Satisfaction of the Writing Requirement

Frequently Asked Questions:

What happens if I don't finish lower-division writing by the end of my 2nd year?

Students who do not complete their lower-division writing requirement are in violation of normal progress. The writing 39A course must be completed by the end of the first year and the writing 39B & 39C courses must be completed by the end of the second year. Students who fail to make normal progress toward their degree will be placed on academic probation or find themselves subject to disqualification.

Students enrolled at UCI may take only UCI courses in satisfaction of the lower-division and upper-division writing requirements. Continuing UCI students may not take summer courses at another institution to satisfy lower-division or upper-division writing requirements. The two courses taken to fulfill the lower-division writing requirement must be completed with a grade of C or better (or a Pass or Credit grade equivalent to C).

  1. Students who fail to attain a letter grade of C or better in English and Comparative Literature WR 37 must repeat the course or enroll in the equivalent. It is recommended that these students enroll in WR 39A followed by WR 39B-C to assure completion of this requirement. Students who fail to attain a grade of C or better in WR 39C must repeat the course.
  2. Students who fail to attain a grade of C or better in one or both courses of the English and Comparative Literature WR 39B-C sequence must repeat the course or courses in question.
  3. Students who fail to attain a grade of C or better in at least two quarters of the writing component of the Humanities Core Course after satisfying the Subject A requirement by attaining a grade of C or better in Humanities 1A S/A, should substitute English and Comparative Literature WR 39C if they need one quarter of additional work to complete the requirement, or English and Comparative Literature WR 39B-C if they need two quarters to complete the requirement. Students who fail to attain a grade of C or better in Humanities 1A S/A, enroll in Humanities 1B S/A and attain a grade of C or better, but fail to attain a grade of C or better in the writing component of Humanities 1C, should substitute English and Comparative Literature WR 39C to complete the requirement.
  4. Students who fail to attain a grade of C or better in either Humanities 1A S/A or Humanities 1B S/A, should substitute English and Comparative literature WR 39A-B-C to complete the requirement.

The course taken to fulfill the upper-division writing requirement must be completed with a grade of C or better). See the UCI Requirements section for further information.

Effective fall 1997, students who have not completed the lower-division writing requirement before the beginning of their seventh quarter at UCI will be subject to probation. Students transferring to UCI normally should have satisfied the lower-division writing requirement before entering UCI; if, however, they have not, they must complete it within their first three quarters of enrollment or they will be subject to probation. ESL students must complete the lower-division writing requirement before the beginning of the seventh quarter following the completion of their ESL courses or they will be subject to probation.