You can visit the Writing Center at any stage of the writing process: at the beginning, before you even begin to write; at the research stage, when you are increasing your knowledge on the subject; at the planning/outlining stage, to discuss your strategies; at the drafting stage, to go over any coherent portion of the paper you may have already written; at the finalizing stage, when the paper is close to its definitive shape. The sooner you visit, the more time you have to improve your paper and make your argument as strong as possible.
During the session, the student and the tutor work together to develop and improve the student’s ideas, plans, and arguments, with the tutor providing non-directive guidance. To get the most from each session, the student should be engaged with their work and understand which aspect of it requires attention.
While working on a writing project, students should plan on visiting the center multiple times at each stage of the writing process.
Remember that tutors are not editors and that students are fully responsible for their work, in both content and form. The mission of the Writing Center is to help students develop their skills in interaction with experienced writers. With each session, the student should be ever more equipped to produce a high quality project.
Students should pay close attention to the following in their research and writing:
- the link between claims and evidence
- the relation between facts and interpretations
- the clarity of your summaries
- the strength of your descriptions
- the effectiveness of transitions
- spelling and grammar