Young Scholars in Writing: Undergraduate Research in Writing and Rhetoric (YSW), a peer-reviewed journal for undergraduates, was founded in 2003 by Laurie Grobman and Candace Spigelman at Penn State Berks. YSW is the first international undergraduate research journal in rhetoric and writing studies and has garnered a national reputation. It has been lauded in College English; the Council on Undergraduate Research (CUR) Quarterly; and Undergraduate Research in English Studies. It is listed on the CUR website of undergraduate research journals, most of which are devoted to publishing research in the sciences. Articles and material from YSW have been selected for reprinting/publication in texts such as the 8th edition of The Essay Collection, edited by Lynn Z. Bloom.
Published annually, YSW circulates to 500 leading researchers and teachers of writing and rhetoric in the United States, Canada, Australia, and Europe. All articles are also accessible online.
Published researchers include students from:
- University of Missouri-KC
- Yale University
- University of Sydney
- University of California, Berkeley
- Duke University
- Vassar College
- New York University
- University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill
- Notre Dame University
- University of Wisconsin, Madison
- Oberlin College
- Georgetown University
- Penn State University
- University of Winnipeg
- Copenhagen University
- University of Michigan-Flint
- University of Nebraska
- University of Maryland, Baltimore County
YSW authors come from a variety of majors, including:
- English
- Communication Studies
- Business Administration
- Computer Science
- Philosophy
- Psychology
- Music
- Biochemistry
- Chemical Engineering
- Political Science
- Spanish
- Foreign Service
- Industrial Engineering
- History
After 7 amazing volumes produced with the support of Penn State Berks, Young Scholars in Writing: Undergraduate Research in Writing and Rhetoric moved to the University of Missouri-Kansas City. Dr. Jane Greer is the Editor. Please address all inquiries and submissions to Dr. Greer at greerj@umkc.edu. Visit the Young Scholars in Writing website.
Students in the Capstone Course in Professional Writing at Penn State Berks continue to serve as peer reviewers for the journal. Peer reviewers play an important role in the YSW review process. All submissions are first read by the editor, who sends papers that seem to fit the journal’s general specifications to one or two peer reviewers, either undergraduate students or student authors who have previously published in Young Scholars. If they recommend a paper for revision or publication, it is sent to a faculty member from the Editorial Board (a “faculty advising editor,” or FAE)—comprised of scholars in Rhetoric and Composition from around the world—for the next reading.
Congratulations to the many young scholars who have published and will publish in the pages of Young Scholars in Writing!