As part of the Rhetoric & Writing program's intiative for assessment of the program and assistance in job placement for its students, the Project involves two kinds of expansion of present efforts to center assessment and self-assessment of students on the broad goals of the Ph.D. Program.

These goals include the following:
1. Graduates are prepared to teach a range of rhetoric and composition courses. Graduates are prepared theoretically and practically to work in computer environments. And besides first-year writing classes, graduates have experience with at least one of these: Intermediate Writing, Literature, Writing Administration, Writing Across the Curriculum, Technical Writing, Writing Center Teaching and Leadership, and Teacher-Training in Writing.
2. Graduates understand and can discuss the rhetorical tradition and significant disciplinary texts and authors/theorists that shape the field of composition.
3. Graduates understand the impact of rhetorical history on contemporary rhetorical theory and composition practice.
4. Graduates understand and can discuss major competing theories and contested issues within rhetoric and composition.
5. Graduates are familiar with research in a variety of methodological systems.
6. Graduates are oriented to the place of scholarship in faculty work and rewards, and they have begun to work in professional contexts by developing ideas for submission to editors and conference chairs and by giving conference papers.

The first sort of expansion is greater detail and precision in the records students keep of work/accomplishments, including development of electronic portfolios. The second expansion is modification of assessment-oriented portfolios toward career/job-search portfolios for our students. We are working on those matters already, of course, and, in the matter of electronic portfolios, the program has a very considerable resource in Dr. Kris Blair.

The development and maintenance of an e-portfolio will help a Rhetoric & Writing student on the job market as well as in working with the program's assessment goals. So, in addition to including a few examples of work to meet the goals listed below, students often include some personal and professional touches of their own. These might include:
* a brief autobiography
* curriculum vita (updated compendium of academic and professional accomplishments)
* teaching portfolio (teaching philosophy, sample student evaluations, sample course unit(s))
* writing samples (pieces for courses, conference presentations, etc.)
* personal touches (travels and/or hobbies links)
* goals-based assessment