Expository Writing is required of all undergraduate students. The courses that fulfill this requirement are part of a Core Curriculum sequence at the Tisch School of the Arts required of all freshmen. The expository writing and core curriculum requirement cannot be waived, although transfer students may be able to substitute equivalent course work taken elsewhere, and students for whom English is a second language may be required to take a separate sequence of writing courses. The TSOA policies in regard to Expository Writing and the Core Curriculum are set forth below.
The Core Curriculum - Description
The Tisch Core Curriculum (also known as Expository Writing) consists of a two-course sequence with a writing workshop section constituting an integral part of each course. Art and the World/Writing the Essay is offered during the fall term, followed by The World Through Art/Writing the World in the spring. Each of the two courses is comprised of a weekly plenary lecture given by a Tisch senior faculty member and a workshop that meets twice a week for both the fall and spring semesters. The courses mix different artistic media so as to integrate students’ various professional interests, and combine practical and theoretical approaches to achieve a comprehensive grasp of the work that art can do in the world. These writing courses are intensive, interdisciplinary and collaborative. Lectures and workshops focus on how to read complex texts for an understanding of their arguments, and how to write well-reasoned essays supported by evidence. These courses are designed to foster an appreciation of how the arts relate to each other and to society in a changing world. These courses will allow students to reflect on a range of social and ethical issues as they pertain to their own creativity.
Requirement for Students Admitted as Freshmen
Completion of both semesters of the core curriculum sequence (8.0 credits) is required of all students admitted as freshmen, regardless of whether or not the student has taken a college writing course in high school. The College-level expository writing courses taken while in high school are not transferable for credit towards the BFA degree. Advanced Placement credits in English Composition are not accepted and a student admitted as a freshman cannot place out of the requirement. In addition to fulfilling the core curriculum requirement, registering for the two-course sequence and the linked section in the fall fulfills the two-semester Expository Writing requirement. The requirement is for a total of eight credits (four credits per semester). The fall course is V40.0105 Art and the World/ Writing the Essay, and the spring course for this sequence is H48.0002 The World Through Art. When you are registering for the fall course, you can find V40.0105 on Albert under "Expository Writing" in the Course Subject drop-down menu.
Transfer Requirements
To fulfill the expository writing requirement, transfer students must have completed a minimum of one semester of the equivalent of Art and the World/Writing the Essay before entering the Tisch School of the Arts. Transfer students who do not have transferable credits will be required to take the first term of the Core Curriculum sequence, Art and the World/Writing the Essay (V40.0105; 4.0 credits). The course is only offered in the fall term. When you are registering for the fall course, you can find V40.0105 on Albert under "Expository Writing" in the Course Subject drop-down menu.
