The Writing Program

Return to: USC Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences

Writing Program courses are designed to help students develop practices of reading, writing and critical reasoning that are necessary for success in academic and professional discourse. Writing Program pedagogy emphasizes small classes and frequent conferences in order to provide the highly individuated instruction and careful feedback necessary to extend the writing process and enhance the rhetorical judgment of each student. To meet the university’s writing requirement, students must complete WRIT 150 (or its equivalent) and an advanced writing course, WRIT 340 .

Jefferson Building 150 (JEF 150, mc 1293)
(213) 740-1980
FAX: (213) 740-4100
Email: writprog@usc.edu
dornsife.usc.edu/writing-program

Director: Norah Ashe-McNalley, PhD

Associate Directors: Jeffrey Chisum, PhD; Mariko Dawson Zare, PhD

Faculty

Professor (Teaching): Mark Marino, PhD

Associate Professors (Teaching): Norah Ashe, PhD; Jennifer S. Bankard, PhD; Stephanie Bower, PhD; Michael Bunn, PhD; Jessica Cantiello, PhD; LauraAnne Carroll-Adler, PhD; Jeffrey Chisum, PhD; James Condon VII, PhD; Andrew De Silva, MPW; Elizabeth Durst, PhD; William Feuer, PhD; Farida Habeeb, PhD; Nathalie Joseph, PhD; Stephen Mack, PhD; Matthew Manson, PhD; Amy Meyereson, MPW; Indra Mukhopadhyay, PhD; John Murray, EdD; Daniel Pecchenino, PhD; Shefali Rajamannar, PhD; Eric Rawson, PhD; Sandra Ross, MA; Deborah Sims, PhD; Scott Smith, PhD; David Tomkins, PhD; Robert Waller Jr., MPW; Ellen Wayland-Smith, PhD; William Wyatt, MPW

Assistant Professors (Teaching): Emily Artiano, PhD; Justin Bibler, PhD; Tamara Black, PhD; Amanda Bloom, PhD; Ryan Boyd, PhD; Brent Chappelow, PhD; James Clements, PhD; Nicholas De Dominic, MFA; Carlos Delgado, MFA; Daniel Dissinger, PhD; Antonio Elefano, JD; Amber Foster, PhD; Rochelle Gold, PhD; Amanda Hobmeier, PhD; Ashley Karlin, PhD; Meridith Kruse, PhD; Rory Lukins, PhD; P.T. McNiff, MPW; Sarah Mesle, PhD; Cory Nelson, PhD; Vanessa Osborne, PhD; Benjamin Pack, MPW; Leah Pate, PhD; Steve Posner, MPW; DeAnna Rivera, JD; Daniel Pecchenino, PhD; Steve Posner, MPW; DeAnna Rivera, JD; Alisa Sanchez, PhD; Atia Sattar, PhD; Anne Schindel, PhD; Mary Traester, PhD

Lecturers: Christ Belcher, MFA; William Gorski, PhD; Taiyaba Husain, MFA; Jessi Johnson, MPW; Shana Kraynak, PhD; Kate Levin, MFA; Dana Milstein, PhD; Chris Muniz, PhD; Tanvi Patel, PhD; Stephanie Payne, MFA; Jessica Piazza, PhD; Michelle Rosado, PhD; Isabel Sobral Campos, PhD; Patti Taylor, PhD

Lower-Division Requirement

WRIT 150 Writing and Critical Reasoning–Thematic Approaches focuses on the rhetorical principles and techniques necessary for successful college-level writing. Special attention is paid to critical thinking and reading, sentence-level fluency, research techniques, and the elements of academic argument and reasoning. WRIT 150 will not satisfy the lower-division writing requirement if taken on a Pass/No Pass basis.

Advanced Writing Requirement

All students at USC, except those who satisfy their general education requirements through the Thematic Option Program, must complete WRIT 340 Advanced Writing , an upper-division course designed to help students write on topics related to their disciplinary or professional interests. Students usually enroll in WRIT 340 in their junior year, and may not take the course earlier than their sophomore year. Different schools within the university offer sections of this course. Students should consult their major departments to determine which version of WRIT 340 best complements their program of study. WRIT 340 will not satisfy the university’s advanced writing requirement if taken on a Pass/No Pass basis.

All classes that meet the university’s advanced writing requirement teach students to write clear, grammatical, well-structured prose; to discover and convey complex ideas critically; and to appreciate the nuances of effective argumentation. The principal aim of the requirement is to develop a student’s capacity to formulate thoughtful and compelling writing for specific academic, professional and public audiences.

Preparatory Course Work

Some students are better served by taking a preparatory course before they enroll in WRIT 150 . Entering freshmen who score below a specified level on the verbal portion of the SAT take the University Writing Examination. Based on the results of this examination, certain students enroll in WRIT 120 Introduction to College Writing or WRIT 121 Introduction to College Writing in a Second Language during their first semester at USC.

International students take the University Writing Examination after having completed any course work required by the American Language Institute.

Transfer Credit

Students may complete the lower-division requirement by completing an equivalent second-semester composition course that is taken for a letter grade option (not Pass/No Pass) at another institution after high school graduation and prior to enrolling at USC. Equivalent transfer credit is determined by the university’s articulation officer. The advanced writing requirement must be completed at USC.

Time Limits

Students should complete the lower-division writing course requirement by the end of their first year at USC and must complete it before they enroll in their 65th unit. Transfer students who have not completed the lower-division requirement prior to entering USC should enroll in WRIT 150 during their first semester at USC, and must enroll in WRIT 150 no later than their 19th unit (second semester) at USC.

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Writing Program