Blog

Reflecting on my work over the course of ENGL 301 I am pleased with what I accomplished. Although many of the techniques I learned felt familiar, I know that practicing my professional writing will only help it improve. 

I feel more confident writing professional emails and memorandums. There is still lots of work I need to do to practice employing the “you-attitude” in my writing but have been keeping this in mind as I review my previous assignments.

As I continue to work on my professional writing I know my work from this course and the textbook will be valuable resources. I believe my writing has significantly improved since the start of this course and I look forward to seeing how it continues to improve. 

Creating a Web Folio has been an eye opening experience. I always recognized that the experiences I outlined on my resume played a major role in my eligibility and success when applying for jobs but have not thought as much about the impact of the actual work I’ve done. It is one thing to list an experience and your accomplishments within that role, and a completely different thing to fully demonstrate and display your work. Moving forward, I understand that my writing and other projects from past experiences can directly impact my success as well. By creating a web folio, I have created an opportunity for future employers to see direct evidence of my work rather than having to take my word for or the word of my references. Employers will be able to see how my style and skills could apply to their organization. With this in mind, I have a renewed appreciation of the importance of editing and revision. My web folio is something I will continue to work on, revise, and attempt to perfect. 

Unit 3 was a very challenging unit for me. Although I have some experience writing documents in this style for my commerce classes, putting together a formal report was very intensive. 

Conducting the research took longer than I initially anticipated and I am sure there is still much more research I could do for this assignment. Even with the data I collected I am not sure I used it to it’s full potential. I know I could have likely analyzed it more closely and therefore drawn more connection between the data and this is what I will attempt to do moving forward with the document. 

As previous assignments had included creating an outline and a research plan, I found organizing the document fairly straightforward. I made slight modifications to better suit the data I had collected while maintaining a smooth reading experience. 

Overall, the writing process was very straightforward. Although at times it felt slightly tedious, the whole thing came together relatively quickly. This may be because I knew going into the assignment that it was a draft that I would be able to return to and edit.

Please note that my peer review of my writing teammate’s formal report is not yet complete as my partner has not yet submitted their assignment. I will edit this reflection when that assignment is complete.

Enclosed: SydneyDunn_ReportDraft

Unit 2 had interesting variety of assignments. Creating a LinkedIn profile and a professional social media network has been really interesting. I have always understood that my online presence can impact my professional success but I had not yet made the jump to a platform designed for networking. 

The formal report project has definitely been the most intimidating assignment so far. Although I found it relatively simple to identify a problem, conducting the investigation has proven to be more challenging. Peer reviewing my partners proposal was really helpful. Zachary had a clear problem in mind that felt relevant and applicable given the context. It gave me a better idea of how and where to add detail in my own proposal.

The peer review process itself has been helpful for all of my writing. Seeing that despite coming from different perspectives and fields, the same foundational concepts for technical writing can be applied. This really helps to make the document clear to readers that may not be as familiar with the subject matter. This has made me relax about my own writing while also taking extra care to be sure I include all necessary details instead of assuming the readers knowledge.

The techniques and processes I have practiced in this unit will definitely be helpful moving forward into some larger assignments.

Edited Proposal: SydneyDunn_ReportProposal

Peer Review of Proposal: https://blogs.ubc.ca/engl301-98a-2020sa/2020/06/27/peer-review-sy/ 

After completing Unit One of English 301 I feel more confident writing professional documents like application letters, emails, and memos. 

Although I have written many cover letters while applying for jobs in the past it was really great to have a refresher on the process and expectations. Completing this assignment I felt like I had a better grasp on how to address the recipient of my letter. I have also always struggled when selecting which terms to apply in the first line when I’m unfamiliar with the recipient. It was equally helpful to read the letters of my peers and compare how we describe our accomplishments. 

Having never been on the other side of an application process it was very interesting to be reading my peers application letters and then emailing them an invitation. I have never had a course that organized teams this way. Even though all of my peers letters were impressive this assignment gave me new insight into how employers read application letters and will hopefully help me to set myself apart in the future. While editing my letter I will be looking for areas where I can use more confidence to talk about my accomplishments which I otherwise tend to undersell.

Finally, writing definitions was a very interesting assignment. I felt that this is where I really practice writing for a different audience as this unit has really emphasized how professionalism in writing can appear many different ways. Most importantly it has reminded me that writing professionally is not just about using fancy words and language but really about clear and concise communication. Using my peer’s revisions I was able to consider different perspectives and audiences. Reading the definitions my writing team created was equally insightful; even if I was already familiar with the word it was valuable to see how to communicate that to others who may be unfamiliar. I have included below both the revisions I have made following my peers recommendations and a link to the comments my teammate has made on my work.

Moving forward from Unit One I feel much more confident in considering various audiences for my writing and that I can still create professional documents without being overly embellished. 

My definition revisions: SydneyDunn_DefinitionsRevision

My peer’s comments: https://blogs.ubc.ca/engl301-98a-2020sa/2020/06/10/peer-review-of-definitions-by-sydney-dunn/

Memorandum

To: Erika Paterson

From: Sydney Dunn

Date: May 22nd 2020

Subject: Submission of Application Letter

Please accept this memo as notice of the submission of my Application Letter. As you requested the document can also be found enclosed below. In my letter I explain how I would make a strong group member, including:

• My status as a Bachelor + Masters of Management Student
• My service on the Office of the University Council’s Policy Review Committee
• My confidence in developing strong arguments in my writing and
• The serious with which I will be approaching English 301 and my appreciation of feedback

I hope that this satisfies the requirements you had outlined and I look forward to your feedback.

Enclosed: Sydney_Dunn_ApplicationLetter

42 Wallaby Way

Sydney, Australia

May 21^st, 2020

Technical Writing Class

4 Privet Drive

Little Whinging, Surrey, U.K.

Attention: English 301 Students

Please accept this letter as application to be a member of your writing team. As a student in the Bachelor + Masters of Management program I believe I can bring a unique balance of creativity and professionalism to the group. As I am completing my undergraduate degree in Art History, I have extensive experience producing papers with strong arguments.

Having served as a student representative on the Policy Review Committee of the Office of the University Council, I have experience analyzing and revising professional documents. This past summer I worked as a Programming and Teaching Assistant at the museum in my hometown. I this position I gained skills in delivering information to different audiences including families, tourists, and my colleagues.

In my first year, I was part of the Arts One program where I really developed my skills as an academic writer. As a result, I feel that I can construct a well-crafted argument and effectively communicate evidence. However, I would say that my drive for perfection in my writing makes me a little slower to complete assignments. My approach to learning in this course will be very hands-on; I understand that practice really does encourage improvement and I appreciate detailed feedback.

As I anticipate the material in this course to be exceptionally helpful for my future professional, I will be taking the assignments and associated group work very seriously. I believe that my professional interests and previous experience make me an excellent candidate for your writing team. I would love to discuss this opportunity with you further and can be reached by e-mail at sydney.dunn@alumni.ubc.ca. I appreciate your time and consideration and I look forward to hearing from you soon.

Sincerely,

Sydney Dunn

Sydney_Dunn_ApplicationLetter

English 301: Technical Writing is designed to introduce students to writing for the reader and crafting technical documents. By learning various writing techniques and ethics, we will learn how to identify and write to our audiences. This will include choosing the appropriate tone, level of formality, and amount of detail for our work. This will be put into practice by writing formal reports, creating applications, and developing LinkedIn profiles for exterior audiences. Additionally, this course offers a collaborative element as most pieces of technical writing in the professional world are created by a team.

I expect that this course will help me to develop my own professional voice and help me continue to create impactful arguments in my writing. I imagine English 301 will feel like the most practical English course I have taken and that it will help me connect the writing I do for my Major with writing in a professional setting. The group work will be challenging I am sure, but valuable and insightful. Ultimately, I expect this course will likely prove to be the most valuable of my university studies should I have the opportunity to connect it to my degree and professional goals.