Frequently Asked Questions

Yes, two semesters of first-year writing are required for all University of Miami students. This is a general education requirement and satisfies the “Written Communication Skills” area of proficiency. For more information about general education requirements at UM, please visit:

General Education Requirements

Most students satisfy this requirement by taking two designated first-year writing classes at the University of Miami. However, students may also satisfy this requirement with credit from transfer classes or certain AP, IB, and GCE tests. See below for more details about satisfying this requirement.

The two-semester sequence for first-year writing is WRS 105 + one of the following: WRS 106/WRS 107/ENG 106.

WRS 105, WRS 106, and WRS 107 classes are taught by the Department of Writing Studies, while ENG 106 is taught by the Department of English.

Transfer students who enter with credit for one semester of first-year writing may also take WRS 208 as their second semester class.

Yes, as long as the classes have been evaluated as equivalent to our first-year writing classes and you earned a C or better in the class. Classes need to be submitted through MATES for evaluation; more information about MATES requests for first-year writing can be found below.

• AP exam: 5 on the AP Language and Composition = WRS 105 and WRS 106 (6 credits)
• IB exam: 6 or 7 on the IB English A = WRS 105 and WRS 106 (6 credits)
• GCE AS level: English-General Paper = WRS 105 (3 credits)
• English-Language: WRS 105 (3 credits).
• GCE A level: English-Language: WRS 105 and WRS 106 (6 credits)

No, although you may receive credit for a different class depending on your scores. For more on AP score equivalencies, please visit: UM AP Credit Equivalencies

Yes, but not for credit. Students may receive a waiver* for WRS 105 with the following test scores:

• ACT English score of 32 or above
• SAT Evidence-Based Reading and Writing (EBRW) score of 700 or above

*Not all schools and colleges accept this waiver; please check with your specific school/college.

No. Waivers are only given for the first semester, WRS 105.

WRS O99

• ACT English score below 18
• SAT EBRW score below 430
• TOEFL iBT Writing score below 18. 

WRS 105

• ACT English score 18-31
• SAT EBRW score 430-690
• OEFL iBT Writing score 18 or above. 

WRS 106

• ACT English score 32
• SAT EBRW score 700 or above 

During the summer, we regularly offer WRS 105 and WRS 106 online as synchronous courses that meet at a specific day/time.

We also offer asynchronous sections of WRS 105 and WRS 106 every semester. These sections are primarily for non-traditional students; however, some seats are made available for students with specific circumstances that make taking an in-person section difficult.

Matriculating students who wish to take an asynchronous section of WRS 105 or WRS 106 must first get approval from their Dean’s Office. Enrollment in asynchronous sections of WRS 105 and WRS 106 is done through the Division of Continuing & International Education.

All Writing Studies credit equivalency and pre-approval requests must be submitted through MATES.

Miami Academic Transfer Evaluation System

You must upload the course syllabus from the specific semester in which you took (or will take) the course. Requests submitted with syllabi from a different semester, generic or template syllabi, course descriptions, or lists of course competencies will be returned through MATES with a request for the correct syllabus.

To be evaluated, syllabi must clearly describe all major writing assignments, including:

A detailed description of each assignment that includes the focus and/or type of writing (e.g., rhetorical analysis, narrative, research, argumentative), and the length of each assignment (page or word count).

Syllabi must also include:

• the instructor’s full name and contact information,
• a dated course schedule,
• a reading list, and
• specific information about the writing process (such as drafts, peer review, and revision).

To provide more information about writing assignments from your class, you may upload the following to MATES along with your syllabus:

• assignment sheets or prompts, and/or
• essays written for the course

Yes. Requests for course pre-approval must meet the same requirements as transfer credit requests, including submission of a specific and detailed syllabus for the semester and section in which the course will be taken.

General questions about whether a course is likely to be approved may be sent to writingstudies@miami.edu, but official approval in MATES requires a complete syllabus.

Requests that do not follow these guidelines will be returned through MATES with:

• an explanation of what is missing, and
• a link to these guidelines.

If the same materials are resubmitted a second time without addressing the requested changes, the department may decline the request.

You should be able to view the status of all your requests when you log into MATES. The status of your request will tell you where it is. Advisors also have access to this information

Approve

Your transfer course has been approved as a specific UM class. Once approved by WRS, the request goes to Admissions for processing, so it may take a few days after approval before the updated equivalency appears on CaneLink.

Denied

Your transfer course has been denied, and a short reason for the denial should be visible.

Pending (WRS)

Your request has been submitted to Writing Studies and is in the queue for review. Note: While we generally try to review all requests within a week of submission, there may be cases where the review will take longer.

Pending (Department Name)

If your Pending status lists a different department, then we have forwarded your request to that department because we do not have an equivalency for your transfer course.

Pending (Student)

This may mean

1. We have sent your request back for further information. Please review any notes to determine what information we need and attach that to your request before resubmitting; or
2. You have attached additional information, but your request has not yet been fully submitted. You must back log into MATES, locate your request, scroll down, and click “Submit.”

Note: Requests with the status “Pending (Student)” do not appear in our queue. Requests must be fully submitted through MATES to be added to our queue so we can approve or deny them.

University of Miami first-year writing courses require a significant amount of final-draft writing. Transfer courses must demonstrate similar expectations.

• WRS 105: Courses should focus on the writing process and rhetoric.
• WRS 106: Courses should include significant research-based writing.
• WRS 107: Courses must include significant research-based writing with a specific focus on STEM topics and STEM-related writing.

Courses primarily focused on literature or literary analysis are forwarded to the Department of English for evaluation. This includes courses sometimes evaluated as WRS 105 (such as ENC 1101) - evaluations are based on the specific classwork as described in the syllabus.

Creative writing courses are also evaluated by the Department of English.

No. There are no course equivalencies for WRS O99 or WRS 208.

For general questions about the transfer credit process, visit the MATES website.

For specific questions about first-year writing equivalency guidelines, contact the Director of First-year Writing at writingstudies@miami.edu

The only preapproved transfer courses for First-Year Writing are at Florida International University (FIU): ENC 1101 for WRS 105 and ENC 1102 for WRS 106.

ENC 1101 and ENC 1102 at other local institutions (MDC, St. Thomas University, etc.) are NOT preapproved for equivalency, and so must be submitted through MATES with a syllabus.

Upper-level WRS courses are evaluated by the Undergraduate Program Director. Questions about equivalency guidelines for upper-level Writing Studies courses should be directed to writingstudies@miami.edu.

Advanced Writing credit (above first-year writing) is evaluated by the department responsible for the content of the course. MATES requests for Advanced Writing credit should therefore be sent to the content department. For example, a writing-intensive course on the history of China would be evaluated by the Department of History, which would determine both course equivalency and eligibility for Advanced Writing credit.

Writing Studies awards Advanced Writing (“W”) credit only for upper-level courses taught in the WRS department.

In addition to the Writing Center, which is a free resource for all UM students, faculty, and staff, there is a 1-credit lab for both WRS 105 (WRS 101) and WRS 106/107 (WRS 102). Students in these lab classes have regular weekly meetings with a Writing Center tutor to work on their assignments and other projects for their first-year writing courses. To sign up for these labs, students should contact the Writing Center (writingcenter@miami.edu) during the first week of classes.

The Department of Writing Studies: writingstudies@miami.edu or (305) 284-3090.