How Students Move through the Writing and Rhetoric Requirement

The current Writing and Rhetoric requirement went into effect in Fall 2003, after approval by the Faculty Senate in May 2001. The heart of the new requirement has been the restructuring of the PWR curriculum to ensure that students acquire, develop, and refine rhetorical skills throughout their undergraduate careers. Specifically, all Stanford students take PWR 1 in their first year and subsequently enroll in PWR 2 before the end of their sophomore year. Students continue on to take Writing in the Major (WIM) courses offered by all academic departments, usually in the junior or senior year, and they can elect to pursue a range of opportunities through Undergraduate Research Programs or enroll in the Honors Program in their major. Through this sequence of experiences, Stanford students can work on their writing and research every year during their undergraduate education.

For this academic year, 2005-2006, entering students will continue to review all PWR 1 course descriptions on the PWR website prior to the quarter in which they are to begin their PWR 1 course. Then, students will submit their top seven choices, and the PWR staff will work hard to place each student into a top choice. Returning sophomores, all of whom have been assigned a PWR 2 quarter in their second year, follow a parallel process of reviewing section descriptions and sending in section preferences. Specific dates and guidelines for the section preference process are listed on the PWR website prior to each quarter of the academic year.