What to Expect & How to Prepare for the Graduate Writing Center

If this is your first time visiting the GWC, you may be wondering what to expect in your session.

You can expect us to:

• be friendly and professional
• ask questions about your project and its requirements
• ask questions about your goals for the paper and for the session
• make a plan at the beginning of the session for going over your paper together
• listen and address your writing questions and concerns
• give constructive feedback and suggestions
• share tips or recommend writing, library, or research resources which will be helpful for your current project and future ones.

Preparing for Your Session

The more prepared you are, the more easily you’ll be able to discuss your project with us; and the more we know about your project and goals, the better we’ll be able to help you achieve them.

Here are a few things you can do before we meet to get the most benefit from your session:

• Re-read the assignment sheet or project description.
• Review your notes about the assignment, the topic, and/or the type (or genre) of project you’re working on.
• If this project is for a class, review any feedback your professor has already given you.
• Make a list of the specific questions you would like to ask us and the specific parts of your paper that you would like us to focus on during your session.
• If you recently met with us, review your notes from your last session and any suggestions we made. Are there any revisions you could make to this paper based on what we discussed last time? If so, feel free to get started!
• Remember to share your assignment/project description and your paper with us!