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Education and STC Scholarships
One of the incorporating principles of the Society is to "guide and inform students and to aid colleges and universities in the establishment of curricula for training in the arts and sciences of technical communication." STC provides support to teachers and students of technical communication through programs, scholarships, grants and loans, annual conferences, and seminars. The Society also provides information about events and courses related to technical communication.
Chapter Scholarships
The Washington, DC Chapter is proud to offer scholarships to students at the high school level and at the college level. Enquiries about the scholarships, or interest in working on the Education Scholarship Committee, should be sent to the scholarships manager at
The scholarships are intended to further the education of individuals who may, upon graduation, make contributions to the technical communication profession in Maryland, DC, or Virginia.
- Austin T. Brown Technical Communication Scholarship for high school students. In the past, this scholarship was awarded to winners of a competition for the best technical papers. We have been unable to find volunteers to staff the Education Committee but starting in 2009, the chapter will award scholarships for the best student entry in our technical communication competitions.
- Shirley G. Carter Memorial Scholarship for college students. In the past, this scholarship was awarded to the top applicants for the college-level scholarship. We have been unable to find volunteers to staff the Education Committee but starting in 2009, the chapter will award scholarships for the best entry from a college-level student in our technical communication competitions.
If you are a full-time student in high school or an accredited college or university, we encourage you to submit your best work to the STC Washington, DC Chapter Technical Publications and Online Communication competitions. In each competition, the student who submits the best student entry will receive an $800 scholarship. (If the entry has multiple contributors, the $800 scholarship will be divided among them.)
For your $45 student entry fee, you will receive:
- Expert written feedback on your work by professional judges
- Opportunity to earn Merit, Excellence, or Distinguished awards from the STC WDC Chapter
- Up to $800 in scholarship funds!
Enter today for your chance to win! http://www.stcwdc.org/compete.shtml
* Note: All student entries must adhere to the Competition rules given at http://www.stcwdc.org/competition_entryrules.shtml.
For information about how to contribute to the chapter's scholarship fund, please see the sections "How to Donate to the Scholarship Fund" for each scholarship:
- How to donate to the Austin T. Brown Technical Communication Scholarship.
- How to donate to the Shirley G. Carter Memorial Scholarship.
STC Society-Level Research Grants and Scholarships
- Academic Programs Database
- STC college scholarships (applications are due February 15):
- Marian Norby Scholarship for full or part time U.S. federal government females who work as a secretary or administrative assistant and are interested in studying for a degree or attending a continuing education or training course related to technical communication. (See tribute to Marian Norby.)
- Della A. Whitaker International Scholarship program grants four awards of $1,500 each (two for graduate students and two for undergraduate students) will be granted toward school tuition and expenses. Applicants must have completed at least one year of post-secondary education and must be full-time students. Students should have at least one full year of academic work remaining to complete their degree programs and they should be studying communication of information about technical subjects.
- Grants and loans: STC scholarship information
Each year, STC offers scholarships to full-time graduate and undergraduate students pursuing careers in technical communication. Four awards of $1,500 each will be granted for academic year 2010-2011 . Application deadline around February 15. Application form and instructions - STC high school scholarship and science fair competitions
- Research Grants
- Sigma Tau Chi and Alpha Sigma Honorary Societies
STC's honorary society for students of technical communication. Sigma Tau Chi recognizes students enrolled in a baccalaureate or graduate technical communication program who have a cumulative grade point average of 3.5 or above, are exemplary participants in STC, and demonstrate the potential for significant contributions to the profession.
Alpha Sigma recognizes students enrolled in two-year and certificate technical communication programs who have a cumulative grade point average of 3.5 or above, are active participants in STC, and demonstrate the potential to contribute to the profession.
- STC Practical Communication Committee
The PPC works with schools, agencies, and STC chapters to help high school teachers develop and use functional, practical writing curricula - STC has student chapters at many colleges and universities. If you are already enrolled in college, you may want to join a student chapter. See http://www.stcwdc.org/stcinfo.shtml#STUDCHAP for a list of student chapters near the Washington, DC metropolitan area.
Seminars and Workshops
In addition to the degree programs listed below, there are short-term Seminars and Workshops available.
- Related Seminars and Workshops In DC Metro Area
- Related Seminars and Workshops Outside DC Metro Area
College Degree and Certificate Programs in Communication in the Washington, DC Metropolitan Area
For list of colleges and universities around the world, see Colleges and Universities.
Colleges and Universities in Maryland and the District of Columbia
The following is a list of known educational programs in the Washington, DC metropolitan area. STC does not endorse any particular program.
- District of Columbia
- School of Communication — American University
- Media Studies — Catholic University of America
- Communication Arts — Gallaudet University
- Communication Program — George Washington University
- Writing Across the Curriculum Program — Howard University
- Communication B.A. — Communication M.A. — Trinity College
- Maryland
- M.S. in Interaction Design and Information Architecture — University of Baltimore's Yale Gordon College of Liberal Arts
- Bachelors, Masters, and Ph.Ds in Communication and Publication Design — University of Baltimore's Yale Gordon College of Liberal Arts, Institute for Language, Technology, and Publications Design
- Department of English and Communication Arts — Hood College
- Communication Writing and Media — Loyola University
- Masters Degree in Professional Writing — Towson State University
- Communication Design programs — University of Maryland, Baltimore Campus
- Professional Writing Program — University of Maryland, College Park Campus
- Communication Studies — University of Maryland University College
- Virginia
- M.A. Professional Writing and Editing — George Mason University
- Certificate in Professional Writing and Editing — George Mason University
- School of Writing, Rhetoric & Technical Communication — James Madison University
- Communications and Graphic Design — Marymount University
- Technical and Business Writing concentration — Radford University
Online Education
Guides to Online Education
- eLearner's Online Degrees & College Search is a directory to use to search for 3500+ online degrees, online colleges and online universities.
- Guide to Online Schools is a directory to use to search for 3943 online degrees from online colleges, universities, and vocational schools. Includes reviews from former students of online schools.
Distance Education Certificate Programs
- Malaspina University-College, Continuing Education - Certificate Program.
Malaspina University-College is a publicly-funded University-College with its main campus in Nanaimo on Vancouver Island (http://www.mala.ca). Malaspina U-C offers a part-time non-credit certificate program in Technical Communication COMPLETELY ONLINE. Delivered by Technical Communication professionals, the curriculum follows the guidelines of the Canadian Interest Committee (1997) who were formed from STC professionals to determine just what a technical communication program should cover in terms of training. Details of the Technical Communication Program can be found at: www.pr.mala.bc.ca/techcomm.htm.
Julie Clarke
Manager, Continuing Education
Malaspina University-College
3960 Selkirk Ave.
Powell River, BC
V8A 3C6
604-485-8032
(toll-free) 1-877-888-8890
(fax) 604-485-2868
E-mail:
- Rochester Institute of Technology Online Learning (RIT) offers a sequence of courses as a foundation for entering or advancing in the field of Technical Communication. Courses can be taken for a certificate. Students are expected to have a command of standard written English prose before beginning this concentration. Check course descriptions for prerequisites.
• Technical Writing
• Technical Writing and Editing
• Research Techniques
• Instructional Design Techniques
• Techniques for Document Design
For academic advising contact:
Center for Multidisciplinary Studies
Sydney Seaver
Phone: 716-475-2234
E-mail:
For online learning questions call:
1-800-CALL-RIT or 716-475-5089
See http://distancelearning.rit.edu for the complete list of eight graduate degrees, three graduate certificates, five undergraduate degrees and sixteen undergraduate certificates offered by RIT. - Techwriter-certification.com/ offers a Certificate in Technical Writing that comprises three courses, which can be completed in about one semester or in about 15 weeks. In addition, they offer 20 different online courses specific to technical writing. Their Advanced Certificate in Technical Writing for Managers is soon to be launched. While they offer their own courses from their techwriter-certification website, they also have business relationships established with major colleges and universities
who market these same courses to their students.
Dr. David McMurrey (Austin Community College) and Dr. Kenneth Rainey (Southern Polytechnic State University) are two of their esteemed faculty members who have strong ties to STC at the local and national level. Discounts from $25 to $100.00 on tuition are available for STC members based on the cost of the course.
Contact: Dr. John E. Reid, Jr.
JER Group, Inc.
Online Continuing Education
Certification and Professional Training
URLs: http://www.techwriter-certification.com/
http://www.onlineworkshops.com/
Phone: 706-216-3406 (EST)
Fax: 706-216-3979
1-866-537-5376 (JER-LERN)
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