FAQs for Faculty

Faculty often want to know how the University Writing Center (UWC) can serve their students’ and their own writing needs. To learn more about the UWC, UWC for Graduate Studies (UWCGS), and how to best make use of the services we offer, refer to the FAQs below.

  • What services does the UWC offer?

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    The University Writing Center (UWC) and University Writing Center for Graduate Studies (UWCGS) offer 

    • writing consultations for undergraduate students, graduate students, and faculty
    • targeted, specialized writing support in satellite offices across campus
    • UWC & UWCGS introductions to classes, programs, colleges, clubs, and campus organizations
    • writing workshops for classes given in-person and over Zoom
    • videos of UWC & UWCGS introductions, writing tips, and workshop videos to embed in Canvas
    • writing resources (videos, PDFs, and slide decks) in our Canvas - Instructor Resources and Canvas - Student Resources site
    • instructor consultations to provide feedback on how students are responding to your writing assignments
  • How can I encourage students in my classes, program, or discipline to use the UWC? 

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    To encourage students in your classes, program, or discipline to use the UWC, 

    • schedule a visit from a consultant to introduce student writers to the UWC and our services; students are more likely to use the UWC once they have met our consultants
    • tell them about the UWC satellite best suited for their needs
    • tell undergraduates about UWC - Student Resources, a Canvas site that offers short videos and PDFs with information on citation systems, organization, grammar, and punctuation. They can join by emailing [email protected] and asking to be added to the site.
    • offer extra credit for attending a consultation at least once during the semester
    • schedule writing workshops that support the tasks and writing you assign your students
    • work with us to develop writing assignments and workshops for your students’ writing needs (email Rhonda L. McCaffery at [email protected]  for more information)
    • share testimonials from student writers in your discipline who use the UWC (coming soon!)
  • How can I introduce student writers to the UWC or UWCGS?

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    There are two ways to introduce student writers to the UWC and our services. You can 

    • request a UWC or UWCGS visit to your class, program orientation, college orientation, club, or campus organization and one of our consultants will come and introduce our services and answer any questions your writers have, or
    • request a video that introduces our services and embed it in your Canvas site.

    To make either request, use our current workshop request form found on our UWC for Faculty webpage

  • How should I talk about consultations with my students?

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    There are two things writers should know about consulting the UWC: 

    1. All writers can benefit from getting feedback on their writing—even published writers seek out feedback from multiple readers and revise their work many times before it goes to publication. Writing consultations are not just for struggling writers—they are for everyone!
    2. Writing consultants are not editors, nor will they proofread or edit writers’ work—instead, they will answer questions, offer suggestions for improvement, and help writers recognize and revise faulty logic, poor organization, improper citations, and, yes, repeated errors in grammar and punctuation. 
  • Should I require students to consult the UWC?

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    We advise that you do not require students to consult the UWC. One reason for this is pedagogical; the other practical. 

    • Pedagogically, writers who willingly seek feedback on their work are more likely to benefit from it. Offering extra credit for a UWC consultation still gives students a choice, and often encourages writers to consult us who may not otherwise do so.
    • Practically speaking, when students are required to consult the UWC—especially with a specific assignment—we may not have the capacity to handle that many consultations at once.

    If you still want to make this a requirement, try requiring at least one consultation during the semester rather than requiring a consultation for a specific assignment. Scaffolding your assignment by scheduling deadlines for pieces or drafts in stages and scheduling student reminders can encourage students to come in earlier rather than later.

  • How—and how often—can students or faculty schedule consultations? 

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    Undergraduate students should go to WCOnline, our scheduling system, and register for an account. Once they have done so, they can schedule up to two consultations per week. These consultations can be any combination of in-person, Zoom, or written feedback. 

    • Our in-person and Zoom consultations are typically 45 minutes and can be scheduled half an hour to two weeks in advance.
    • Written feedback consultations cover up to five, double-spaced pages of a Microsoft Word document and take 24 – 72 hours to return, depending on the day and date under which they are submitted. 

    Graduate students and faculty should go to our UWC for Graduate Studies (UWCGS) webpage and click on the link to request writing support. Writers can submit one request per week and should make requests for in-person and Zoom consultations at least 24 hours in advance. Written feedback consultations have no page limit, but turnaround time is dependent on the length of the document, typically two days for each ten pages with longer times for submissions on weekends.  

     

  • What programs offer specialized writing support, and where can I find them? 

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    Some programs provide specialized writing support for their students, although writers are welcome to schedule appointments with any of our consultants at any location. 

    Undergraduate students can schedule specialized writing support in WCOnline for:

    • STEM disciplines (CAS): in person in the Science Success Center in 128 Mark Jefferson; via Zoom; and through written feedback
    • business (COB): in person in 115 Halle Library; via Zoom; and through written feedback
    • all disciplines in the GameAbove College of Engineering and Technology (GACET): in person in 104H Roosevelt and 206 Sill; via Zoom; and through written feedback
    • Nursing, Health Administration, Social Work, and Health Promotion and Human Performance (CHHS): in person on the third floor cubicles of Marshall; via Zoom; and through written feedback
    • gen ed, first-year writing, and humanities and social sciences (CAS): in person in 211 Pray-Harrold; via Zoom; and through written feedback
    • generalized writing support: in person in 115 Halle library; via Zoom; and through written feedback

    Graduate students can request writing support using the link on our UWC for Graduate Studies webpage

     

  • Can I refer specific students for consultations to the UWC? 

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    If you have identified specific undergraduate writers who would benefit from working with us, you may email our WCOnline, Workshops, & Resources Coordinator, Rhonda L. McCaffery. If you have identified specific graduate writers who would benefit from working with us, you may email our UWCGS Coordinator, Beth Sabo. Describe the type of help you would like your students to receive and Rhonda or Beth will recommend several consultants who can help, help the student schedule consultations, and describe the student’s needs to the consultants before they meet. Consultants can also send summaries following each consultation to you. 

  • What types of writing workshops do you offer? 

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    We offer 45 – 60 minute writing workshops both in-person and over Zoom on 

    • applying citation styles
    • organizing writing
    • understanding assignments
    • understanding specific genres
    • using and synthesizing evidence
    • doing peer review

    Custom workshops can also be developed with at least one month’s notice. To view a full, descriptive list of our workshops or to request a pre-existing or custom workshop, go to our UWC Workshops webpage. Workshops should be requested at least two weeks in advance, and instructors must be present at the workshops. To preview our workshop slides, go to our UWC - Instructor Resources Canvas site. If you are not a member of the site, email [email protected] and ask to be added to the site. 

  • I’d like to develop a closer working relationship with the UWC. Whom can I contact? 

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    If you’d like to begin working more closely with the UWC, please contact the coordinator appropriate for your discipline:

    • Beth Sabo ([email protected]) for graduate student and faculty support (UWCGS) and STEM disciplines (BIO, PSY, etc.)
    • Shelby Taylor ([email protected]) for humanities and social sciences (CAS)
    • Jane Stephenson ([email protected]) for business (COB)
    • Rachel Dick ([email protected]) for all disciplines in the GameAbove College of Engineering and Technology (GACET)
    • Bryan Alfaro ([email protected]) for Nursing, Health Administration, Social Work, and Health Promotion and Human Performance (CHHS)
    • Ann Blakeslee ([email protected]) for administrative matters and teaching support

    All other requests can be sent to our WCOnline, Workshops, & Resources Coordinator, Rhonda L. McCaffery ([email protected]). 

  • Where can I find information and resources on the UWC?

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    You can find information like the current schedule, syllabus texts, the types of consultations we offer, and the workshops we offer on our website. You can also find this information and additional resources, including our workshop slides, video links, and UWC Student Reminders request form in our Canvas site, UWC — Instructor Resources. If you are not a member, email [email protected] and ask to be added to the site. 

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