Welcome

to Special Topics: Professions in Writing Arts (WA 01404)

*1 credit course, 5 weeks (January 28- March 2)
Mondays and Wednesdays
5:00-6:15 Bozorth 130
Prof. Laura Mangini

Course page: writingarts.weebly.com

Office: 202 Hawthorn Hall
Office Hours: Monday 9:30-10:45; Wednesday 11:00-12:15

E-mail: ManginiL@Rowan.edu

Course Description: Careers in Writing Arts (WA 01470) provides students the opportunity to
learn about the various and wide-ranging career opportunities available to writing arts
students by exploring career and graduate school options in the field of writing. Class topics
may include statements of purpose and letters of application; internships, field experience, and
volunteerism; and publishing opportunities. Professionalism and entrepreneurial approaches
to job seeking are also emphasized. Discussions and workshops will be supplemented by guest
speakers and readings.

Objectives for the Course
As part of this course, students will:
Increase understanding of how to delineate themselves as writing arts graduates, and
how this major, minor or sequence distinguishes them from others
Increase understanding of how to locate and apply for jobs in the corporate, nonprofit,
and teaching sectors
Create and critique statements of purpose, letters of application, and related documents
Become aware of the role of internships, field experience, on-campus positions and
volunteering as key aspects of career preparation
Understand how to research, target and apply to graduate schools, including graduate
school funding and fellowships
Become aware of how to research, target and follow through on publishing possibilities

Topical Outline for the Course
As this is a one-credit course, class will meet twice per week for five weeks. The outline below
contains six major topics posed as a series of questions:

Topic 1: What do writing arts majors do? (Defining yourself as a writing arts graduate)

Topic 2: Where are the jobs? (Corporate, nonprofit, and teaching sector positions)

Topic 3: How do I fit my qualifications to the market? (Statements of purpose, career goals
statements, letters of application)

Topic 4: What can I do prior to graduation to help my career opportunities? (Internships, field
experience, on-campus positions and volunteering)

Topic 5: Why would I want to go to graduate school? (Researching, targeting and applying to
graduate schools)

Topic 6: Now that Ive done all this writing, how can I publish it? (Opportunities and processes
for publishing)

Required Materials:
You must bring the following items to every class. There are no exceptions.
A notebook & pen for note taking.
A flash drive or other means to store and revise word-processed essays.
A website/blog through http://weebly.com/ -- information for this will be provided in
class

Course Requirements:
Attendance is incredibly important in a one-credit course. We only meet 10 times. It is
imperative you attempt to attend ALL ten meetings. You may miss one class meeting
without your grade being affected.
Blog: Please post at least two entries per week to reflect and explore concepts covered in
class as well as during your research, writing, and reading. Oftentimes we will base class
discussions from your responses. Blog posts pertaining to class readings are always due
before class begins.
Readings: Critical reading and responding to readings is a key component of this course.
Therefore, it is vital that you complete all of the assigned readings so you can participate in
class discussions and write meaningful responses in your essays. Once during our 5 weeks
together, you will be responsible for bringing in discussion leading questions dealing with
the weeks readings and leading class discussion.
Class participation and involvement will also be evaluated.

Your final grade will be comprised of the following:

Weebly Blog2 substantial, thoughtful entries per week 50%
Posting Discussion Leading Questions (once during the
10%
semester)
Create a course tab about a new career

10%

Rsum with cover letter (specific or generic)

10%

Statement of Purpose for Graduate School OR equivalent

10%
(query letter, etc.)
Social Network Identity (LinkedIn or Academia.edu);
5%
means of branding yourselfthree minimum
Reflective letter/narrative (include future goals)

There will not be a final examination for this course.

5%


Specific Requirements for Blogging:
Your blog entries provide the opportunity to demonstrate your understanding of the assigned
readings and key concepts explored in the class. From time to time, I will ask you to reflect,
return to previous ideas, or to respond in various creative ways in regards to the reading or
discussion in class. Be certain that each blog entry is substantial. Refer to specific passages
in the text or ideas discussed in class. Entries on readings that ramble about personal
experiences ONLY often demonstrate that you did not read the text. Feel free to ask questions,
mention passages that confused, angered, or enlightened you. Interact with readings and ideas
rather than regurgitate them. Blog entries offer you the chance to work through what you are
learning, so take advantage of this online space. No blog entry completed out of class should be
less than 250 words. See specific blog assignments for word requirements.

Leading Class Discussion:
On the date that you are responsible for leading class discussion, you will have certain
additional responsibilities in addition to coming to class with your readings and blog entry
completed.
* By noon on the day you are to lead (or help to lead) discussion, you will post your discussion
leading questions (at least 3 thought-provoking discussion questions) to your blog.
* Your questions should indicate that you have read the readings; avoid overly generalized,
opinionated questions. Avoid yes/no questions. Aim for open-ended discussion.
The open-ended question: Ask for the hows and the whys instead of the whats.
* Email me your discussion leading questions so that I can compile them for the class
discussion along with other discussion leaders.
* Come to class extra prepared to discuss the readings. Do additional readings if necessary. You
may bring in additional materials if you would like.
* Be prepared to briefly summarize and discuss readings for the class if called upon to do so.
* Help facilitate class discussion as time necessitates.
For extra participation points on these days, you may also read and summarize one of the
optional readings to discuss with the class.

Career Discussion: to be presented on our web page visually.

Requirements for Career Exploration Discussion/Presentation
Once you have signed up for a career to present, you should begin your research. All of this
information will be compiled in an interesting, appealing way on our Weebly site on a separate
page tab. You will come to class with the following:
* A brief explanation of the career (in your own words)
* When possible, an interview with someone in this fieldtranscript is fine, an actual video is
preferred.
* Some sample, possibly noteworthy people who have this career (provide links to their web
sites if possible)
* Provide further readings for the class to learn about this career (linked on your site)
* The potential salary for this career
* The necessary skills for this career
* A sample "day in the life" of someone for this career
* A sample of the type of work done by someone with this career
* The necessary education for this career

 Suggestion: link possible programs that would prepare you for this career
* A suggested or sample job search; are any jobs available or advertised for this position?
Provide a sample for the class.

Your Responsibilities as a Student:
YOU are responsible for understanding and abiding by the policies set forth in this syllabus.
You are expected to come to class on time, to be prepared for class, to come to conferences as
scheduled, to be familiar with the course requirements explained on this syllabus, to have
materials when required, and in general to conduct yourself as a responsible student, learner,
and adult. Sometimes we may not discuss all the assigned reading material in the next class, but
you will still be held accountable for the concepts you read about. You should become familiar
with the vocabulary, and to ask questions if you are confused. Feel free to e-mail me or stop by
my office with questions; I will respond as quickly as I can, but Im not online or available 24-7,
so allow a reasonable amount of time for me to get back to you. That being said

Office hours:
My office hours provide an opportunity for you to meet one on one with me. You may drop in
during these times or make an appointment with me to talk about any questions or comments
you have about your progress in the course.

Academic Integrity Policy:
All students at Rowan are responsible for understanding what constitutes academic dishonesty
and knowing all the procedures, rights and obligations involved in the Universitys Academic
Integrity Policy. The complete policy can be found at
www.rowan.edu/studentaffairs/infoguide/

Early in this semester we will discuss Rowans Academic Integrity Policy in depth, but until
then you should basically know that academic dishonesty, in any form, will not be tolerated.
Students who commit an act of academic dishonesty will be subject to disciplinary sanctions up
to and including expulsion from the University. Academic dishonesty includes submitting a
paper with plagiarized material, fabricating research, and representing someone elses work as
your own.

Policy on the Recycling of Papers:
The Department of Writing Arts does not allow students to turn in the same writing assignment
for more than one class. Students must receive express permission of their instructor to submit
writing (or a substantial part of a written text) previously submitted in another class. Not doing
so is considered academic dishonesty and, following the policies laid out by Rowan, may result
in an F for that assignment and possibly an F for the course grade.

Policy on Authorized and Unauthorized Assistance:
The Department of Writing Arts makes a clear distinction between authorized assistance
when students receive extra help with an assignmentand unauthorized assistancewhen
students have someone else write a paper or sections of a paper for them. A tutor or a second
reader may help you develop your ideas, better organize your thoughts, and locate grammar
and mechanical errors, but should not do your writing for you. All of the writing that you
submit in class must be your own work. Do not attempt to represent someone elses work as

your own. Doing so will be considered a violation of Rowans Academic Integrity Policy and
may result in an F for that assignment and possibly an F for the course grade.

Late work:
I expect assignments to be turned in on the day they are due (blog and online assignments
should be posted before class startsnot during class). You may turn in late assignments
for partial credit if you make arrangements with me prior to the due date. For each class day
an assignment is late, one letter grade will be deducted. If you are too ill to attend class, have
someone bring your paper to class for you. I will only accept e-mailed papers if you have
contacted me in advance.

Classroom Etiquette:
The following actions will not be tolerated and will be documented to affect your participation
grade. Continued misbehavior as outlined below could result in removal from the classroom:
Disruptive outbursts, foul or sexually explicit language, irrelevant personal comments.
Chronic tardiness.
Use of cell phones/text messaging, iPods, or other electronic devices.
Degrading ethnic, racial, sexist, or homophobic remarks.

Special Needs:
If you have a university-recognized disability that requires an accommodation, please make an
appointment with me to discuss your needs. It is your responsibility to contact me, as I will not
be aware of your needed accommodations otherwise.

Changes to Our Syllabus:
A syllabus is always a work in progress, so changes to our syllabus canand probably will
occur as the term progresses. I will always announce changes to our syllabus in class, and also
via email or on the course Weebly. If you miss class, be sure to check with me or a classmate to
see if there are any changes in assignments. I will also announce changes over email, using
Blackboards email function. If you have multiple email accounts, be sure to check your Rowan
account regularly.