Writing‐Across‐the‐Curriculum in an Engineering Program

Abstract This article describes a Writing‐Across‐the‐Curriculum (WAC) approach to technical communication in the Civil and Environmental Engineering program at Utah State University. First, a brief survey of other WAC programs utilizing a general education approach, a multi‐year sequence approach, and an intensive single‐course approach are reviewed. Objectives, staffing, funding and continuity issues associated with starting and maintaining these WAC programs are examined. Then USU's WAC program is profiled. USU has a set of linked engineering and writing courses, taught over the course of two quarters, by permanent faculty in Engineering and English. The goals, course objectives, and procedures for the Professional Writing/Introduction to Environmental Engineering component and the Scientific Writing/Fluid Mechanics component are given in detail.