New Professional Writing Certificate designed to help students stand out in job market

Campus in the fall

The 91ø£Ąūµ¼ŗ½-Platteville is offering a Professional Writing Certificate. The certificate, designed to complement a broad range of majors, provides students with professional writing, editing and communication skills needed to excel in many careers.

ā€œThe professional writing certificate came from a need to expand our offerings to students who may not be able to major or minor in English but would like to enhance their writing and communication skills,ā€ said Dr. Laura Roberts, assistant professor of English and professional writing at UW-Platteville. ā€œOur campus has many students majoring in engineering and computer science who may be considering how to stand out as they enter the job market. The professional writing certificate is a way to indicate that a student not only has technical knowledge but also has soft skills, which many companies look for.ā€

The certificate is customizable to a student’s interests and the courses encompass several different aspects of professional writing. Earning the certificate demonstrates students’ ability to write clearly and effectively in a variety of workplace genres, gain knowledge of formal elements of writing and the ability to explain complex and technical information and/or concepts to a wide variety of audiences.

Certificate requirements include one required three credit course, Technical Writing or Writing for Science and Research, and three additional electives. Elective options include Literary Magazines; Intro to Creative Writing; Technical Writing; Writing for Science and Research; Designing for Usability; Advanced Writing; Writing, Editing and Publishing in Multiple Media; Advanced Topics in Writing Studies; and History and Theory of Rhetoric.

For more information about the professional writing certificate, contact Dr. Laura Roberts at .