Rhetoric Minor (COMM)

Department of Communication 
Department of English
1128 Tawes Hall
Phone: 301-405-3825 
http://rhetoric.umd.edu

Program Coordinators: Cecilia Shelton, Ph.D. and Carly Woods, Ph.D.

Conceived for undergraduates entering any discipline, field, or career, the vision behind the Rhetoric Minor is to provide students with ways of seeing the world as a place open to change and skills for acting on its possibilities.

The Rhetoric Minor is an interdisciplinary program supported jointly by the Department of Communication and the Department of English. The minor educates students to understand and analyze the history, theory, and criticism of civic discourse and cultural practices. Course offerings feature both applied and theoretical approaches. Knowledge and skills acquired through the minor empower graduates to engage with important social issues and take active leadership roles in their communities and careers.

Entering the Minor

The College of Arts and Humanities has established a maximum enrollment in the Rhetoric minor. Students wishing to pursue the minor should check the Arts and Humanities minor website: http://arhu.umd.edu/academics/undergraduate-studies/minors/.

When enrollment in the minor is open, students should submit the online contact form (http://arhu.umd.edu/rhetoric/) to initiate the process of meeting with an advisor and officially declaring the minor. University regulations specify that “to ensure appropriate academic advising, students who wish to pursue a minor should inform both the college responsible for their major and the unit offering the minor as early as possible, but in no case later than one full academic year before the expected date of graduation.” We recommend you seek admission to the minor and receive advising within the first six credits of your minor.

Fifteen semester hours of coursework are required:

1. At least nine of the fifteen semester hours must at the 3xx-level or higher (including at least six hours at the University of Maryland, College Park)
2. No more than six of the fifteen semester hours may be taken at an institution other than the University of Maryland, College Park
3. No more than six of the fifteen semester hours may count toward the student's major and supporting courses
4. At least 3 semester hours must be taken in the English Department, and at least 3 semester hours must be taken from the Department of Communication
5. No course used to satisfy a Fundamental Studies requirement may count toward the minor
6. No course used to satisfy the requirements of another minor may count toward the rhetoric minor
7. No course grade below the grade of "C-" may count toward the minor
8. An overall GPA of 2.0 in the minor is required for graduation

Rhetoric minors receive advising through the English Undergraduate Studies Office. Students are encouraged to communicate with an advisor at least once a semester to verify that all courses they hope to apply to the minor are eligible, to maintain a plan for all minor requirements to be fulfilled, to complete a senior-year audit of minor requirements, and/or to seek answers to other advising questions.

English Undergraduate Studies Office
1128 Tawes Hall
7751 Alumni Drive
College Park, MD 20742
Phone: 301-405-3825
english@umd.edu

Minor Coordinators

Department of Communication
Carly Woods
2118 Skinner Building
Phone: 301-405-6523
cswoods@umd.edu

Department of English
Cecilia Shelton
2119 Tawes Hall
sheltonc@umd.edu