First Year
In the First-year Writing Seminars, Rice students start developing the skills they need to communicate effectively throughout their time at the university. In addition, students can attend workshops through the Center for Academic and Professional Communication or make an appointment for one-on-one consultations to review an assignment.
Undergrad
Check out our workshops on topics like procrastination, oral presentations, and slide design, as well as our COMM 300 and COMM 415 course! We also maintain a list of online resources to assist undergraduate students in completing essays, presentations, and posters, and students can book one-on-one consultations to discuss an assignment.
Graduate Students
The PWC provides graduate students with workshops tailored to their academic goals and a curated list of online communication resources. Graduate students can also schedule one-on-one consultations in the Center for Academic and Professional Communication to help them succeed in written, oral, and visual assignments.
International Students
We provide resources to assist students whose first language is not English with communication assignments and courses. Students can make appointments for one-on-one consultations in the Center for Academic and Professional Communication or attend communication workshops and credit-bearing courses.
Faculty
We partner with instructors and departments to create communication instruction for their students, from classroom presentations to individual and group coaching. We also assist faculty in creating rigorous communication assignments and assessment tools tailored to their discipline.
Upcoming Workshops & Events
Building Research Questions You Care About
Have trouble coming up with topics for research papers? Do you frequently feel bored or uninterested in the topics you are writing about? This workshop is for you! Students will learn to craft their own research topics and stimulate their intellectual curiosity in this interactive workshop. From Lady Gaga to Global Warming, attendees will choose from a variety of both popular and scholarly topics to form interpretative and evaluative research questions. Practicing forming clear and insightful research questions helps students explore their own academic interests and serves as a building block to creating effective thesis statements. This workshop is particularly suited for undergraduates and anyone with an open-ended research project.
Managing Writer’s Block - Undergraduate Students
This workshop aims to undo the myth of “writer’s block.” We will start with a discussion of why that blinking cursor or that blank page can be the biggest obstacle to our progress. Then, through a series of activities, we will develop some strategies for overcoming “writer’s block” that can help students produce their best work without the constant stress of looming deadlines.
Slide Design
This workshop will cover basic guidelines for designing clear, readable, and visually appealing presentations. We will discuss how to set up a slide template, how to use text effectively, and how to find and/or create visuals that help you to communicate your message.
Center for Academic & Professional Communication 
The CAPC is the home for student and faculty communication support at Rice.
First-Year Writing Intensive Seminar 
FWIS courses will give you the communication foundation you need for success at Rice and beyond.
English as a Second Language 
The PWC provides a host of services for Rice students whose first language isn't English.
Communication in the Disciplines 
The PWC helps students learn to communicate in ways appropriate for their majors and intended careers.