About Rhetoric and Professional Writing

The Department of Rhetoric, Language, and Culture (RLC) administers two writing programs within the University of Hartford: The First-Year Reading and Writing Program, which prepares students for the critical reading, writing, and thinking integral to academic inquiry, and The Professional and Technical Writing Program (PTW), which trains majors and minors for writing in the workplace after college.

At the University of Hartford, reading and writing are considered twin literacies that should be developed throughout every student’s undergraduate education. Most undergraduates are required to take two preliminary writing courses, RLC 110 & 111, and students in the College of Arts and Sciences must also take two upper-level writing intensive courses (designated by a W).

The Professional and Technical Writing Program is designed to allow students to enhance their major in one subject (such as English, politics, biology, engineering, and computer sciences) by adding a minor or a second major in PTW. Most students who can document their writing abilities to prospective employers enjoy great success after graduation.

The First-Year Reading and Writing Program

Starting with RLC 110, students learn to manage the process of writing more effectively and to fulfill their audience’s expectations of style, form, and content. Students also learn to read texts more critically and to write using these sources by paraphrasing, quoting, and citing properly. The diverse forms of academic writing (such as summary, analysis, and synthesis) and variations in disciplinary conventions are also addressed.

In RLC 111, students engage in independent research using print and electronic sources. They learn to write a research essay, which supports a thesis effectively through convincing analysis and compelling argumentation. Writing is taught as a rhetorical act, a persuasive effort, in which the author must use language carefully and be aware of the reader’s culture.

For more specific information on RLC 110 & 111, consult the “Courses Offered” on this site. For more details on the writing process, reading techniques, and research strategies as well as placement guidelines and instructor profiles, please consult the RLC website at http://uhaweb.hartford.edu/rlc, link on the right..

The Professional and Technical Writing Program

Skilled professional and technical writers are needed in almost every business and industry—public and private, corporate and nonprofit—to write print, digital, and online texts. The major, minor, and certificate program in Professional and Technical Writing prepare students to write in these environments.