The Arts & Sciences Writing Program

  • Joseph Bizup Assistant Dean and Director
  • Christopher Walsh Associate Director
  • Maria Zlateva Director of ESL
  • Adair, Allenberg, Avizienis, Bennett, Blyler, Bourrier, Breen, Campbell, Challener, Chmielewski, Degener, Eubanks, Fido, Fitts, Gapotchenko, Giraldi, Goss, Green, Hardy, Hoover, Kinraide, Lewin, Luke, Marx, Merritt, Michaud, Milanese, Nelson, Pasto, Pittock, Prentice, Queen, Ress, Rockwood, Rodriguez, Scheuerman, Shawn, Shuckra-Gomez, Smith, Underwood, Villano, Wallace Lecturers

Through its courses and tutorials, the Writing Program helps BU undergraduates acquire writing and communication skills and more general habits of mind essential both to their full participation in the intellectual life of the University and to their future personal, professional, and civic lives. All candidates for the BA degree are required to complete two semesters of instruction in academic reading, writing, and research. Most satisfy this requirement through the two-course sequence WR 100 Writing Seminar and WR 150 Writing and Research Seminar. In these courses, students hone their abilities to craft substantive and balanced arguments, to write clear and compelling prose, to read with comprehension and critical discernment, to conduct college-level research, and to converse about complex ideas with thoughtfulness and care.

Students who complete the second year of the Core Curriculum (either the Humanities sequence CAS CC 201/202 or the Social Science sequence CAS CC 203/204) satisfy the second semester of the requirement (WR 150). Students continuing in CAS as juniors from the College of General Studies may use CGS RH 101 to meet the WR 100 requirement and RH 102 to meet the WR 150 requirement. Students may also use CAS EN 120 or HI 100 to meet the WR 100 requirement and CAS AM 250, EN 220, or HI 150 to meet the WR 150 requirement.

In addition, a number of freshman writing seminars have been designed by CAS departments to fulfill the WR 100 or WR 150 requirement while providing students with an introduction to college-level work in a particular academic discipline.

Students whose primary language is English will be placed into CAS WR 100. Students who were required to submit TOEFL scores or other proof of English language proficiency as part of their applications for admission to Boston University will be placed into either CAS WR 097, CAS WR 098, or CAS WR 100, based on their performance on a placement test. Some students additionally will be required to enroll in CAS WR 095 Writing Tutorial.

Arts & Sciences Writing Program Courses

  • CAS WR 095 Writing Tutorial (ESL)
  • CAS WR 098 Introduction to College Reading and Writing in English (ESL only).
  • CAS WR 099 Introduction to College Reading and Writing
  • CAS WR 100 Writing Seminar
  • CAS WR 150 Writing and Research Seminar
  • CAS WR 202 Children’s Literature in the Elementary School