of GSIships; the foreign language examination; the QE exams (written and oral); the dissertation prospectus; and the doctoral dissertation. This document should be read alongside our  Program Guidelines and Timeline , to which it serves as an informal supplement and FAQ. If you need clarification or have suggestions, please contact the Head Graduate Adviser (HGA) or the Graduate Student Affairs Officer (GSAO).

Grants and Fellowships

The Ph.D. program in Rhetoric trains students in the skills of the academic profession and provides a framework to develop the expertise necessary to produce a doctoral dissertation that meets the highest standards of research excellence.

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Berkeley Berkeley Academic Guide: Academic Guide 2023-24

About the Program

The Department of Rhetoric offers an interdisciplinary PhD program focusing on the study of rhetorical theory and the interaction of the historical concerns of rhetoric with contemporary critical theory across a broad spectrum of disciplines. Crucial to the department's approach is an investigation into the rhetorical constitution of the arguments of such fields as law, politics, literature, philosophy, performative practices, global studies, critical race studies, and science, technology, and media studies. The interests of faculty and graduate students thus range throughout these fields and are informed by a critical interest in the rhetoric of disciplines. During their first two years, graduate students explore major areas in the history and theory of rhetoric and pursue a variety of special topics in seminars. Beginning in their fourth semester, they concentrate in greater depth on preparation for their doctoral qualifying examinations and dissertation research.

Visit Department Website

Admission to the University

Applying for graduate admission.

Thank you for considering UC Berkeley for graduate study! UC Berkeley offers more than 120 graduate programs representing the breadth and depth of interdisciplinary scholarship. A complete list of graduate academic departments, degrees offered, and application deadlines can be found on the Graduate Division website .

Prospective students must submit an online application to be considered for admission, in addition to any supplemental materials specific to the program for which they are applying. The online application can be found on the Graduate Division website .

Admission Requirements

The minimum graduate admission requirements are:

A bachelor’s degree or recognized equivalent from an accredited institution;

A satisfactory scholastic average, usually a minimum grade-point average (GPA) of 3.0 (B) on a 4.0 scale; and

Enough undergraduate training to do graduate work in your chosen field.

For a list of requirements to complete your graduate application, please see the Graduate Division’s Admissions Requirements page . It is also important to check with the program or department of interest, as they may have additional requirements specific to their program of study and degree. Department contact information can be found here .

Where to apply?

Visit the Berkeley Graduate Division application page .

Doctoral Degree Requirements

Rhetor 200 classical rhetorical theory and practice 4 units.

Terms offered: Fall 2024, Fall 2023, Fall 2022 An introduction to the questions around which classical rhetorical theory and practice are organized. Through analysis of materials drawn principally from the Ancient Greek and Roman periods, possibly including later revivals of classical rhetoric, the course will examine the formation of rhetoric in the West as an intellectual stance from which to practice a range of related fields, including but not limited to philosophy, history, literature , politics, religion, law, science, and the arts. Classical Rhetorical Theory and Practice: Read More [+]

Rules & Requirements

Prerequisites: Graduate status

Hours & Format

Fall and/or spring: 15 weeks - 3 hours of seminar per week

Additional Format: Three hours of Seminar per week for 15 weeks.

Additional Details

Subject/Course Level: Rhetoric/Graduate

Grading: Letter grade.

Classical Rhetorical Theory and Practice: Read Less [-]

RHETOR 205 Contemporary Rhetorical Theory and Practice 4 Units

Terms offered: Spring 2024, Spring 2023, Fall 2020 An introduction to the questions around which contemporary rhetorical theory and practice are organized. Through an analysis of materials drawn principally from the 18th century to the present, the course will examine rhetorical inquiry in relation to critique as well as the disciplinary construction of knowledge-domains. The course will attend to rhetoric in relation to a range of fields, including but not limited to philosophy, history, literature , politics, religion, law, science, and the arts. Contemporary Rhetorical Theory and Practice: Read More [+]

Contemporary Rhetorical Theory and Practice: Read Less [-]

RHETOR 220 Rhetoric Graduate Proseminar 2 Units

Terms offered: Spring 2024, Spring 2019 What do we do when we do rhetoric? Seminar addresses methods, themes, and issues in the changing field of investigation known as rhetoric. Required for second year doctoral students in Rhetoric. Rhetoric Graduate Proseminar: Read More [+]

Fall and/or spring: 15 weeks - 2 hours of seminar per week

Additional Format: Two hours of seminar per week.

Instructor: Constable

Rhetoric Graduate Proseminar: Read Less [-]

RHETOR 221 Rhetoric Graduate Research Seminar 2 Units

Terms offered: Fall 2024, Fall 2023, Fall 2022 What are the possible forms of long-form (dissertation) research in the rhetoric department? Required for third-year doctoral students in Rhetoric. Rhetoric Graduate Research Seminar: Read More [+]

Objectives & Outcomes

Course Objectives: To enable the formation of coherent dissertation projects.

Student Learning Outcomes: To have a draft of a prospectus at the end of the semester.

Credit Restrictions: Students will receive no credit for RHETOR 221 after completing RHETOR 221 . A deficient grade in RHETOR 221 may be removed by taking RHETOR 221 .

Instructor: Boyarin

Rhetoric Graduate Research Seminar: Read Less [-]

RHETOR C221 Aesthetics as Critique 4 Units

Terms offered: Fall 2023, Fall 2020, Fall 2018, Spring 2015, Spring 2013, Spring 2011 A close reading and discussion of the major texts of modern aesthetics, from the 18th century to the present, with emphasis on the Continental tradition of Kant, Adorno, and Derrida. Aesthetics as Critique: Read More [+]

Fall and/or spring: 15 weeks - 3 hours of lecture per week

Additional Format: Three hours of lecture per week.

Also listed as: COM LIT C221

Aesthetics as Critique: Read Less [-]

RHETOR 230 Rhetoric and History 4 Units

Terms offered: Fall 2022, Fall 2020, Fall 2018 This course investigates both the concept of history and the practice of historiography, using an engagement with the literal and metaphoric archives of the past to consider their empirical and philosophical claims on the present. While the methods, themes, and historical reach may vary, the course requires Rhetoric graduate students to investigate pre-1900 material in some form and to consider both the pragmatics of conducting historical inquiry and the interpretive frameworks that structure them. Rhetoric and History: Read More [+]

Repeat rules: Course may be repeated for credit when topic changes.

Rhetoric and History: Read Less [-]

RHETOR 240D Rhetorical Theory and Criticism: Nonfictional Prose 4 Units

Terms offered: Spring 2010, Spring 1999, Fall 1997 Advanced investigation of the rhetorical dimensions of various modes of discourse. Specific topics to be announced. Rhetorical Theory and Criticism: Nonfictional Prose: Read More [+]

Additional Format: Three hours of seminar per week.

Rhetorical Theory and Criticism: Nonfictional Prose: Read Less [-]

RHETOR 240E Rhetorical Theory and Criticism: Political Discourse 4 Units

Terms offered: Spring 2011, Fall 2007, Spring 2006 Advanced investigation of the rhetorical dimensions of various modes of discourse. Specific topics to be announced. Rhetorical Theory and Criticism: Political Discourse: Read More [+]

Rhetorical Theory and Criticism: Political Discourse: Read Less [-]

RHETOR 240F Rhetorical Theory and Criticism: Legal Rhetoric and Philosophy 4 Units

Terms offered: Fall 2022, Spring 2018, Spring 2017 Advanced investigation of the rhetorical dimensions of various modes of discourse. Specific topics to be announced. Rhetorical Theory and Criticism: Legal Rhetoric and Philosophy: Read More [+]

Rhetorical Theory and Criticism: Legal Rhetoric and Philosophy: Read Less [-]

RHETOR 240G Rhetorical Theory and Criticism: Rhetorical Theory 4 Units

Terms offered: Fall 2024, Spring 2024, Fall 2023 Advanced investigation of the rhetorical dimensions of various modes of discourse. Specific topics to be announced. Rhetorical Theory and Criticism: Rhetorical Theory: Read More [+]

Rhetorical Theory and Criticism: Rhetorical Theory: Read Less [-]

RHETOR 243 Special Topics in Film 4 Units

Terms offered: Fall 2014, Fall 2013, Fall 2012 A theoretical examination of a film topic which falls outside the purview of traditional categories of film analysis, such as "genre," "history," or "theory." Examples: Rainer Werner Fassbinder, The Essay Film, Feminist Film Practice, Cinema and the Phantasmagoria of History. Special Topics in Film: Read More [+]

Prerequisites: Graduate standing

Additional Format: Three hours of seminar per week plus two film viewings.

Special Topics in Film: Read Less [-]

RHETOR 244 Special Topics in Rhetoric: Limited study 2 Units

Terms offered: Spring 2008 This course studies various modes of rhetorical discourse. Specific topics to be announced. Special Topics in Rhetoric: Limited study: Read More [+]

Repeat rules: Course may be repeated for credit without restriction.

Fall and/or spring: 6 weeks - 4 hours of seminar per week

Additional Format: Four hours of Seminar per week for 6 weeks.

Special Topics in Rhetoric: Limited study: Read Less [-]

RHETOR 250 Rhetoric of the Image 4 Units

Terms offered: Fall 2023, Spring 2023, Spring 2021 A study of the visual image as a mode of discourse, together with an analysis of the terms in which images have been interpreted and criticized. Focus may be on the rhetoric of a particular image or set of images, or on more broadly theoretical writings about image. Rhetoric of the Image: Read More [+]

Prerequisites: Graduate standing and consent of instructor

Rhetoric of the Image: Read Less [-]

RHETOR 295 Special Study 1 - 6 Units

Terms offered: Fall 2021, Summer 2018 3 Week Session, Summer 2017 3 Week Session Open to qualified graduate students wishing to pursue special topics under the direction of a member of the staff. Special Study: Read More [+]

Prerequisites: Graduate adviser approval

Fall and/or spring: 15 weeks - 6-34 hours of independent study per week

Summer: 8 weeks - 6-34 hours of independent study per week

Additional Format: Forty-five hours of work per unit per term. Individual tutorial.

Special Study: Read Less [-]

RHETOR 299 Directed Research 1 - 12 Units

Terms offered: Fall 2022, Spring 2016, Fall 2015 Open to graduate students who have passed their Ph.D. qualifying examinations. Directed Research: Read More [+]

Fall and/or spring: 15 weeks - 0 hours of independent study per week

Summer: 6 weeks - 1-12 hours of independent study per week 8 weeks - 1-12 hours of independent study per week

Additional Format: Individual tutorial.

Directed Research: Read Less [-]

RHETOR 302 The Art of Tutoring Writing 1 - 2 Units

Terms offered: Spring 2020, Fall 2019 This is a required course for all undergraduates participating in the Art of Writing Departmental Tutoring program at UC Berkeley. This program supports students taking R&C in Comparative Literature, English, Film & Media, and Rhetoric. Upper-level majors with proven writing skills participate in discipline-specific composition and pedagogy workshops and in turn, provide one-on-one writing help to students taking R&C courses in participating departments. Tutoring is targeted and disciplinary-specific, responding to the parameters of R&C instruction and the challenges faced by R&C student writers in each department. The Art of Tutoring Writing: Read More [+]

Repeat rules: Course may be repeated for credit with instructor consent.

Fall and/or spring: 15 weeks - 0.5-1 hours of seminar and 2.5-5 hours of workshop per week

Additional Format: One-half to one hours of seminar and two and one-half to five hours of workshop per week.

Subject/Course Level: Rhetoric/Professional course for teachers or prospective teachers

Grading: Offered for pass/not pass grade only.

The Art of Tutoring Writing: Read Less [-]

RHETOR 375 Teaching Rhetoric 2 Units

Terms offered: Fall 2019, Fall 2017, Fall 2015 Instruction in teaching argumentative writing and rhetorical analysis. Teaching Rhetoric: Read More [+]

Prerequisites: Appointment as teaching assistant

Grading: Offered for satisfactory/unsatisfactory grade only.

Formerly known as: Rhetoric 300

Teaching Rhetoric: Read Less [-]

RHETOR 601 Individual Study for Master's Students 1 - 6 Units

Terms offered: Spring 2016, Fall 2015, Spring 2015 Individual study for degree or language examinations in consultation with staff member. Individual Study for Master's Students: Read More [+]

Additional Format: Individual arrangement.

Subject/Course Level: Rhetoric/Graduate examination preparation

Individual Study for Master's Students: Read Less [-]

RHETOR 602 Individual Study for Doctoral Students 1 - 6 Units

Terms offered: Fall 2022, Fall 2018, Spring 2016 Individual study in consultation with faculty director as preparation for degree examinations. Individual Study for Doctoral Students: Read More [+]

Summer: 6 weeks - 1-6 hours of independent study per week 8 weeks - 1-6 hours of independent study per week

Individual Study for Doctoral Students: Read Less [-]

Contact Information

Department of rhetoric.

7408 Dwinelle Hall

Phone: 510-642-1415

Fax: 510-642-8881

Department Chair

James Porter

[email protected]

Rhetoric Graduate Advising Office

Graduate Advisor

7407 Dwinelle Hall

[email protected]

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Doctor of Philosophy English

The Doctor of Philosophy in English program trains students to be successful scholars and teachers of literature and of writing and rhetoric. The program begins with an immersion in coursework, designed to introduce the discipline at a broad level and to lay the ground for avenues of individual research. The Comprehensive Exam solidifies the student’s grounding in three fields of study linked to that which the student intends to specialize. The dissertation, completed under the close supervision of both the dissertation director and the dissertation committee, is an original research project that stands as the student’s entry into the field of professional scholarship.

Graduates of Ph.D. in English program are able to:

• Employ primary and secondary materials to analyze critical debates and positionality within subfields of English.
• Demonstrate expertise in theories; methods; and social, cultural, and political histories of three subfields of English studies pertinent to the student’s plan of research and teaching.
• Formulate and defend original and critically significant arguments, communicating them effectively in genres relevant to English studies (e.g., research papers, conference presentations, digital projects).
• Design and conduct sustained, sophisticated, independent research to make a critical contribution to subfields within English studies by engaging in analytical thinking, investigating relationships between language and power, or critiquing inherited social structures and hierarchies within and beyond the field(s).
• Develop a foundational knowledge of current pedagogical and curricular frameworks for teaching college-level courses and apply these frameworks in their own classrooms or other teaching contexts.

In addition to the formal curriculum, the department offers a range of opportunities to introduce students to new scholarship in English, including the Barrs lecture series. We hold frequent workshops on various aspects of graduate study and professionalization, and students are involved in a plethora of hands-on research opportunities, including the  NULab for Texts, Maps, and Networks , the  Early Caribbean Digital Archive , and  The Women Writers Project . Many students are also involved with  826 Boston , where they have gained experience in teaching and community engagement.

Prospective students can consult our FAQs or contact the department’s Graduate Office for more information about applying to the Doctor of Philosophy in English program.

English, PhD

Charles lesh, sarah connell, type of program.

• PhD Program

Get more information about this graduate program.

More programs, ba in english, combined majors, departmental minors, graduate certificate in digital humanities, graduate certificate in women’s, gender, and sexuality studies.

The PhD program in English prepares students for a range of scholarly careers in English through a combination of literary studies with writing and rhetoric. In literary studies, we emphasize American literature, Transatlantic and Caribbean literature, Early Modern literature, and the study of gender and sexuality.

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In writing and rhetoric, we emphasize teaching and assessing writing, community engagement, diversity and identity, and empirical research methodologies. We also have exceptional offerings in the digital humanities, including digital archiving, network analysis, digital editing and encoding, geospatial analysis, and text mining.

Students in the PhD program in English undertake a program of study designed to train them to be productive scholars, teachers, and leaders in their chosen fields. In coursework, students read and analyze the important texts, current issues, and critical methodologies of the discipline. Drawing on the breadth of this preparation, students demonstrate their ability to recognize and produce scholarly arguments in designing the three comprehensive field papers in areas of scholarly interest and competence corresponding to recognized and emerging fields of study. Finally, the dissertation provides an opportunity for designing a focused research project in consultation with a dissertation advisor.

Throughout the program, faculty work closely with doctoral students to develop their scholarly and professional identities in preparation for careers in academia. As students complete their studies, the department offers strong support for the academic job search, including workshops on stages from dissertation writing to the job market itself, individual advising, mock interviews, and a departmental dossier service.

Learn more about this PhD program in English from the College of Social Sciences and Humanities .

• All doctoral students receive full five- or six-year teaching fellowship funding
• Opportunities for involvement in research and teaching in centers including the NULab for Texts, Maps, and Networks; the Writing Center; the Digital Scholarship Group; and the Humanities Center as well as with individual faculty
• The department focuses particularly on the fields of American Literature; Transatlantic and Caribbean Studies; Digital Humanities; and Writing and Rhetoric

We have a high rate of placement for students conducting both local and national job searches. Our graduates have obtained tenure-track positions at four-year colleges and universities across the country and abroad, including: Columbia College (Chicago); the Florida Institute of Technology; Frankiln Pierce University; McKendree University; Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts; Middle Tennessee State University; the National Technical University, Norway; Oberlin College; Park University (Missouri); Providence College; Sterling College; Rhode Island College; Wesleyan College (Georgia); and the University of Puerto Rico. Other full-time placements include positions in departments of English and in writing programs at the American University of Dubai; the Massachusetts Institute of Technology; the University of Southern California; and Wheelock College (Boston). Tenure-track placements at two-year colleges include Bristol CC, Queensborough CC, and Quincy College.

Application Materials

Application.

• Application fee – US $100
• Personal statement
• Unofficial transcripts from all institutions attended
• English proficiency for international applicants
• Three letters of recommendation
• Scores from the Graduate Record Examination (GRE) – Optional
• Writing sample

Admissions deadline for Fall term: December 1

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Request Information for PhD in English

MA & PhD

The rhetoric and scientific & technical communication graduate degree programs are now in their third decade of preparing scholars for work as strong contributors to their disciplinary communities.

The MA and PhD programs offer students the opportunity to learn from world-class faculty while living in a community with a long history of innovation in the sciences, the arts, and digital media.

Master's in Rhetoric and Scientific & Technical Communication

The Master of Arts (MA) will prepare you for doctoral-level research through courses and seminars in research methods, rhetoric, writing studies, pedagogy, and technical communication, technology, and culture. Those are complemented with other courses in a specialty area as well as a supporting field of courses outside the department so that you complete your degree with a broad base of knowledge. The MA is a two year program.

Requirements for the MA

PhD in Rhetoric and Scientific & Technical Communication

The Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) is a research degree that will prepare you for faculty positions in our core areas of rhetoric, writing studies, pedagogy, technical communication, technology, and culture. Our core coursework leads to seminars and courses in your concentration and is complemented with a supporting program of courses offered by other departments at the University of Minnesota related to your specialty area. The PhD is a five year program.

Requirements for the PhD

Orange Alert

Ph.d. in composition and cultural rhetoric doctoral program (ccr).

The Composition and Cultural Rhetoric Doctoral Program emphasizes research on the dynamic interaction of rhetoric and writing in a variety of cultural and historical contexts. As the first independent writing program in the country to offer a doctorate in Rhetoric and Composition studies, and with doctoral education as our sole focus, the CCR program offers a unique environment with a highly favorable faculty to student ratio.

Our research and teaching centers entirely around writing and rhetoric, with faculty and students whose interests span a broad range of contemporary and historical specializations, including:

• American Ethnic Rhetorics
• Authorship Studies
• Composition Studies and Pedagogies
• Digital Rhetorics, Pedagogies, and Technical Communication
• New Literacies
• Rhetoric: Histories, Theories, and Pedagogies
• Studies of Gender and Sexuality
• Transnational Rhetorics and Globalization

Our nationally known undergraduate teaching program provides a space for research and innovation. Faculty affiliates in other disciplines also participate in the program and regularly offer courses that CCR students take.

From its inception, the Composition and Cultural Rhetoric Doctoral Program has been committed to studying and supporting the rich diversity of writing and speaking that is a key feature of an increasingly globalized world. Our program is committed to recruiting and supporting a culturally and ethnically diverse group of students and faculty.

We invite you to learn more about our history and philosophy, our people, and our program. In this section, you will find information about admissions, degree requirements, current faculty and students, and recent graduates' placements.

Community is a multi-layered concept in the CCR program.

We are a community of scholars, with faculty and students working closely together across a range of research interests. Each year in August we come together for Community Day, a time to check the pulse of the discipline, welcome our new students and set the pace for the academic year. Throughout the year, Colloquia and other meetings keep us connected.

As part of Syracuse University, we are members of an academic community where Chancellor Nancy Cantor's Scholarship In Action initiative calls for the active community engagement and closer relations between the university and the surrounding community, both in the city of Syracuse and abroad. Within CCR, our faculty lead several community oriented projects.

As CCR scholars, we are also part of the larger discipline of Composition and Rhetoric. Our students and faculty regularly appear on panels at major disciplinary conferences, including the Conference on College Composition and Communication, Rhetoric Society of America, Writing Program Administrators, Kenneth Burke Society and the National Communication Association.

We are citizens of the world, with research interests that recognize the larger communities of humanity and the role of language in human interaction. From global Englishes to the life stories of migrant workers, from technology to agriculture, from community writing groups to a community press, our students and faculty work with concerns across disciplinary and cultural lines to build bridges of access, understanding and strength.

Rhetoric and Writing (PhD)

NEWS:  PhD Program Admissions Pause Until December 2024 for applicants to begin work in Fall 2025

The Rhetoric and Writing doctoral program aims to prepare the next generation of leaders in the discipline of Rhetoric and Writing across all areas of a higher-education career: research, teaching, outreach, and national and institutional service. Our discipline requires outstanding leaders across the higher education mission and in many types of institutions. This mission guides our recruitment, our curriculum, our support packages, and our mentoring philosophy. We ask a lot of both students and faculty, but our commitments also make the program an exciting place to be.

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The Purdue On-Campus Writing Lab and Purdue Online Writing Lab assist clients in their development as writers—no matter what their skill level—with on-campus consultations, online participation, and community engagement. The Purdue Writing Lab serves the Purdue, West Lafayette, campus and coordinates with local literacy initiatives. The Purdue OWL offers global support through online reference materials and services.

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College of humanities, main navigation, symposium: student guiding pathways.

“In this symposium, seven community college transfer students present their perspectives on Guided Pathways curricular reforms. Drawing on published scholarship and policy documents as well as their own lived experiences, they identify positive aspects of the Guided Pathways model as well as shortcomings in its conceptualization and local implementation.”

Read the full piece here

Authors: Professor Christie Toth, Emily Brown, Priscilla Hansen, Laura Burnham, Adriana Zarate, Aloyious Soranno, Trey Sanders, Kathryn Henderson.

Congratulations again to all on this tremendous achievement!

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Donor honors former English professor with new UD award for writing excellence

By Dave Larsen

A new award for excellence in writing at the University of Dayton was created by a former student to honor a beloved English professor who taught him the value of literature and the humanities. However, neither the student nor the professor was affiliated with UD.

Bart Ng, dean and professor emeritus at Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis, wanted to make a gift in honor of John D. Groppe — professor emeritus of English at St. Joseph’s College in Indiana, where Ng received his bachelor’s degree in 1968 — and his spouse, Rose Marie Groppe.

“The day I left St. Joe’s, I felt I must do it because it was such a life-changing experience for someone like me,” said Ng, a first-generation college student who was born in China shortly after World War II. “I am lucky that I am in a position now to actually deliver, but unfortunately my alma mater no longer exists.”

St. Joseph’s College closed in 2017 after 128 years.

Ng and the Groppes considered a number of institutions to house the John D. and Rose Marie Groppe Award for Excellence in Writing, including those where the Groppes’ children attended school or now teach, as well as Benedictine University, where Ng served as dean of science for five years after he retired from IUPUI in 2011.

A Catholic college or university wasn’t a “must,” but it was an important consideration, Ng said. Their focus was on an institution with a strong writing program that offers a course in rhetoric as a foundation for preparing students for public reasoning and leadership positions.

Ng said they chose the University of Dayton because of its “robust writing program,” exemplified by the UD Department of English’s Line by Line: A Journal of Beginning Student Writing . The honorees’ daughter, Elizabeth Groppe, is a professor of theology in the UD Department of Religious Studies.

They worked with Andy Slade, professor and former UD Department of English chair, and Margaret M. Strain, professor and director of the writing program, to bring the Groppe Award to Dayton.

“I feel very comfortable it will be in a good place,” Ng said. “It will be a welcoming place for ideas, as well as responsible stewardship for the endowment.”

The first Groppe Awards were presented in March at a luncheon ceremony in UD’s Kennedy Union attended by Ng and John Groppe, along with many of Groppe’s children, a grandson and several of his former students.

The recipients were Daniel C. Napoli, a junior English and adolescent to young adult education major from Highland Heights, Ohio, and Eleanor Yates-McEwan, a junior philosophy major from Centerville, Ohio. In addition, the UD Department of English’s Barbara Farrelly Award was presented to Alexandria Ford, a sophomore English major from Kettering, Ohio.

In his remarks, John Groppe noted the differences among rhetoric, which involves argument and persuasion; essays, which are more personal and reflective; and academic papers, which focus on procedure and evidence. He said the three winning papers were “excellent examples of the academic genre.”

“I hope to see, and I think Rose Marie concurs, that the awards in the future represent the full spectrum of human experience — argument, reflective essays and very careful procedural analyses of all aspects of experience,” Groppe said.

John McCombe, professor and interim UD Department of English chair, extended his thanks to Ng and the Groppe family. “Professor Groppe has inspired Dr. Ng and so many other students in their commitment to language, writing and studies in the humanities,” he said.

St. Joseph’s alumnus Ray Leliaert, a retired reporter, city editor and business editor for the South Bend Tribune , recalled taking several writing courses with Groppe. During his senior year, he sent writing samples from those courses to the Tribune .

“As a result of that, the day after our graduation I was in the South Bend Tribune newsroom writing stories,” Leliaert said. “That would not have happened without John’s influence.”

Ng, a mathematician who holds a doctoral degree from the University of Chicago, said he had no interest in the humanities when he arrived at St. Joseph’s College and couldn’t be bothered with “any ideas or principles that can’t be boiled down to some equation.”

Ng said Groppe took him under his wing and changed his mind about writing.

“He made me appreciate the humanities — that people outside of science can actually think about things in as rigorous a way as a scientist would do,” Ng said. “Perhaps they even have a much harder time because in science you have many guideposts and can easily discern what is valid or not valid, but in the humanities, you are facing a much bigger challenge. In any case, writing is the foundation of it all.”

For more information, visit the UD Department of English and Line by Line: A Journal of Beginning Student Writing websites.

Photos, top: John Groppe (left) and Bart Ng. Middle: UD Department of English’s Barbara Farrelly Award winner Alexandria Ford (right) and Professor Margaret Strain. Bottom: John Groppe speaks at the ceremony.

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The WRTC Major

The Writing, Rhetoric and Technical Communication major teaches students the skills they need to excel as professional communicators in a fast-changing world.

Courses focus on a variety of topics such as technical communication, scientific and medical writing, popular writing, digital and social media, inclusive design, publication management, and more.

WRTC majors often pursue careers in publishing houses, communication and consulting firms, government agencies and contractors, learning and development companies, non-profits, and tech companies. 

WRTC's B.A. and B.S. programs also prepare graduates for further academic studies at the master’s level and for professional programs such as law school.

Fall 2024 Course Offerings

Declare your WRTC major

Incoming freshmen and transfer students can declare a WRTC major during orientation. All other students can declare a WRTC major through MyMadison:

• Log into   MyMadison Student Center
• Select   Major/Minor Change   from the "Other Academic..." dropdown menu
• Select   Add Major/Minor
• Search for   WRTC  (make sure that Academic Plan Type is "major")
• Submit Request

Applicants will be notified of program admission following a review of their request. Program admission is required to enroll in WRTC major core courses.

The 2023-2024 JMU Undergraduate Catalog WRTC entry  is a gateway to a robust B.A./B.S. major with a set of foundational core courses; the opportunity to focus on tracks in Professional Writing and Publishing, Inclusive Design, Writing for Law and Society, Writing for Science and Health, and Writing the Self**; and crowning internship and capstone courses.

• Writing, Rhetoric and Technical Communication, BA information
• Writing, Rhetoric and Technical Communication, BS information
• Contact Cynthia Martin, WRTC's Director of Undergraduate Studies, with any questions and for more information:  [email protected] .

Professional Writing and Publishing track

Writing persuasively in traditional, visual, and digital environments for a targeted audience and purpose is a skill that transcends industry borders. Whether you want to pursue a career in business, publishing, the nonprofit sector, or freelance environments, this suite of courses will provide the skills necessary to succeed. Students gain advanced practice in editing, digital storytelling, proposal writing, and writing with sound. At the same time, they gain hands-on experience in project management, publication cycles, and writing consultancy, which prepares them for a variety of internships and jobs.

Inclusive Design track

Digital technologies offer writers opportunities to design for audiences who may have difficulties accessing or reading print-based material. Courses in this track will provide you with a grounding in disability studies, inclusive design, and usability testing, all of which will empower you to design for diverse readers and viewers. Theory is paired with industry-focused courses in content strategy and web design. This track is for students invested in inclusive approaches to communication and the technical aspects of web design.

Writing for Law and Society track

Language frames our understanding of society, forges the laws that govern it, and constructs power relationships within it. Courses in this track provide you with opportunities to explore the interactions between language, the law, and societal and cultural processes. Courses encourage students to consider the ethical dimensions of leadership and citizenry while introducing genres common to legal professions, government jobs, and nonprofit roles. This track will be of particular interest to students who plan to attend law school or pursue careers in public service.

Writing for Science and Health track:

Scientific and technological innovations abound in our society, yet we often fail to understand the significance and implication of such developments. This group of courses will provide you with a foundation in science and health writing, which will enable you to write to a mainstream audience about these and related topics (environmental change, public health crises,  mental health). This track will appeal to those interested in communicating the complexities of our world.

Design Your Career track:

This track  p rovides students with the freedom to forge their own path in the major by selecting courses that fit their interests without being confined to a single pathway. This track is best for students who want to take a variety of classes to prepare for their dream career, whatever that may be.

For more information

If you are thinking about majoring in Writing, Rhetoric and Technical Communication, welcome!

If you have already declared your WRTC major, congratulations!

• Contact your WRTC major adviser, listed on the right side of your MyMadison Student Center homepage, for help in planning your WRTC schedule, understanding your WRTC concentration or track pathways, looking forward to your WRTC internship, and thinking about your career plans. Even if you don't have any questions, it's a good idea to check in with your WRTC adviser every semester.

2022 - 2023 Catalog and Earlier

In the 2023-2024 academic year, WRTC adopted a revised set of requirements for incoming and newly declared majors. Students who declared their WRTC major before 2023-2024 need not worry: JMU and WRTC will honor the catalog of record you entered under and the major and concentration requirements.  Links below are for the 2022 - 2023 catalog.

• Writing and Rhetoric concentration, BA information
• Writing and Rhetoric concentration, BS information
• Technical and Scientific Communication concentration, BA information
• Technical and Scientific Communication concentration, BS information

WRTC Advising Checklist: W & R Concentration

WRTC Advising Checklist: TSC Concentration

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The minor in writing, rhetoric and technical communication complements all majors and is designed for students who wish to extend, enrich, and formalize their training as writers and communicators. WRTC minors can focus their coursework on personal and civic writing, social media and content strategy, user experience (UX), online theory and inclusive design, publication management, editing, technical writing, scientific and medical communication, legal and government writing, and more.

The 18-credit minor in Writing, Rhetoric and Technical Communication is open to all JMU undergraduate students. 

WRTC minors work through a set of four core courses offered every semester and choose two courses from a longlist of electives that offer opportunities for students to deepen their communications skills in applied contexts related to their majors and other areas of interest.

Minor Requirements

• WRTC 200. Introduction to Studies in Writing, Rhetoric and Technical Communication Credits: 3.00
• WRTC 316. Research Methodologies in WRTC Credits: 3.00
• WRTC 300. Professional Editing Credits: 3.00
• WRTC 301. Language, Law and Ethics Credits: 3.00
• Choose any two WRTC electives Credits:   6.00

Total: 18 Credit Hours

Congratulations Spring 2024 Graduate & Undergraduate Award Winners!

Critical Literary Analysis Writing Award Awarded to an undergraduate or a graduate student for a single piece of critical exposition originally written for an English course at Iowa State University Malcolm Wei  

Cross-Disciplinary Linguistics Scholarship Awarded annually to one student majoring in linguistics for exceptional academic performance Nora Carlson Laura Dupuis

EnglQueer Outreach Award An annual award for raising awareness in the Iowa State community about lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgendered, and transsexual issues Kaylynn Dresch Madison Mayfield

Graduate Student Leadership Award Rosalie Hirch

Outstanding Service by a Graduate Student Award Summer Awad Faith Ennis Kelli Fitzpatrick

Research Excellence Award Awarded to graduate students who have demonstrated excellence in a scholarly or creative thesis or dissertation Abdulrahman Alharthi Summer Awad Jessica Brock Leah Miller

  Teaching Excellence Award Awarded to graduate students who have demonstrated excellence in teaching Summer Awad Wren Bouwman Sebnem Kurt

Speech Communication Ray Dearin Award for Academic Excellence In recognition of a speech communication major who exhibits the strongest academic record within the major Nina Mitchell

Herta David Scholarship in English Awarded to Iowa State undergraduates majoring in English Owen Dargis Madison Omtvedt Krislynn Paisley Lio Sinko

Paul L. & Carolyn Errington Award In recognition of academic excellence, clarity, and effectiveness in expository writing related to environmental literary criticism Leah Miller

Pearl Hogrefe Grants in Creative Writing Awarded to graduate students who show extraordinary promise in creative writing Summer Awad Kelli Fitzpatrick Claire Jussel Zack Bukovich Leah Miller Zoe Stonestreet

Pearl Hogrefe First-Year Student Scholarship in Creative Writing In recognition of a first-year student whose work exemplifies promise or talent in one of the genres of creative writing Nathan Rehder Ava Rehm

Pearl Hogrefe Sophomore Scholarship in Creative Writing In recognition of an original and imaginative use of language and future promise in creative writing Hope Austin Tiaira Cordero Lopez Justin Naig Malcom Wei

Pearl Hogrefe Junior Scholarship in Creative Writing In recognition of outstanding originality, an unusual perspective, and a unique voice in creative writing Sarah Currier Timothy Didier Lainee Edwards Taylor Wickman

Pearl Hogrefe Senior Scholarship in Creative Writing In recognition of outstanding originality, an unusual perspective, and a unique voice in creative writing Alexandra Harwood Macie Murrane Tullaia Powell Cooper Pullis

Freda Huncke Endowment Award Awarded to undergraduate students majoring in English who demonstrate academic excellence and expository writing ability Lillian Atchison Bobbie Buie Krislynn Paisley Lio Sinko

Quentin G. Johnson Award Awarded to an undergraduate senior or a graduate student who has a strong academic record and shows promise in the study of linguistics Ainsley Kennedy

W. Paul Jones Scholarship In recognition of scholarly excellence in rhetoric and professional communication Shaya Kraut

Will C. Jumper Scholarship Awarded to Iowa State undergraduate students who demonstrate excellence in poetry writing Emma Allen Claire Haas Ainsley Kennedy

Pamela Henry Lassahn Scholarship in Technical Communication Awarded to an undergraduate student majoring in technical communication with a minor or designated area of concentration  in a technical or scientific field ATessa K. KHill Meghan Wilmes

James and Rachel Lowrie Family Awards In recognition of a junior or senior whose oral and written performance in English courses demonstrates outstanding growth, perception, and capability in the study of literature Atlas Cahill Karli Guthridge Elizabeth Marie (Liz) Jones Marielle Macdonald Riley Miller Meghan Wilmes

Kurt Moody Creative Writing Award Given in honor of Kurt Moody to Iowa State undergraduate students who demonstrate excellence in creative writing Gemma Borer Alexandra Harwood Nancy Herschberger

Richard R. Wright Award In recognition of academic excellence and demonstrated ability in expository writing Mariana Castro Azpiroz