W Courses

W Courses Undergraduate students at Southern are required to take three “W” courses after ENG 112. These courses may (but do not have to) be in any discipline, and can be “double-dipped” with other requirements in a student’s major, minor, cognate, LEP, or elective requirements. W courses are offered at every level (100, 200, 300, 400). It is generally recommended to start with a 100- or 200-level W course, before advancing to a 300- or a 400-level W course. These courses emphasize writing skills in excess of what is taught in other courses.

W Independent Study Courses

If you are applying for an Independent Study course that you would like to be a W, you must submit this form along with your Independent Study paperwork.

W Waivers

Transfer students with at least 60 credits (at the time of initial transfer) or an associate degree automatically waive ONE W course. Transfer students with at least 90 credits (at the time of initial transfer) automatically waive TWO W courses.

Any students may apply to waive ONE (or an additional one) W course. However, all students must take at least one W course at Southern (even if you’ve automatically waived two courses). ENG 112 or other composition course is not considered a W course, and cannot be counted as a W course. W courses taken at other universities do not automatically transfer as Ws (the credits transfer, but not the W designation).

There are two ways to waive one W course:

1. The student took a writing-intensive course at another university.
2. The student took a writing-intensive course at Southern that was not designated as a W.

To request a W Waiver, please complete the W-Course Waiver Form and submit it to the University Writing Director (Tess Marchant-Shapiro, marchantsht1@southernct.edu).