Fundraising is one of the most demanding and revealing forms of persuasive writing. It requires clarity of purpose, audience awareness, ethical persuasion, emotional intelligence, and strategic framing—often all at once. In learning how to write effectively for fundraising, students also develop transferable communication skills applicable to leadership, advocacy, policy, consulting, marketing, nonprofit and corporate strategy, and any professional context in which ideas, initiatives, or resources must be advanced through writing.
This course treats fundraising as a practical laboratory for learning persuasive writing: students practice tailoring messages to specific audiences, aligning arguments with values, building credibility and trust, and motivating action without coercion. These skills extend well beyond philanthropy and form the foundation of effective professional communication across sectors.
*Academic credit is defined by the University of Pennsylvania as a course unit (c.u.). A course unit (c.u.) is a general measure of academic work over a period of time, typically a term (semester or summer). A c.u. (or a fraction of a c.u.) represents different types of academic work across different types of academic programs and is the basic unit of progress toward a degree. One c.u. is usually converted to a four-semester-hour course.
Instructor
- Faculty Director, Penn LPS Online Certificate in Professional Writing
Valerie Ross is the retired senior director of The Marks Family Center for Excellence in Writing at the University of Pennsylvania, founder of its Critical Writing Program, and an editor of the Journal of Writing Analytics. Her current research and publications focus on writing in the… Read more
