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{Home > Graduate : Technical Communication Certificate}

Technical Communication Certificate

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• Transferring Credits to the M.S.

The post-baccalaureate certificate in technical communication provides instruction for working technical and scientific communicators and graduate-level communication students and professionals to enhance their knowledge and skills base.

What You Will Learn

From this certificate program you will

• Acquire advanced skills in writing and editing scientific and/or technical documents for various audiences.
  WRIT 5561 Editing and Style for Technical Communicators (3 cr)focuses on this learning outcome.
• Acquire skills in oral presentation of scientific and/or technical information for various audiences. Oral presentations are integrated throughout the curriculum.
• Design and develop documents for a range of established and emerging technologies relevant to the field of scientific and technical communication. Integrated throughout the curriculum.
• Understand user-centered design principles and be able to apply these principles through design and usability testing.
  WRIT 4501 Usability and Human Factors in Technical Communication (3 cr) is dedicated to assess this learning outcome.    
  -OR-
  Practice experimental/survey research techniques for quantitative/qualitative methodologies in scientific/technical communication. Questionnaire development, contextual inquiry. Ethics, experimental bias, inferential statistical analysis. WRIT 5511 Research in Scientific and Technical Communication (3 cr) is dedicated to assess these learning outcomes.
• Learn the principles of the visual display of technical information and how to effectively apply visual design principles to technical documents.
  WRIT 5671 Visual Rhetoric (3 cr) focuses on this learning outcome.
• Understand various theoretical perspectives in scientific and technical communication, as well as the ability to apply these perspectives to document development projects.
  WRIT 5112 Information Design (3 cr) focuses on this learning outcome.
• Learn about international and intercultural issues in scientific and technical communication, as well as strategies for effectively addressing these issues. International issues are integrated throughout the curriculum.

Unique Opportunity

The certificate courses provide opportunities for research-based teaching and learning. Two of the certificate's courses focus on research in the field of technical communication: WRIT 5511, Research in Scientific and Technical Communication (3 cr.), and WRIT 4501, Usability and Human Factors in Technical Communication (3 cr.). These courses teach you about the state of research in the field and to show how research supports our larger technical communication community. These courses also provide preparation and opportunities for you to conduct research as a working professional and practitioner. Certificate courses are taught by graduate faculty who themselves have active research agendas.

The program, whenever possible, provides opportunities for you to apply knowledge to solve community and industry problems within the field of technical communication through authentic learning opportunities in the program's courses. These courses routinely require you to engage in projects for "real world" clients that in the past have included such organizations as ISEEK (Minnesota Internet System for Education and Employment Knowledge), the American Community Gardening Association, and the U.S. Forest Service North Central Research Station.

With the experience of our faculty and a curriculum focusing on 21st-century professional challenges, we are well positioned to offer the premiere certificate program within Minnesota and neighboring states.

Download an overview of the M.S. and Certificate Programs [PDF].

For more information on our programs, e-mail writ@umn.edu or contact the graduate program administration.