Whether you’ll be joining us remotely or trekking onto campus this fall, welcome to Washington University!
Some of you will take College Writing in your first semester, but as a University-wide, first-year requirement we’ll meet all of you in your first year at WashU. In College Writing, students are challenged to write more critically and creatively, and to become new and more thoughtful writers even as they develop existing strengths.
Because each College Writing class has only 12 students, whether your section meets remotely or in-person, you'll have many opportunities to interact with classmates and get to know your instructor well. Our curriculum prioritizes workshops, conferences, small-group work, and discussion, so we hope you'll find the connection we all need right now as you complete projects on subjects you're passionate about.
The assignment sequence, grading policies, and curricular goals are identical for all College Writing courses; sections differ only in thematic content. Each theme emphasizes interdisciplinary inquiry. You’ll self-select a research project, read dynamic material from across fields, and you might just discover an interest you didn’t know you had. We encourage you to explore the theme websites to learn more.
Our hope is to make real for students the idea that there are real audiences for their work, that their writing participates in and contributes to a broader intellectual community, and that their writing can matter. To do this, our program showcases first-year writing through various recognition and publication opportunities.
We’ll be participating in the Department Open House on September 9, 2020 by hosting a virtual drop-in session from 1:00-2:00p on Zoom. And if you have any questions now or during the academic year, please don’t hesitate to reach out to us at collegewriting@wustl.edu.
Stay safe, be well, and, again, welcome to Washington University!
