Graduate

Rhetoric

Students in the Rhetoric and Writing specialization prepare to do research in history, theory, pedagogy, and application and to teach both in rhetoric and composition programs and in a range of interdisciplinary programs with cultural, literary, or linguistic emphases. Students specializing in other areas of English studies also regularly draw upon the rich resources of the program in their coursework and their projects.

Students gain experience in planning and administering writing programs by teaching in the Division of Rhetoric and Writing (DRW) and the Undergraduate Writing Center (UWC). Students with an interest in computers and writing frequently teach in state-of-the-art networked-computer classrooms and make use of the Computer Writing and Research Lab (CWRL). The CWRL has a long history of innovative research and development focusing on the pedagogical and scholarly implications of network technology, hypertext, and multimedia.

Graduate students assigned to research or staff positions in the CWRL have opportunities to carry out research on hypertext/hypermedia and literature, multi-media applications in literature and film, and other forms of electronic textuality.

Our faculty in rhetoric and composition, one of the largest and most productive in North America, includes Bump, Charney, Faigley, Ferreira-Buckley, Harris, Kimball, Rebhorn, Richmond-Garza, Ruszkiewicz, Slatin, Syverson, Trimble, and Woods. Faculty strengths include the history of rhetoric; rhetorical and discourse theory; composition theory, pedagogy, and practice; discourse analysis; and computers and writing.

Graduate work in rhetoric may be supplemented by related courses in the departments of anthropology, classics, computer science, education, linguistics, philosophy, and speech communication. Distinguished faculty in the core program and these supporting disciplines lend the Texas rhetoric concentration an unequalled scope and strength.

Profile and History

Rhetoric and Writing is a specialization within the Ph.D. program of the English Department at the University of Texas. Over 20 members of the graduate faculty are affiliated with the Rhetoric interest group, offer seminars, and serve on student committees. In any given year, about 15 graduate students are pursuing degrees in the specialization. What's more, students specializing in other areas of English studies regularly draw upon the rich resources of the program in their coursework and their projects. All the students who have graduated within the specialization have found tenure-track positions at other universities and colleges. Our alumni are among the leaders of the discipline, deeply involved in scholarship, innovative teaching and national policies on writing instruction.

The Rhetoric and Writing specialization has had official status for over twenty years, but the disciplinary roots run deeper. The history of rhetoric at UT can be traced all the way to the university's founding days, as described in Alison Regan's (1996) dissertation, "Promises, Problems, and Politics: The History of Rhetoric, English Studies, and Writing Instruction at the University of Texas at Austin, 1883-1994." Long before the specialization was official, graduate students at Texas took seminars and completed dissertations relating to rhetoric or composition. Over 75 such dissertations completed since 1967 are housed in the UT library.

Areas of Study in Rhetoric and Writing

The faculty in rhetoric and writing is one of the largest and most productive in North America. Students in the specialization prepare to do research in history, theory, pedagogy, and application and to teach both in rhetoric and writing programs and in a range of interdisciplinary programs with cultural, literary, or linguistic emphases. Students also gain experience in planning and administering writing programs through working in the Division of Rhetoric and Writing and the Undergraduate Writing Center. Faculty strengths include

* the history of rhetoric

* rhetorical and discourse theory

* composition theory, pedagogy, and practice

* discourse analysis

* computers and writing

Students with an interest in computers and writing frequently teach in networked-computer classrooms and make use of the Division of Rhetoric and Writing's Computer Writing and Research Labs. The Division of Rhetoric and Composition is committed to providing outstanding writing instruction in state-of-the-art facilities. DRW faculty are central to a new, interdisciplinary, undergraduate concentration in Science, Technology, and Society. Our Computer Writing and Research Lab has a long history of innovative research and development focusing on the pedagogical and scholarly implications of network technology, hypertext, and multimedia. Graduate students assigned to research or staff positions in the CWRL have opportunities to carry out research on hypertext/hypermedia and literature, multi-media applications in literature and film, and other forms of electronic textuality.

Related Disciplines

Graduate work in rhetoric may be supplemented by related courses in the departments of anthropology, classics, computer science, education, linguistics, philosophy, and speech communication. Distinguished faculty in these supporting disciplines lend the Texas rhetoric concentration an unequalled scope and strength.

Faculty