Professional Writing Major
What does it mean to be a professional writer?
- An activist revises a speech she'll use to address the community, raising awareness and changing minds about an issue close to her heart.
- A pharmaceutical writer edits a document about a new clinical trial, making sure it's clear and readable so the medication can move through the review process quickly and start saving lives.
- A nonprofit writer puts the finishing touches on a grant proposal, knowing securing these funds will help his organization fulfill their mission for years to come.
In these situations and many others, a professional writing degree helps people use their expertise to change lives.
As a professional writing major at UIndy, you will develop expertise in the craft of writing; critically analyze written language; creatively apply your expertise to meet the demands of any writing situation; and adapt your writing for a wide variety of audiences, purposes, and media. You will also gain an understanding of how writing can bring about social changes that matter. Majoring in Professional Writing not only opens up a variety of career options but also gives you mastery and expertise in the forms of communication that increasingly dominate our everyday lives in a range of public and professional contexts.
Professional Writing students at UIndy gain hands-on experience through applied courses that give them opportunities to complete writing and editing projects for local clients in the non-profit and business sectors. Through courses that integrate inquiry-based research, students also gain experience designing their own projects while engaging in research on different writing contexts and genres. Our advanced Professional Writing courses provide theoretical and historical study to build foundational knowledge of writing, drawing on decades of extensive scholarship in professional and technical writing genres, writing processes, editing and publishing, and the development of media and writing technologies.
Program Strengths
- Project-based and service-learning opportunities with local schools, community groups, businesses, and non-profit organizations provide hands-on experience
- Inquiry-based learning allows students to explore and apply writing concepts, writing processes, and research methods
- Professional development opportunities provide experience in writing, editing, and publishing in print and digital media
- Coursework builds knowledge of writing genres, rhetorical strategies, multimodal composition, cultural rhetorics, and the ethics of professional and technical writing
Potential Careers in Professional Writing
- Technical writing and communication
- Grant writing, nonprofit organizing, and advocacy
- Content development and management
- Copywriting and editing
- Public relations and marketing
- Government and legal writing
- Graduate studies in fields such as rhetoric, library science, education, linguistics, and more
- Law school
- Writing in the health sciences
Professional writing might be for you if:
- You enjoy writing in a variety of contexts and media
- You believe writing can help foster social change
- You have an interest studying language and how writing works
- You enjoy learning about how digital media are changing the way people interact through reading and writing
- You have a desire to learn the best ways to create and promote online content
Professional writing minor
Pairing a professional writing minor with another degree provides you with a communication skill set that is valuable in any field. The ability to write quality, engaging material is constantly in high demand. Completion of this minor requires a minimum of 18 hours of core requirements and electives.
Curriculum Guides
The curriculum guides outline the different classes that you will be required to take as a professional writing major. The general education guide provides a list of the class options and different required courses that you will need to take in order to fulfill UIndy's general education requirements. The professional writing guide outlines and lists all of the classes you will need take in order to fulfill the major's requirements. Be sure to take a look at both guides in order to get a complete picture of what your classes will look like at UIndy.