All students at NYUAD need intellectually rigorous writing classes that introduce them to the fundamentals of academic argument. The first-year Writing Seminar, the Writing Program’s signature course, is a place for all first-year students to engage in a semester-long study of academic writing. By participating in small writing seminars students develop a shared understanding of what we, as an international academic community, value in written argumentation — despite our many linguistic and cultural differences.
The Writing Seminar is an introduction to the academic work students will be expected to master as they advance through the Core Curriculum and into their majors: scholarly inquiry, elements of academic argument (e.g., thesis, evidence, analysis, and structure), critical reading, and the writing process itself. It is a course in college-level reading, writing, and inspired critical thinking taught by an award-winning, widely published interdisciplinary faculty.
NYUAD First Year Writing Seminars
It’s hard to overstate the importance of clear and persuasive writing — either within the university or in your life outside of school. Nearly all your college courses will require you to write papers or reports. Likewise, in our information-driven age, you will be asked to participate in the digital flow of texts as producers and consumers of mediated messages; in other words, ultimately, as engaged and thoughtful readers and writers. Clarity of thought and expression — and your ability to conceptualize and communicate complex ideas with a keen sense of audience — lie at the heart of learning to write well.
In keeping with the ethos of a liberal arts education, the Writing Program offers courses that introduce first-year students to the fundamentals of academic argument and intellectual inquiry. These are offered in tandem with one-on-one tutorials and with consultations in the Writing Center.