Students learn language of writing in varied fields

	Vanessa Nino, center, works on a group project with classmates, from left to right, Andy Ng, Jeffrey D'Andria and TanQue Nguyen. (Karin Higgins/UC Davis)

Whether your student plans to be a biologist, lawyer or engineer, having the skills to write and communicate well will help him or her be successful. Through the University Writing Program, UC Davis offers numerous courses that assist students in particular disciplines to learn the discourses of those fields.

"We know potential employers value the ability to write in a professional context," said Christopher Thaiss, director of the writing program and the Clark Kerr Presidential Chair. "Our students need to be able writers when entering the job market."

For more than 20 years, the University Writing Program operated under the English department, but it was recently established as an independent program. Part of the impetus to make that transition is the university's movement toward having students write across the disciplines.

Recognized as 'stellar' program

Apparently those efforts are paying off. The U.S. News & World Report college guide for 2008 cited UC Davis as one of 15 schools with a "stellar" writing program across disciplines. The University Writing Program teaches writing to undergraduate and graduate students across campus, with 2,400 enrollments in 320 course sections this fall.

It also provides consultations and workshops for faculty and teaching assistants who want to integrate writing into courses in the disciplines and to coach and comment on students' writing more effectively.

"We're getting ourselves on the map," said Gary Sue Goodman, the program's assistant director for writing across the disciplines. "Other people in writing programs across the country are looking to us as an example."

Vanessa Nino, a fourth-year engineering student from Stockton, said she was skeptical when she signed up for a course on business reports and technical writing, but she soon realized the fundamental values of the class. The course provided her with more tools for writing or communicating, and she now finds herself leading group projects.

"The perception is that engineers need a lot of math, not the writing," Nino said. "But writing and communicating well are key to setting yourself apart later when applying for a job or graduate school."

Students gain experience

The University Writing Program offers upper and lower division courses to help students learn the genres and conventions of writing in the disciplines, including biological sciences, international relations, history and engineering.

It also offers courses for writing in the professions, including business reports and technical communication, law, journalism, education, science and health. Depending on the course, assignments might include writing a lesson plan for teaching, a business proposal, an analysis of case law or a newspaper editorial.

All undergraduates must fulfill at least a two-course college writing requirement.

	“We want students to feel comfortable and confident as writers, no matter their field of study,” said Christopher Thaiss, director of the University Writing Program. (Karin Higgins/UC Davis)

Students vary in the amount of preparation they bring to college in the area of communication, Thaiss said. So the courses are not only designed for the proficient writer, but for all levels. The main goals of the program are for students to get more practice and experience as writers within the academic context and to gain rhetorical versatility for addressing varied audiences in graduate and professional school and outside academia.

"We want students to feel comfortable and confident as writers, no matter their field of study," Thaiss said. "These courses give them tools and resources to make writing less daunting."

Minor planned

Thaiss said the program is planning to offer a writing minor in the near future for students to develop a second expertise that would appear as a credential on their diploma. The minor would involve additional coursework and an internship.

Students do have the opportunity to test out of taking the required writing courses, but that would be a huge mistake, said Dmitriy Kolesnikov, a senior from San Francisco. He is majoring in biological sciences with a molecular and cellular emphasis, and he recently enrolled in Writing in Biological Sciences.

"Most of my other upper division courses don't require students to exercise their writing ability," Kolesnikov said. "This class does, and we write on fairly diverse topics."

One of the class assignments involves reading through technical research journals like Science and Nature. The students must be able to read and synthesize the information not only for fellow science majors, but also for a general audience.

"I wanted to learn to write well, and this has really sharpened my skills," Kolesnikov said.