Professional Writing in Communication Studies

This paper discusses opportunities and problems that arise for curriculum development in professional writing. Taking into account some broader tensions in the field of communication studies, it uses the example of a unit called 'Writing for Work: Styles and Contexts'. This unit combines modules on organisational writing, arts-based reviewing, and writing for radio – forms more often than not taughtseparately – to engage students in exploring the relations between diverse practices of professional communication. The paper invites further dialogue about innovative work that is both academicallyand vocationally valuable, in the important middle ground of professional writing courses that lies between scholarly writing and specialised writing for occupational purposes.