Defining Technical / Professional Writing

Over the course of the semester, you will submit 600 – 800 word contributions to the Pitt State Technical / Professional Writing Internship site (pittstatetechwritinginterns.blogspot.com) using the Blogger online publishing tool.  The site will serve as a resource for future interns, other technical / professional writers at large, and students contemplating technical / professional writing as a major as well as as preparation for you as you enter the job market.  Keep these audiences in mind as you complete your contributions.  Each contribution focuses on one of four goals:  defining technical / professional writing for yourself and for others outside the field (future coworkers in other departments, for example); exploring how genre works in technical / professional contexts; understanding the workplace; and preparing for the job market.  If you have questions about these assignments, contact me, Jamie McDaniel, not your internship supervisor.

 

1)      Defining Technical / Professional Writing

Readings

Jo Allen, “The Case against Defining Technical Writing”

David Dobrin, “What’s Technical about Technical Writing?”

Carolyn Miller, “A Humanistic Rationale for Technical Writing” and “What’s Practical about Technical Writing?”

Elizabeth Tebeaux, “Let’s Not Ruin Technical Writing, Too”

Carolyn Miller, “Carolyn Miller Responds”

Assignment

Your internship supervisor has decided to request funding to begin a search for a new technical / professional writing position.  However, she worries that the hiring manager may not understand the purpose and value of a technical / professional writer for your particular work context, especially given current economic and budget constraints.  The internship supervisor wants to cast the widest net possible when she looks to fill the position, but she worries that the hiring manager may overlook candidates with degrees from humanities departments.  Therefore, she has asked you to write part of her request report.  In order to increase the persuasiveness of your contribution, your internship supervisor has asked you to include appropriate research from specialists in the field. 

Your contribution should

·         Define technical / professional writing both in general as a field and in your specific internship context,

·         Describe the potential value added through the hire of a technical / professional writer, and

·         Outline the value added to a technical / professional writing degree awarded from a humanities department.