Twin Cities campus

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Twin Cities Campus

Rhetoric, Scientific and Technical Communication M.A.

Writing Studies Department
College of Liberal Arts
Link to a list of faculty for this program.
Contact Information
Department of Writing Studies, 215 Nolte Center, 315 Pillsbury Drive, SE, Minneapolis, MN 55455 (612-624-3445; fax: 612-624-3617)
Email: WRIT@umn.edu
Website: http://cla.umn.edu/writing-studies
  • Program Type: Master's
  • Requirements for this program are current for Fall 2017
  • Length of program in credits: 33
  • This program does not require summer semesters for timely completion.
  • Degree: Master of Arts
Along with the program-specific requirements listed below, please read the General Information section of this website for requirements that apply to all major fields.
The MA in rhetoric and scientific and technical communication prepares students to address complex issues in language, science, and technology. This program prepares students 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 so that you develop expertise in a specialty area as well as a related field of courses outside the department. In addition, you will write a research paper on a limited topic and present it at an oral examination. Required courses include classical and modern rhetoric, research methods, and courses in writing studies and pedagogy, technical communication, and technology and culture. Students take at least 6 credits outside the department as a masters minor or supporting field. They also write a plan "B" paper in the context of a directed research course. All MA applicants must meet the admission requirements of the University. MA applicants should have a strong interest in language and rhetorical theory or communication theory. A background in a science, Internet studies, environmental studies, or pedagogy and technology is helpful.
Program Delivery
  • via classroom (the majority of instruction is face-to-face)
Prerequisites for Admission
Undergraduate degree in a related discipline.
Special Application Requirements:
Scores from the General Test of the GRE that are less than five years old are required of students with baccalaureate degrees from U.S. institutions. International students are encouraged to take the General Test of the GRE. Nonnative speakers of English are required to take an appropriate test with satisfactory scores. All applicants must submit three letters of recommendation, two writing samples, and a professional objective statement. All M.A. and Ph.D. applicants begin in the fall semester and should apply by the January 1 application deadline.
International applicants must submit score(s) from one of the following tests:
  • TOEFL
    • Internet Based - Total Score: 79
    • Internet Based - Writing Score: 21
    • Internet Based - Reading Score: 19
    • Paper Based - Total Score: 550
  • IELTS
    • Total Score: 6.5
  • MELAB
    • Final score: 80
Key to test abbreviations (TOEFL, IELTS, MELAB).
For an online application or for more information about graduate education admissions, see the General Information section of this website.
Program Requirements
Plan B: Plan B requires 27 major credits and 6 credits outside the major. The final exam is oral.
This program may be completed with a minor.
Use of 4xxx courses toward program requirements is permitted under certain conditions with adviser approval.
Research Core
WRIT 8011 - Research Methods in Writing Studies and Technical Communication (3.0 cr)
WRIT 8012 - Applied Research Methods in Writing Studies and Technical Communication (3.0 cr)
Rhetoric Core
WRIT 5775 - Rhetorical Traditions: Classical Period (3.0 cr)
WRIT 5776 - The Rhetorical Traditions: Modern Era (3.0 cr)
Writing Studies and Pedagogy
WRIT 8540 - Seminar in Technical Communication and Composition Pedagogies (3.0 cr)
or WRIT 8560 - Seminar in Writing Studies (3.0 cr)
or WRIT 5531 - Introduction to Writing Theory and Pedagogies (3.0 cr)
Technical Communication and Composition Pedagogies
WRIT 8520 - Seminar in Scientific and Technical Communication (3.0 cr)
or WRIT 8550 - Seminar in Technology, Culture, and Communication (3.0 cr)
Plan B Project Credits
Take 3 or more credit(s) from the following:
· WRIT 8794 - Directed Research (1.0-4.0 cr)
Specialty Area/Concentration
Students are required to take 6 credits for this area, of which 3 credits must be taken in the Department of Writing Studies. The student's area of concentration will be developed chiefly through seminars in writing studies, and through consultation with the advisor.
Outside Coursework
Take at least 6 credits outside the Department of Writing Studies. Students often pursue a formal minor related to their research interests, chosen in conjunction with their advisor.
 
More program views..
View college catalog(s):
· College of Liberal Arts

View future requirement(s):
· Spring 2023
· Fall 2022
· Fall 2020
· Fall 2019
· Fall 2018

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WRIT 8011 - Research Methods in Writing Studies and Technical Communication
Credits: 3.0 [max 3.0]
Grading Basis: A-F or Aud
Typically offered: Spring Odd Year
The primary objectives of this course are to provide students in the rhetoric and scientific & technical communication (RSTC) MA and PhD programs with an understanding of research literature and approaches in the field and help students gain insights into the arguments made by researchers. This course trains students in strategies for designing and developing their own research, and provides a groundwork in the field's most common approaches to gathering and analyzing data. Students also learn about the research of the RSTC graduate faculty and PhD alumni and complete a University-based course for ethics in human participants research. Upon completion of the course, students should be able to create a persuasive research proposal and justify the means of data collection, analysis, theory, and positioning of the project.
WRIT 8012 - Applied Research Methods in Writing Studies and Technical Communication
Credits: 3.0 [max 6.0]
Grading Basis: A-F or Aud
Typically offered: Every Fall & Spring
Introduction to one or two quantitative or qualitative research methods in scientific/technical communication or rhetoric (e.g., ethnography, case studies, discourse analysis). prereq: [grad student] or instr consent
WRIT 5775 - Rhetorical Traditions: Classical Period
Credits: 3.0 [max 3.0]
Grading Basis: A-F or Aud
Typically offered: Fall Odd Year
This course provides an intensive survey of rhetoric as understood and practiced in ancient Greece and Rome, and serves as an introduction to graduate-level study of historical rhetoric more generally. The course attends to the development of the discipline of rhetoric in the Classical world and to the recurring themes that constitute "the rhetorical tradition." Class discussions and assignments assess the epistemological foundations, ethical status, and socio-political importance of ancient rhetorical training and discourse. Primary readings (in English) include works by sophists and orators of the Greek Classical period, Isocrates, Plato, Aristotle, Cicero, Quintilian, and others. Secondary readings and class discussion will consider political, cultural, and philosophical contexts for ancient rhetorical theory, oratorial practice, and the teaching of speech and writing. This course will prepare graduate students for preliminary exams, research, and pedagogical encounters in rhetoric.
WRIT 5776 - The Rhetorical Traditions: Modern Era
Credits: 3.0 [max 3.0]
Course Equivalencies: Comm 5611/Writ 5776
Grading Basis: A-F or Aud
Typically offered: Fall Even Year
This course is designed to acquaint graduate students with different traditions of rhetorical theory. It surveys a range of rhetorical tools/methods, and sets out to assist students to find a clear purpose for using rhetorical theory and to develop a structured approach to their objects of criticism. It prioritizes Black, Indigenous, transnational, and anti-racist approaches to rhetoric, and situates those as foundational to the traditions of such theoretical traditions as semiotics, deconstruction, genealogy, affect theory, assemblage theory, and psychoanalysis. It is intended to prepare students for comprehensive exams, conference presentations, and pedagogical encounters with rhetoric.
WRIT 8540 - Seminar in Technical Communication and Composition Pedagogies
Credits: 3.0 [max 12.0]
Grading Basis: A-F or Aud
Typically offered: Periodic Fall & Spring
Topics may include theories of pedagogy or research studies that inform the classroom or workplace, social and ethical concerns, landmark studies, current controversies. Topics vary. See the Class Schedule.
WRIT 8560 - Seminar in Writing Studies
Credits: 3.0 [max 12.0]
Grading Basis: A-F or Aud
Typically offered: Periodic Fall & Spring
Topics may include literacy, genre, history of writing, narrative theory and practice, writing as textual practice. Topics vary. See the Class Schedule.
WRIT 5531 - Introduction to Writing Theory and Pedagogies
Credits: 3.0 [max 3.0]
Grading Basis: A-F or Aud
Typically offered: Every Fall
This course explores the nexus of theory and practice in terms of writing instruction and of technical writing and communication to help students identify their pedagogical positions and concrete practices. Designed as a collaborative, exploratory space for a community of teacher-scholars, it approaches the teaching of writing as a process that is both practiced and studied, is aided by reflection with others, and requires ongoing revision. Course texts address the scholarship of Composition, Rhetoric, and Technical Writing. Students put these texts in dialog, including with the ?texts? of their classrooms, to examine and reflect on their teaching practices. The course centers acts of engagement and reflection and emphasizes pedagogical inquiry. Students learn to: place a range of theories on writing instruction in conversation with their teaching; reflect on classroom practices and pedagogical theories; articulate individual philosophies of teaching; explore pedagogical issues of personal interest; foster pedagogical ?habits of mind? that serve students in classrooms at the UMN and beyond; and contribute to an active, supportive, and collaborative teaching community. prereq: Grad student
WRIT 8520 - Seminar in Scientific and Technical Communication
Credits: 3.0 [max 12.0]
Grading Basis: A-F or Aud
Typically offered: Periodic Fall & Spring
Topics may include theories, landmark studies, history, gender, ethics. Topics vary. See the Class Schedule.
WRIT 8550 - Seminar in Technology, Culture, and Communication
Credits: 3.0 [max 12.0]
Grading Basis: A-F or Aud
Typically offered: Periodic Fall & Spring
Topics may include computer-mediated communication, democracy/technology, controversies over digital communication, privacy/ethical issues, feminist theory and interactions of gender with science and technology, communication in legal or medical settings. Topics vary. See the Class Schedule.
WRIT 8794 - Directed Research
Credits: 1.0 -4.0 [max 12.0]
Grading Basis: S-N only
Typically offered: Every Fall, Spring & Summer
Supervised research project. prereq: instr consent