
Writing and Communication
Develop agency in writing and speaking.
Communicate with Confidence and Authenticity
First Year Seminars
Oberlin’s First-Year Seminar Program (FYSP), in close alignment with the Peer Advising Leaders (PAL) Program, will not only hone your skills in critical and creative thinking, discussion, and writing, but also acquaint you with resources available for your learning at Oberlin.

A Legacy of Impactful Journalism
Oberlin’s integrative concentration in journalism equips students to navigate a fast-changing media and news landscape. Through a combination of coursework and experiential learning, students explore the different sectors of nonfiction storytelling, from newspaper and magazine reporting to radio production, documentary filmmaking, and digital narrative.

Featured Courses
Academic Writing for the American Classroom
This course is designed for multilingual and international students interested in exploring the writing process in English, with particular focus on American academic conventions and expectations of inquiry, argument, and attribution of sources. The class will serve as a writing community in which students read and discuss the work of classmates. Students will write often, reflect on their individual writing process, and meet regularly with the instructor to discuss progress.
- Taught by
- Hal Sundt ’12
Re-envisioning Writing: Connection, Negotiation, and Empowerment
In this course, students explore their writing processes, learn how to read more critically, write in a variety of forms and develop research skills. The class serves as a writing community in which to discuss essays and writing strategies and share written work. Assignments are designed to challenge students and involve them in the kinds of reading, writing, and research that will serve them well at Oberlin and in their lives outside the college.
- Taught by
- Laurie McMillin
Rhetoric and Social Protest
This course is dedicated to exploring the various theories, contexts, and rhetorical strategies of resistance. Through both a historical and a contemporary perspective, we delve into the limitations and possibilities of protest rhetoric. In order to evaluate the effectiveness of rhetoric to enact advocacy, students will read rhetorical theory and criticism, primary texts, and complete written and oral assignments. Students will develop an understanding of the rhetorical underpinnings of social activism and the role it plays in societal change.
- Taught by
- Cortney Smith
Community News Reporting
In this course, students undertake advanced projects of pitching, researching, writing and producing news stories about the Oberlin town community. Ethical treatment of sources, balanced and contextualized reporting, verification of facts and multiple modes of producing will be stressed.
- Taught by
- Jan Cooper
Student Profiles
Fulbright Fellow in Hong Kong
At Oberlin, Julia Berrebi ’19 worked in the Oberlin College Writing and Speaking Associates Program. After graduation, she applied her skills in a global context as a visiting English tutor at Lingnan University in Hong Kong.

From Oberlin to The Atlantic
English major and former editor in chief of the Grape, Luke Fortney ’18 earned a prestigious fellowship at the Atlantic after completing multiple rounds of interviews.

Peer Writing and Speaking Associates
When Oberlin’s Writing Center launched in 1977, it consisted of a professor, a student, and a desk in the King Building. Over time, the program has grown by leaps and bounds.

What does Writing and Communication at Oberlin look like?

Peer writing associates guide students early in the writing process by helping to clarify prompts and assignments, brainstorm ideas and topics, and develop research strategies.

“Our writing center helps students negotiate the various contexts they find themselves in, and to have agency to make informed choices about what they’re doing,” says professor Laurie McMillin, director of the Writing Center.

As part of professor Jan Cooper’s winter term project “Podcasting Oberlin News,” students were introduced to the history of the emerging podcasting industry and then charged with creating their own podcast episode.

The Oberlin Review hosted a symposium featuring aluni panelists now working for The Wall Street Journal, BuzzFeed, and Think Progress.
