Writing Intensive Program (WIP)
Department website: http://www.neiu.edu/asc
Kate Hahn, Ph.D., Executive Director
The Writing Intensive Program (WIP) is part of the Academic Support Center, formerly the Learning Success Center / Center for Academic Writing, located in the Ronald Williams Library on the main campus.
The Writing Intensive Program is comprised of undergraduate courses across the curriculum that fulfill NEIU's writing intensive graduation requirement. Undergraduate students must successfully complete a writing intensive (WIP) course of at least 3 credit hours within their discipline in order to graduate. Please see the text of this requirement under Bachelor's Degree Graduation Requirements in this catalog.
WIP courses are content courses designed to help students master the course content, learn about writing in their chosen discipline, and improve their writing skills. Students should speak with their advisor to confirm which course(s) will fulfill the WIP graduation requirement for their major.
Student Support
The Academic Support Center provides peer tutoring for students in WIP courses. Students enrolled in WIP courses should contact the Academic Support Center for information on WIP tutoring.
Faculty Support
The Academic Support Center provides consultations to faculty and departments who are developing and teaching WIP courses or who are interested in integrating writing into any course. Faculty who are teaching, revising, or develoing WIP courses are encouraged to review the Writing Intensive Course Guidelines available below and in the curriculum proposal system.
Writing Intensive Course Guidelines
Approved by the Faculty Council on Academic Affairs, May 2007
Revised by the Faculty Council on Academic Affairs, November 2010
An important goal of a Writing Intensive course in the discipline is to train students to become proficient thinkers and writers in their discipline. Recognizing the many differences that exist between disciplines, including differences in the language of communication, the Writing Implementation Task Force broadly defines writing to include all written activities that represent the recognized means of communication within a discipline. In the social sciences and humanities, writing may predominantly take the form of written papers, essays, journals, etc. In the mathematical and physical sciences, writing may be in the form of mathematical proofs, equations, logical statements, problem-solving routes including diagrams, flow-charts etc.
- The writing activities should be an integral part of the course and should be designed so that students will receive active instruction in English in disciplinary writing.
- Students will write in English the equivalent of at least 15 pages of graded assignments over the course of the semester.
- Each Writing Intensive course will require multiple types of writing. Writing assignments might include correspondence, memoranda, proposals, progress reports, research reports, work-logs, site descriptions, observations, case studies, lab reports, creative writing, problem-solving, or computer programming, as well as other forms of course-related writing.
- The graded assignments, consisting of multiple types of writing, will constitute a significant portion (at least 50 percent) of the final grade for the course; the grade on each assignment will reflect effective and correct written expression in English as well as knowledge of content.
- On some graded assignments, students will be provided an opportunity to produce multiple drafts, in order to learn that writing is a process as well as a tool for invention and discovery. Students will get feedback from the instructor on those early drafts of written work before the grade is assigned.
- Each Writing Intensive course will also provide an opportunity for students to engage in ungraded assignments, such as writing-to-learn activities, in order to practice writing and also to become actively engaged in processing the information that is presented in class or in a textbook. Informal journal writing is another useful means of developing students’ critical thinking skills.
The list below is a sample of WIP courses offered across the curriculum. Students should review the program requirements for their major and speak with their advisor to determine which WIP courses will fulfill the graduation requirement.
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| ART-395 | Writing Intensive Program: Professional Practices In Studio Art | 3 |
| BIO-305 | Writing Intensive Program:General Ecology | 4 |
| CHEM-213 | Writing Intensive Program: Quantitative Analysis | 5 |
| CMTC-305 | Writing Intensive Program: Writing In Communication, Media & Theatre | 3 |
| CS-319 | Writing Intensive Program: Fundamentals Of Software Engineering | 3 |
| CS-362 | Writing Intensive Program: Digital Forensics | 3 |
| ECED-313 | Writing Intensive Program: Language Development And Educational Implications | 3 |
| ECON-221 | Writing Intensive Program: Tools For Economists | 3 |
| ELED-302 | Writing Intensive Program: Foundation Of Teaching The English Language Arts | 3 |
| ENGL-210 | Writing Intensive Program: Methods for English Majors | 3 |
| GES-250 | Writing Intensive Program: Writing in GES | 3 |
| HRD-325 | Writing Intensive Program:Communication In Human Resource Development | 3 |
| JUST-202 | Writing Intensive Program:Justice And Inequality | 3 |
| LLAS-201 | Writing Intensive Program: Culture & History Of Latinos | 3 |
| MATH-311 | Writing Intensive Program: Introduction To Advanced Mathematics | 4 |
| MNGT-370 | Writing Intensive Program: Managing Global Business Organization | 3 |
| MUS-312 | Writing Intensive Program: Beethoven | 3 |
| NDP-310 | Writing Intensive Program: Diversity In The Workplace | 3 |
| PSCI-251 | Writing Intensive Program: Comparative Political Systems | 3 |
| PSCI-344 | Writing Intensive Program: Public Organization Theory | 3 |
| PSYC-202 | Writing Intensive Program: Statistics And Research Methods I | 3 |
| SOC-346A | Writing Intensive Program: Critical Writing For Sociology | 3 |
| SCED-311 | Writing Intensive Program: School Curriculum | 3 |
| SWK-303 | Writing Intensive Program: Human Behavior And The Social Environment I | 3 |
| WGS-303 | Writing Intensive Program: The Power Of Writing: Interdisciplinarity As Critical Practice | 3 |
| WLC-333 | Writing Intensive Program: Cross-Cultural Communication | 3 |