Writing Program
415 Humanities 1
(831) 459-2431
https://writing.ucsc.edu
The Writing Program offers lower-division general education composition courses, upper-division general education electives, upper-division peer tutoring courses, and graduate-level pedagogy courses. The Writing Program also houses the Don Rothman Endowed Award in Writing, which honors outstanding writers and recognizes the pedagogical inspirations of their teachers, and the Writing Center which offers writing assistance to undergraduate and graduate students across campus.
Students place into writing courses via Directed Self-Placement (DSP). Please visit the DSP website for details.
Undergraduate Advising
The Writing Program undergraduate advisors offer dedicated advising available for all students taking and preparing to take writing classes. Incoming first-year students will receive specific instructions about writing via direct emails and orientation modules. For general questions, email writingprogram@ucsc.edu.
Lower-Division Courses
The Writing Program's lower-division courses are designed to help students become confident writers, learners, and researchers who communicate effectively in a variety of writing situations and disciplinary fields. These courses teach students how to develop analytical, reflective, and flexible writing practices to meet the expectations of academic, professional, and civic audiences, and are attentive to recent developments in writing (disinformation, AI, etc.).
Specifically, the program offers courses that satisfy:
Multilingual Curriculum
The Writing Program also offers the Multilingual Curriculumfor students who are in the process of acquiring English. These courses are designed to strengthen students' use of English for purposeful, authentic, and culturally appropriate communication. These courses honor students' multiliteracies and prepare students for subsequent writing requirements.
Based on students’ course selection via Directed Self-Placement, students who are acquiring English may place into the following courses, which are taken prior to the ELWR (WRIT 1 or WRIT 1E) and C Requirement (WRIT 2 or WRIT 2H):
Upon completion of WRIT 26, multilingual students are highly encouraged to take WRIT 1E, which carries the same outcomes as WRIT 1 but is taught by trained faculty with expertise in language acquisition.
Upper-Division Writing Courses
The Writing Program offers a variety of general elective writing courses which will satisfy many of the GEs required to graduate. WRIT 169 is a course for undergraduates interested in serving as peer tutors for lower-division writing students. By exploring theory and research on writing pedagogies, tutors gain insight into composing processes, meeting the academic needs of diverse learners, and providing responsive assistance in one-to-one tutoring settings.
Graduate-Level Writing Courses
The Writing Program supports graduate education by offering pedagogical training for graduate students from all disciplines in the theory and practice of teaching writing, with an emphasis on course and assignment design that foregrounds disability studies and inclusive teaching. This course is designed for students who would like to enhance their own pedagogical development as teaching assistants in other departments.