Your first assignment in our course is to create a one-page memo of introduction. The purpose of the memo is to introduce yourself to me and other members of the course. Consider, if you will, the class as an organization and yourself as a new member in a highly visible position. Your first task is to introduce yourself and spell out some goals for your new role. With your peers and me as the audience, consider your own role as author of a memo of introduction. You want to make a great first impression on all of us, and you want to provide us with information that will foster strong future working relationships in the course.
Information to discuss in your memo includes, but is not necessarily limited to, the following:
Background information
- What is your major and year in school?
- Why have you selected this major?
- What activities, jobs, and internships have you participated in that relate to your chosen field?
- How would you describe your work style?
- What are your career plans after graduation?
- What technologies are you familiar with and which ones do you still want to learn (even if those technologies are not related to our course)?
Course goals
- What are some of your rationales for taking this course?
- What background or experience do you have that will help you work on projects for this course?
- What types of writing and research projects have you participated in?
- What is your main goal for this course?
Memo format
Your memo should be one single-spaced page. You should use 12 point Times or Times New Roman for the body text of your memo and Arial or other sans serif font for the headings in your memo. Your margins should be 1 inch on all sides. Your memo should be written in full block format using Word. Full block format means no indention at the beginning of paragraphs and left justification. To signal the end of one paragraph and the beginning of another, you should leave one blank line. Do not use a Word memo template for this assignment. Be sure to follow appropriate guidelines for both the memo header and the memo body. See example if necessary.
The memo header should contain and "to," "from," "date" and "subject" line, and you should initial the "from" line.
The memo body should address the questions provided above as well as provide other information that you deem pertinent to the assignment. Remember you want to establish a professional and friendly tone of welcome. Consider the body's development more carefully:
- Begin your memo with a brief one or two sentence overview that quickly summarizes the purpose of the memo (This summary sentence should not have a subheading, but your other memo sections should).
- Offer brief well-organized paragraphs that respond to the questions provided.
- Add bolded subheadings for sections to help readers locate information of interest more quickly.
- End your memo with a quick statement of summary (If this were a memo requesting an action, you would end with such a call. As with the opening of your memo, this section should not have a subheading).
- To review your memo's design and development, download the Checklist of Memo form.
Web Resources
For more on memo writing, go to http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/590/01/