Program in Writing and Rhetoric

Program in Writing and Rhetoric

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The Program in Writing and Rhetoric (PWR)

At Stanford, you will develop your ability to write purposefully and confidently as an essential means of exploring questions of interest to you, engaging with a range of perspectives in your research-based projects as you write your way toward greater understanding.  Writing will also serve you as you share your ideas and arguments with readers in the classroom and in the wider campus and world.  

PWR course themes inspire you to ask complex questions that guide you to engage with a range of perspectives, gain deeper knowledge, and develop greater insight through research and analysis. Through the extended research projects in both your PWR courses, you will gain experience in all phases of the process, from defining your research question to finding and analyzing sources representing a wide range of views, and ultimately developing your own informed argument.

Learn more about PWR Explore the PWR Course Catalog

Faculty Director Adam Banks

Honoring "Students’ Right to Their Own Language" in a New Era: PWR and the Power of Cultural Rhetorics 

The most enduring policy document of our leading intellectual and professional organization, the Conference on College Composition and Communication was ratified nearly 50 years ago, in April 1974. That document, “Students’ Right to Their Own Language,” identifies students’ “patterns and varieties of language” as a fundamental right that writing instructors must honor—and must have the “experiences and training” that will enable them to do so.

Read PWR Director Adam Banks' full message

The Writing and Rhetoric Requirement at Stanford

PWR instructors in PWR 1 and PWR 2 courses carefully design their courses to offer in-depth intellectual experiences based on shared assignments, goals, and learning outcomes. The basic structure of required PWR courses—in particular, the assignment sequence rooted in analysis, research, and the presentation of research in various forms—remains consistent across sections, but each instructor builds on this shared core, designing class activities to support a dynamic, interactive classroom community.

Explore PWR Courses

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PWR 1 Courses

PWR 1 is a 4 unit course taken by students in their first year that fulfills Stanford's WR 1 requirement. It engages students in the serious practice of academic analysis, college level research, and argument.

PWR 1
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PWR 2 Courses

PWR 2 is a 4-unit course, taken by students in their second year, that continues PWR 1’s emphasis on analysis and research-based argument, while adding a focus on oral and multimedia communication. The course satisfies second-level WR 2 General Education Writing and Rhetoric requirement.

PWR 2

Additional Elective Courses in Writing and Rhetoric

The Program in Writing and Rhetoric offers several elective courses every quarter that invite students to build on the skills they developed in PWR 1 and PWR 2, further developing their strategies of writing, rhetoric, and oral communication in a range of genres and formats.  These courses do not fulfill the WR-1 or WR-2 university requirements.

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Lunsford 2024 honorees and their instructors

Publications, Prizes, and Awards

Learn more about the Boothe Prize, the Lunsford Award for Oral Presentation of Research, and the Hoefer Prize for Writing in the Major.

Publications, Prizes, and Awards
2024 Notation graduates smile at the camera with their Notation certificates in blue folders

The Program in Writing and Rhetoric offers notations in cultural rhetorics and science communication.

Upon completion of the program requirements, Notation students receive a special designation their transcript indicating their advanced work in a specific area of rhetoric and communication. Notations have some similarities to a minor but allow more latitude in completing the required work, focusing on students developing an interdisciplinary ePortfolio including reflections on the students’ development over time rather than on taking a high number of additional courses.  Notations offer a complementary experience to the major, offering students the opportunity to develop agility and practical expertise as communicators while exploring multiple ways to convey discipline-specific knowledge and perspectives to a range of audiences in varied situations.

Explore PWR Notations