DiMarco Graduate Scholarship in Computational Rhetoric

A scholarship valued at $2,500, awarded annually to a graduate student registered full-time in the Faculty of Mathematics or the Faculty of Arts at the University of Waterloo with a demonstrated area of interest in computational rhetoric, computational analysis and/or generation of rhetoric and persuasive text. Computational Rhetoric is a twenty-first century offshoot of Natural Language Processing (NLP) that Professor Chrysanne DiMarco helped to pioneer. This fund is made possible by a donation from Sam Pasupalak in honour of Professor DiMarco's excellent teaching and mentorship. Selection is based on academic achievement (minimum A- cumulative average in their current program) and demonstrated interest in computational rhetoric as evidenced through a written statement. Areas of interest include computational study of rhetorical figures, style in propaganda or misinformation, technical documentation, persuasive chatbot design, persuasive algorithms, literate programming, and other work involving persuasion and computers with awareness of rhetoric. Applicants are advised to familiarize themselves with the works of Professors Chrysanne Di Marco and Randy Allen Harris. The scholarship is available to both Masters and Doctoral students who are Canadian citizens, permanent residents, or international students with study permits. A committee comprised of faculty members from Mathematics and Arts whose research focuses on computational rhetoric selects a recipient normally each Fall.