If you have juniors and seniors asking you how the Fall 2011 change to semesters affects Phases 5 & 6, here's the information we emailed them at the beginning of Fall semester 2011:

1. Students enrolled at Principia College before Fall 2011, are still required to fulfill all six phases of the writing program that was in place at the time you arrived on campus.
2. The only change in this six-phase writing program has been to reduce the number of Phase 4 submissions from two per quarter to one per semester.  If the student has already passed phase 4, this change does not affect him or her in any way.
3. There have been absolutely no changes to Phases 5 and 6 from previous years.  Each is still fulfilled by taking a course designated by the student's major department(s) as fulfilling the Phase 5 or 6 requirement, and then submitting for the major department’s approval the required Phase 5 or Phase 6 paper.  Once the course instructor has “passed” these papers,
   • the student drops a final copy of the paper into his or her Phase 5 or 6 folder on the W drive
   • the instructor fills out a completion form for the phase and forwards it to the Writing Center to be entered on Banner
4. The DEADLINE for 1) getting Phase 5 and 6 completion forms to the Writing Center and 2) students dropping electronic papers onto the W drive is 5 p.m. Wednesday of Final Exam week for the student's graduation semester.

Phase 5: Research Writing in the Major

Every student takes an intermediate or advanced course in his or her major field which incorporates research writing.  This phase focuses on deepening a student’s scholarship within his or her chosen major.  It also helps to prepare the student for the final phase.  A student takes this after the proficiency portfolio evaluation and before the senior-level writing project.

Please print out the Phase 5 Completion form and fill out the student and instructor portions (or ask the student to fill out the student portion), attach a copy of the evaluation rubric for this paper if your department uses one, and return this form to the Writing Center.  Also, please remind the student to drop a final copy of the paper into his or her Phase 5 folder on the W drive.  No paper copies, please.