MIT Program in Writing and Humanistic Studies MIT, Room 14E-303 Cambridge, MA 02139-4307 Telephone: 617-253-7894 FAX: 617-253-6910

General Information

photo by Nicholas Altenbernd

The MIT Program in Writing and Humanistic Studies gives students the opportunity to learn the techniques, forms, and traditions of several kinds of writing, from basic expository prose to more advanced forms of non-fictional prose, fiction and poetry, science writing, scientific and technical communication and digital media. Our faculty consists of novelists, essayists, poets, translators, biographers, historians, engineers and scientists.

Program subjects are arranged by four areas: exposition and rhetoric, creative writing, science writing and technical communication. In each area introductory subjects lead to more specialized advanced subjects. Introductory subjects are designed for students with little experience in writing. Advanced subjects are for students who have mastered the elements of sentence and paragraph structure. A number of the advanced subjects use writing as a vehicle to explore humanistic and scientific issues in a broad cultural context.

Students pursuing a humanities concentration in writing or a minor in writing work mainly within one of the Program's three curricular areas. Students may also major in writing or develop a joint major with another discipline in the humanities or with the Program in Science, Technology, and Society.

The Graduate Program in Science Writing is a 12-month course of study leading to a Master of Science degree. Aimed at students who wish to write about science and technology for general readers, the program is built around an intensive two-semester advanced science writing seminar. In addition, students choose one elective each semester, write a substantial thesis, and complete an internship. Links to other MIT programs and departments, such as the Knight Science Journalism Fellowships program, Comparative Media Studies (CMS) and the Program in Science, Technology and Society (STS) provide rich resources for students who come to the Graduate Program in Science Writing from a variety of backgrounds.

The Writing and Communication Center and Writing Across the Curriculum office
are open in their new location in building 12-132.