At a glance, here is some brief information about each of the tracks offered through the Professional Writing Minor. Please see each track page for more about what each track entails, along with information about the recommended prerequisite courses, capstone courses, internships, and examples of student work.
Business Communication (Writing 157A-B):
Development of written, visual, oral, and collaborative skills for the workplace (business, government, non-profit, or other organizations), with a focus on design, development, and re-purposing of hardcopy and new media documents. A final portfolio will include examples of a variety of professional genres--such as letters, e-mails, status reports, proposals, press releases, feasibility reports, policies and procedures, brochures--presented in both print and digital form.
Civic Engagement (Writing 153A-B):
Focuses on the study of and practice with writing related to governance, citizenship, and civil society. Students study and practice communication that aims to influence public understanding of civic issues, such as op-ed pieces, policy briefs, and political campaigns and functions within a civic organization to meet its mission, such as grants, educational brochures, and marketing documents.
Multimedia Communication (Writing 155 A-B):
Evaluation, design, and production of effective multimedia content for professional audiences. Advanced computer skills are not required, but a willingness to learn new software is essential. The final portfolio will include individual and collaborative multimedia projects as well as traditional documents such as memos, proposals, progress reports, and a résumé.
Journalism (Writing 152A-B)
Students learn and apply key concepts, approaches, and techniques found in the dynamic and quickly changing field of journalism. Students identify stories, gather original material, verify facts, and present information clearly and effectively in a variety of media for print and screen. Journalism training equips students to produce text and multimedia for a mass audience—skills with professional applications to virtually every business, non-profit, and government agency that maintains a website, not only traditional journalism outlets. Students completing the Minor will create a professional website showcasing their best work.
Professional Editing (Writing 151 A-B):
Conceptual and technical editing of a wide range of documents for diverse audiences, with attention to genre, tone, and style. Students will learn the responsibilities of the professional editor, including interaction with authors, revision strategies, and the grammatical and mechanical requirements of The Chicago Manual of Style. The final portfolio will include the resume, edited assignments from the course, notes to the author, and edited documents from the internship.
Science Communication (Writing 159A-B)
Clear and engaging science communication is vital to helping the public understand science. Students will learn strategies such as storytelling and design that will help their audience to engage with science-related topics such as health and climate change. All majors are welcome. Both traditional (e.g., news or feature articles) and digital (e.g., video; social media) forms of science communication will be showcased in a final portfolio.