Skip to main content
University of Nebraska Omaha logo University of Nebraska Omaha
APPLY MY UNO DIRECTORY

APPLY MY UNO DIRECTORY
  • About Backback to Main menu
    • About
    • Leadership
    • Mission and Strategic Plan
    • Accreditation
    • Our City
    • Facts and Figures
    • Campus Safety
    • Buildings and Maps
    • Contact Us
  • Academics Backback to Main menu
    • Academics
    • Majors & Programs
    • Class Search
    • Catalogs
    • Academic Calendar
    • Colleges
    • Academic Affairs
    • Online Learning
    • International
    • Library
  • Admissions Backback to Main menu
    • Admissions
    • Undergraduate Admissions
    • Graduate Admissions
    • Tuition and Fees
    • Financial Aid
    • Registrar
    • Visit UNO
    • Request Info
    • Apply
  • Student Life Backback to Main menu
    • Student Life
    • Division of Student Life and Wellbeing
    • Maverick Advising Center
    • Career Services
    • Accessibility
    • Housing & Residence Life
    • Inclusion
    • Service
    • Student Conduct & Community Standards
    • Student Involvement
    • Student Safety
    • Wellness
  • Engagement Backback to Main menu
    • Engagement
    • Office of Engagement
    • Campus Resources for Community
    • Service Learning Academy
    • Barbara Weitz Community Engagement Center
    • Volunteer and Civic Engagement Programs
    • Samuel Bak Museum: The Learning Center
    • Faculty Resources
    • Student Resources
    • Voter Engagement
    • Community Engagement Partnership Initiative
  • Research Backback to Main menu
    • Research
    • Research News
    • Centers and Institutes
  • Athletics Backback to Main menu
    • Athletics
    • Baxter Arena
    • Omaha Mavericks Website
  • Alumni Backback to Main menu
    • Alumni
    • Transcripts
    • Thompson Center

Writing in the Disciplines Guidelines

  1. UNO
  2. General Education
  3. Faculty & Staff Resources
  4. Writing in the Disciplines Guidelines

  • General Education Home
  • General Education Curriculum
  • General Education Courses Distribution Area
  • General Education Approval Process
  • Student Learning Outcomes
  • Student Learning Outcomes
  • General Education Assessment Home
  • General Education Committee
  • Transfer Guide and Articulation Agreements
  • Value of General Education
  • Faculty and Staff Resources
  • Frequently Asked Questions

The Writing in the Disciplines requirement specifically addresses preparation for appropriate writing skills for the student’s chosen career path.

Student Learning Outcomes

After completing the Writing in the Disciplines (WID) requirement, successful students shall be able to do the following:

  • demonstrate further development of fundamental competencies gained in freshman composition;
  • demonstrate the ability to use the major discipline's research practices, using the databases, bibliographies, and documentation conventions appropriate to the discipline;
  • demonstrate the ability to use the writing strategies and to write within the genres expected in the relevant academic and professional communities; and
  • demonstrate command of the major discipline's discourse practices, vocabulary, and style.

Please note: This requirement specifically addresses preparation for appropriate writing skills for the student’s chosen career path; students who change majors may need to take additional WID course(s) to meet the requirements of their new major. This determination will be made by the student's major/degree program.

Each course or course sequence (see below) must:

(1) be approved by the University General Education Committee; course sequences must be submitted to the General Education Committee as a group, rather than intermittently as individual courses; and

(2) involve more than just having students "write"; they must include explicit instruction, guidance, and feedback concerning the disciplinary specific writing and research expectations, practices, and strategies, including but not limited to:

  • locating and evaluating disciplinary appropriate secondary resources;
  • understanding and using disciplinary appropriate genres;
  • generating and developing content;
  • identifying and using appropriate organization strategies;
  • using disciplinary appropriate styles (sentence style, word choice, etc.);
  • using disciplinary appropriate formatting and documentation styles;
  • using effective revision strategies and practices; and
  • using effective editing/proof-reading strategies.

Typically, the WID requirement should be satisfied by coursework within a student’s academic program or a closely related discipline. WID courses thus can be restricted to specific majors and can carry other prerequisites. If a program desires to allow students to satisfy the WID requirement by taking another program's WID course(s), the program providing such course(s) must have agreed to do so.

The University General Education Committee has approved two general academic approaches that programs may use to satisfy the WID requirements:

  • A single, three-hour writing course designed or designated by the academic program (will be identified as "Single Course Instruction"; see, for example, BIOL 3150, CIST 3000, ENGL 2410, etc.). Such courses must involve explicit instruction in disciplinary writing and research practices, comprehensively addressing all four SLOs. Approximately 70-90% of the final course grade should derive from the assessment of students' successful engagement in both the writing process and the production of competent writing.

OR:

  • A minimum of three (3) writing intensive courses as designated by the academic program - typically taken as a sequence of courses (to be identified as "Sequenced Course Instruction"); although each course need not completely address each SLO, programs must demonstrate that all four SLOs will have been met by the time students complete the sequence. Each course must devote at least 1/3 (1 hour equivalent) of the course to explicit instruction in disciplinary writing and research practices. At least 1/3 of the final grade in each course should derive from the assessment of the writing process and writing product.

Faculty & Staff Resources

  • General Education Home
  • General Education Curriculum
  • General Education Courses Distribution Area
  • General Education Approval Process
  • Student Learning Outcomes
  • Student Learning Outcomes
  • General Education Assessment Home
  • General Education Committee
  • Transfer Guide and Articulation Agreements
  • Value of General Education
  • Faculty and Staff Resources
  • Frequently Asked Questions

Additional Resources

  • Dual Enrollment
  • Service Learning Academy
  • Academic Learning Communities
  • Center for Faculty Excellence

Questions?

If you have questions about general education, please contact us at unogened@unomaha.edu. 

Next Steps

  • Visit UNO
  • Request Information
  • Apply for Admission
  • The UNO Advantage
  • Our City (Omaha)

Just For You

  • Future Students
  • Current Students
  • Work at UNO
  • Faculty and Staff
  • A-Z List

Popular Services and Resources

  • my.unomaha.edu
  • Academic Calendar
  • Campus Buildings & Maps
  • Library
  • Pay Your Bill
  • Course Catalogs
  • Internships & Career Development
  • Bookstore
  • MavCARD Services
  • Military-Connected Resource Center
  • Speech Center
  • Writing Center
  • Human Resources
  • Center for Faculty Excellence

Affiliates

  • University of Nebraska System
  • NU Foundation
  • Buffett Early Childhood Institute
  • Daugherty Water for Food Institute
  • National Strategic Research Institute
  • Peter Kiewit Institute
  • Rural Prosperity Nebraska
  1. University Policies
  2. Privacy Statement
  3. Accessibility
  1. 402.554.2800

University of Nebraska Omaha
University of Nebraska Omaha, 6001 Dodge Street, Omaha, NE, 68182
  • © 2023  
  • Emergency Information Alert
  • MavsReport

Social Media


Omaha Skyline

Our Campus. Otherwise Known as Omaha.

The University of Nebraska does not discriminate based on race, color, ethnicity, national origin, sex, pregnancy, sexual orientation, gender identity, religion, disability, age, genetic information, veteran status, marital status, and/or political affiliation in its education programs or activities, including admissions and employment. The University prohibits any form of retaliation taken against anyone for reporting discrimination, harassment, or retaliation for otherwise engaging in protected activity. Read the full statement.

scroll to top of page