Dec 27, 2025

2025-2026 Undergraduate Catalog

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2025-2026 Undergraduate Catalog

Public Writing and Rhetoric, B.S.

English
Eric Detweiler
(615) 898-2585
Eric.Detweiler@mtsu.edu

The Public Writing and Rhetoric (PWR) program is interdisciplinary and consists of 36 hours. The program gives students extensive, hands-on experience learning to write for audiences beyond academic settings. Working with faculty who research and teach courses on technical writing, podcasting, digital reading practices, collaborative writing, video games, community and public rhetorics, multimodal composition, and user experience design, students in the program become dynamic, rhetorically adaptable writers prepared to navigate a wide range of audiences, genres, and platforms.

Academic Map

Following is a printable, suggested four-year schedule of courses:

Public Writing and Rhetoric, B.S., Academic Map

Degree Requirements

True Blue Core (TBC)	41 hours
Major Requirements	36 hours*
Major Core	(12 hours)
Public Writing and Rhetoric Elective Courses	(24 hours)
Minor	15-18 hours
Electives	25-28 hours
TOTAL	120 hours

*This program requires courses that can also fulfill requirements for the True Blue Core curriculum. If program requirements are also used to fulfill True Blue Core requirements, the number of elective hours may increase.

True Blue Core (41 hours)

True Blue Core (TBC) requirements (shown in curricular listings below) include courses in the Foundational Skills areas of Written Communication (WC), Information Literacy (Info Lit), Non-Written Communication (NWC), and Quantitative Literacy (Quant Lit). Knowledge Domains include Human Society and Social Relationships (HSSR), Scientific Literacy (Sci Lit), Creativity and Cultural Expression (CCE), and History and Civic Learning (HCL), which include Discovery and Explorations categories. Students must choose at least one course from each Discovery category.

The following courses required by the program meet True Blue Core requirements:

ENGL 1010 (WC)
ENGL 1020 (Info Lit)
ENGL 2020 or ENGL 2030 (CCE)

Major Requirements (36 hours)

Public Writing and Rhetoric Core (12 hours)

ENGL 4605 - Advanced Composition 3 credit hours
PWR 3000 - Public Writing and Rhetoric 3 credit hours
PWR 4000 - Experimental Writing 3 credit hours
PWR 4999 - Writing Your Future 3 credit hours

Public Writing and Rhetoric Electives (24 hours)

Specialized PWR Electives (6 hours)

Choose two of the following:

PWR 3010 - Community Writing 3 credit hours
PWR 3020 - Digital Writing 3 credit hours
PWR 3030 - Cultural Rhetorics 3 credit hours

Technical and Professional Writing (3 hours)

Choose one of the following:

ENGL 3620 - Professional Writing 3 credit hours
ENGL 4600 - Writing Internship 1 to 6 credit hours (3 credit hours required)
ENGL 4640 - Advanced Topics in Technical Writing and Communication 3 credit hours
PWR 4210 - Narrative Design for Games 3 credit hours

Creative Writing (3 hours)

Choose one of the following:

ENGL 2500 - Introduction to Creative Writing 3 credit hours
ENGL 3625 - In Process Workshop 3 credit hours
ENGL 3630 - Creative Nonfiction Workshop 3 credit hours
ENGL 3645 - Fiction Writing 3 credit hours
ENGL 3655 - Poetry Writing 3 credit hours
ENGL 3665 - Playwriting 3 credit hours
ENGL 3675 - Multi-genre Creative Writing 3 credit hours
ENGL 3685 - Beyond Flash Fiction 3 credit hours
ENGL 4645 - Advanced Fiction Writing 3 credit hours
ENGL 4685 - Special Topics in Creative Writing 3 credit hours
PWR 4210 - Narrative Design for Games 3 credit hours

Linguistics and Writing Education (3 hours)

Choose one of the following:

ENGL 3505 - Interactive Approaches to Teaching Writing at the Secondary Level 3 credit hours
ENGL 3510 - English Grammar and Usage for Educators 3 credit hours
ENGL 3555 - Tutoring Writing: Theories and Methods 3 credit hours
ENGL 3570 - Introduction to Linguistics 3 credit hours
ENGL 4510 - Modern English Grammar and Usage 3 credit hours
ENGL 4520 - The Structure of English 3 credit hours
ENGL 4530 - History of the English Language 3 credit hours

Communication Studies and Rhetoric (3 hours)

Choose one of the following:

COMM 3580 - Political Communication 3 credit hours
COMM 3810 - Topics in Culture and Social Influence 3 credit hours
COMM 4100 - Rhetoric, Identity, and Difference 3 credit hours
COMM 4320 - Persuasion 3 credit hours
COMM 4650 - History and Theory of Rhetoric 3 credit hours

Interdisciplinary Electives (6 hours)

Choose two of the following:

COMM 2830 - Introduction to Online Communication 3 credit hours
COMM 3810 - Topics in Culture and Social Influence 3 credit hours
COMM 4100 - Rhetoric, Identity, and Difference 3 credit hours
COMM 4320 - Persuasion 3 credit hours
COMM 4650 - History and Theory of Rhetoric 3 credit hours
IAM 3060 - Writing for Interactive Experiences 3 credit hours
PS 3530 - Legal Writing and Research 3 credit hours
WGST 2100 - Introduction to Women’s Studies 3 credit hours
WGST 3030 - Topics in Sexuality 3 credit hours
WGST 3400 - Multicultural Women’s Voices 3 credit hours
WGST 3900 - Women and Globalism 3 credit hours
WGST 4500 - Feminist Theory 3 credit hours
ENGL upper-division elective 3 credit hours
PWR upper-division elective 3 credit hours

Minor (15-18 hours)

Electives (25-28 hours)

Recommended electives include PWR, ENGL, COMM, JOUR, WGST, and IAM courses

Curriculum: Public Writing and Rhetoric, B.S.

Freshman Fall

ENGL 1010 - Expository Writing 3 credit hours (WC)
Non-Written Communication 3 credit hours
Human Society and Social Relationships 3 credit hours
Creativity and Cultural Expression 3 credit hours
History and Civic Learning 3 credit hours

Subtotal: 15 Hours

Freshman Spring

ENGL 1020 - Research and Argumentative Writing 3 credit hours (Info Lit)
Scientific Literacy 4 credit hours
Elective 3 credit hours
Quantitative Literacy 3 credit hours
History and Civic Learning 3 credit hours

Subtotal: 16 Hours

Sophomore Fall

ENGL 2020 - Themes in Literature and Culture 3 credit hours (CCE) OR
ENGL 2030 - The Experience of Literature 3 credit hours (CCE)
PWR 3000 - Public Writing and Rhetoric 3 credit hours
Scientific Literacy 4 credit hours
Electives 6 credit hours

Subtotal: 16 Hours

Sophomore Spring

PWR 3010 - Community Writing 3 credit hours OR
PWR 3020 - Digital Writing 3 credit hours OR
PWR 3030 - Cultural Rhetorics 3 credit hours
Linguistics and Writing Elective 3 credit hours
Creativity and Cultural Expression 3 credit hours
Elective 3 credit hours
Minor course 3 credit hours

Subtotal: 15 Hours

Junior Fall

ENGL 4605 - Advanced Composition 3 credit hours
Creative Writing Elective 3 credit hours
Interdisciplinary Elective 3 credit hours
Elective 3 credit hours
Minor course 3 credit hours

Subtotal: 15 Hours

Junior Spring

PWR 4000 - Experimental Writing 3 credit hours
Human Society and Social Relationships 3 credit hours
Technical and Professional Writing Elective 3 credit hours
Elective 3 credit hours
Minor course 3 credit hours

Subtotal: 15 Hours

Senior Fall

PWR 3010 - Community Writing 3 credit hours OR
PWR 3020 - Digital Writing 3 credit hours OR
PWR 3030 - Cultural Rhetorics 3 credit hours
Interdisciplinary Elective 3 credit hours
Elective 1 credit hour
Minor courses 6 credit hours

Subtotal: 13 Hours

Senior Spring

PWR 4999 - Writing Your Future 3 credit hours
Communication Studies and Rhetoric Elective 3 credit hours
Electives 6 credit hours
Minor course or elective 3 credit hours

Subtotal: 15 Hours