Advanced Writing

REQUIREMENTS FOR ADMISSION

• A baccalaureate degree with at least a 3.0 GPA
• A brief letter of intent explaining your purpose in seeking the Advanced Writing certificate sent to the graduate college
• Apply online.
• Order transcripts: two of all undergraduate and graduate coursework sent to the graduate college

Questions about the program can be sent to the director of the graduate certificate in Advanced Writing:

John Price, PhD
ADWR Director
English Department
University of Nebraska Omaha
Omaha, NE 68182-0175
jtprice@unomaha.edu

COURSEWORK REQUIREMENTS

Please note: students must earn a grade of “B” (3.0 on a 4.0 scale) or better in each course applied toward the 15 credits required for the graduate certificate in Advanced Writing.

Approved core courses (9 hours required)

• ENGL 8640 Seminar in Creative Nonfiction in Digital Environments
• ENGL 8800 Special Topics Seminar: Approved courses such as Nature Writing. Check with Dr. Price for other approved special topics courses.
• ENGL 8826 Autobiography
• ENGL 8846 Travel Writing
• ENGL 8866 Modern Familiar Essay
• ENGL 8850 Seminar: Spiritual Nonfiction
• ENGL 8890 Seminar: Experiments in Creative Nonfiction
• ENGL 8936 Narrative Nonfiction
• ENGL 8966 Special Topics: Approved courses such as Food Writing, Graphic Memoir, and Writing Women’s Lives. Check with Dr. Price for other approved special topics courses.
• ENGL 8976 Writing About Sickness and Health

Other approved courses (up to six hours allowed)

• ENGL 8100 Native American Nonfiction
• ENGL 8750 Oxbow Writing Project
• ENGL 8806 English Internship (currently with University of Nebraska Press, Nebraskaland , etc)
• ENGL 8816 Digital Literacies
• ENGL 8836 Technical Communication
• ENGL 8856 Information Design
• ENGL 8870 Technical Editing
• ENGL 8800: Special Topics Seminar: Approved seminars such as Rhetoric and Memory. Check with Dr. Price for other approved special topics seminars.• ENGL 8966: Special Topics: Approved Courses such as Creative Writing Pedagogy, and Rhetoric of the Sentence. Check with Dr. Price for other approved special topics courses.
• PA 8520 Seminar in Grant Writing
• TED 8616 Teaching Writing Throughout the Curriculum

PORTFOLIO REQUIREMENT

Students will assemble a portfolio representing their achievement in the five courses applied toward the Advanced Writing Certificate. The portfolio should contain one writing sample from each course, as well as a retrospective introduction, and reviewed by the student’s advisor and one other graduate faculty member involved in offering courses approved for the Advanced Writing Certificate. As part of the portfolio requirement, each student will make an oral presentation to the reviewing professors. During that discussion, special attention will be given to each student’s professional goals for writing, including publication possibilities. Please see the section entitled “Portfolio Information and Important Portfolio Link” on this website for a more detailed description of the portfolio requirement and the deadlines for submission.

OTHER IMPORTANT PROGRAM INFORMATION

• Faculty Mentor: At the time of admission, each student is assigned a faculty advisor/mentor who will work closely with the student in planning the course of study.
• Earning both the Advanced Writing Certificate and the English MA degree: With careful planning, all 15 hours required for the Advanced Writing Certificate can also be applied toward the MA degree, which includes an option for a Creative Nonfiction Thesis. The Advanced Writing Certificate and the English MA degree are often achieved simultaneously, as the vast majority of the courses count toward both.
• Pathway to the MFA: For those students who, following graduation from the Advanced Writing Certificate and/or English MA, wish to pursue an MFA degree in Creative Writing, we would encourage them to consider the UNO MFA in Writing degree. Thanks to our new “Pathways” policy, up to 18 hours of successfully completed graduate-level coursework in the Advanced Writing Certificate and/or English MA degree can be applied to the credit-hour requirements of the UNO MFA in Writing. For those who successfully apply to the UNO MFA, this will significantly reduce costs and allow them to continue to develop their writing as part of that nationally respected program. Each course-related transfer of credits is subject to approval by the director of the MFA program. For more information on the UNO MFA program, visit their website.
• Graduation from the Advanced Writing Certificate Program: During the same semester as the portfolio presentation, students must officially apply for graduation with the Graduate College.