Advanced Certificate in the Teaching of Writing

Offered by the Department of Rhetoric and Writing Studies, the Advanced Certificate in the Teaching of Writing provides opportunities for teachers, scholars, and other professionals to expand their knowledge of rhetoric, expository texts, and composition instruction.

Requirements

Applicants to the program must have completed a bachelor’s degree from an accredited institution. Students in the program must complete 12 units of coursework. A minimum grade point average of 3.0 or better must be maintained in certificate coursework, with no less than a C grade in any class.

Required classes (9 units):

RWS 509 Teaching Composition in Secondary Schools (3)
RWS 600 Reading and Writing Rhetorically (3)
LING 530 English Grammar (3)

Electives (3 units selected from):

RWS 601A History of Rhetoric I (3)
RWS 602 Modern Rhetoric and Composition Studies (3)
LING 653 ESL Reading and Writing (3)

Up to 12 units of coursework taken as part of the certificate program, with the approval of the graduate adviser, may be applied to the Master of Arts degree in rhetoric and writing studies with a specialization in the teaching of writing.

Applying for the Certificate

Students apply for the Advanced Certificate through CSUMentor online.  Although up to nine (9) units may be taken through Open University (without being a matriculated SDSU student), students must apply for, and become a matriculated (registered) SDSU student in order to complete the Advanced Certificate.  The Advanced Certificate can not be completed only through Open University.

Applicants should send a letter stating their intention to apply for the Advanced Certificate Program to the Graduate Director (see address below). The application letter should include information about the student's academic degree and current work, along with a rationale for applying to the program.  One of recommendation from an appropriate work or academic recommender should also be sent to the Graduate Director.

The Graduate Division will determine whether the student meets the minimum eligibility requirements of the program before sending the applicant's file to the department for recommendation.

Contact Info

For more information about the advanced certificate in the teaching of writing, please contact

Professor Jane Robinett, Graduate Director,
Rhetoric and Writing Studies,
San Diego State University,
San Diego, CA 92182-4452
Phone (619) 594-0966
Fax (619) 594 6530
jrobinet@mail.sdsu.edu