The Graduate Certificate in Technical Communication is intended for students enrolled in any graduate degree program and for local professionals. A graduate student in geophysics, for instance, might wish to earn the certificate because he knows that he will be making presentations at professional conferences and writing journal articles. An accountant might wish to improve her technical communication skills to enhance her work performance.
The certificate enables students to choose a unified, coherent group of courses in technical communication and related fields from other disciplines that will improve their understanding of the public role of written communication and their on-the-job skills.
The Graduate Certificate consists of three required courses and two electives.
The required courses
- ENGL 512 Technical Rhetoric and Applications
- ENGL 513 Technical Editing
- ENGL 514 Technical Communication Ethics
The elective courses (any two)
- EDTECH 511 Interactive Courseware Development
- ENGL 511 Introductory Seminar in Technical Communication
- ENGL 515 Visual Rhetoric and Information Design
- ENGL 516 Topics in Print Document Production
- ENGL 517 Oral Communication for Technical Communicators
- ENGL 518 Writing Software Documentation
- ENGL 519 Technical Publications Management
- ENGL 521 Topics in On-screen Document Production
- IPT 537 Instructional Design (4 credits)
Students who wish to substitute an alternative course for one of the two listed electives may petition the Director of Technical Communication.
Admission Requirements
The minimum requirement for admission to the Graduate Certificate program is a baccalaureate degree from a regionally accredited college or university and admission to the Graduate College. In addition, applicants must submit to the Director of Technical Communication a 500-word statement explaining how the Graduate Certificate relates to their broader educational goals.
Application Procedures
An applicant to the certificate program should follow the general application procedures for admission to a graduate program (see Graduate College Admissions). Once the applicant’s file is complete, it will be reviewed by the Director of Technical Communication, who will provide an admission recommendation to the Dean of the Graduate College. The Dean will make the final admission decision and notify the applicant.
Students are required to fill out a Proposed Plan of Study for a Graduate Certificate as soon as possible after being admitted to the Graduate Certificate program. This form must be approved by the Graduate College before the student can receive the Graduate Certificate.
To obtain the Graduate Certificate, complete the Application for Graduation form, which you access through BroncoWeb, and take it to your committee chair.