There are 3 steps within the writing proficiency graduation requirement at Principia College. The first piece is the baseline (also known as the orientation writing sample). The second step is the writing fundamentals portfolio which happens in your FYE or if you’re not taking an FYE, it happens within the first two terms of your time at Principia College. If you have questions, contact Christine Elliott in SoG 264 for more information. The final piece is your major portfolio which is specific to your major. For some majors it’s a capstone, for others the paper is written in a 300 level class. This information will be given to you after you declare a major.
During orientation or within the first week of the first term, first-time college students and transfer students will complete a Baseline (Orientation) Writing Sample designed to assess their writing skills. These writing samples will be evaluated to determine the level of writing support needed.
First-time college students and transfers who take FYE are required to submit a Writing Fundamentals Portfolio during their FYE program their first term on campus to demonstrate their level of competence in basic research and writing skills before beginning intensive writing in their majors. Transfer students who are exempt from FYE must submit their Writing Fundamentals Portfolios within their first two terms on campus. It is each student's responsibility to enroll within this timeframe in a course that will provide the opportunity to produce the required writing samples and to submit the portfolio by the end of that term. The Writing Fundamentals Portfolio may be submitted only once.
A student whose Writing Fundamentals Portfolio does not demonstrate an acceptable level of competence or who fails to submit during the required term will be required to meet with his or her advisor(s) and the writing specialist to work out a writing plan designed to address the student's unique needs and to prepare the student to meet the demands of upper division work. The writing specialist, in conjunction with the advisor(s), will have the prerogative to direct the registrar to enroll the student in up to three credit hours of academic work in a writing-intensive course or courses appropriate to the student's needs. To meet this requirement, the course work must be satisfactorily completed by the student. At the end of each subsequent term, the student, the advisor(s), and the writing specialist will meet, as needed, to review the student's progress with writing. Further course work may be recommended in these meetings. The meetings will cease when the advisor(s) and the writing specialist determine that the student has demonstrated a satisfactory level of competence in writing required by the student's discipline.
Students must complete the Major Portfolio for each of their majors. When a student has multiple majors and the major faculty determine that it is appropriate, the requirements for these portfolios can be coordinated and consolidated to avoid duplication.
