Writing Centre services

Ask questions pertaining to an unmarked essay or an instructor's feedback in a marked essay

Do you need information or help to move forward with an unmarked individual assignment? Please book a 30-minute appointment to meet with us so that we can assist you! During our conversation, we'll have a maximum of 25 minutes available to assist you by providing information and answering your questions. The last five minutes are set aside for us to send you an email with the resources discussed during the conversation.

The conversation can focus on one or two key questions or challenges, such as:

• writing in North American academic English (e.g., grammar, sentence structure, punctuation)
• getting started (e.g., brainstorming strategies, developing a thesis statement, writer's block)
• structure (e.g., essay structure, developing a plan or outline, paragraphs)
• arguments (e.g., developing claims, using evidence, demonstrating critical thinking)
• improving sentences (e.g., wordiness, self-editing strategies)
• APA Style (e.g., formatting, citations, referencing)
• questions about writing skills identified in an instructor's feedback in a previously-marked individual essay.
  • If you do not require additional feedback on an essay, but you'd like to discuss the skills noted by your instructor so you have new information to improve those areas in future works, we can help!

Please note that we do not review works in advance of 30-minute appointments, and please come prepared with the questions you'd like to discuss.

What to expect from a 30-minute appointment

We'll focus on answering your questions and sharing information to help you build your skills so you can make decisions about your writing versus telling you what to do in your draft work. Taking that skill-building approach ensures you're always in charge of and responsible for your document, which aligns with RRU's Academic Integrity Policy and the Writing Centre’s mandate. At all times, you will be accountable for your document and your successes.

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Improve overall as a writer through a detailed review and discussion of a marked, individual essay

As scholar-practitioners, RRU students develop their writing skills to be effective communicators in both their academic work and their careers. If you would like to learn more about yourself as an author and improve your writing skills, please book a 60-minute appointment to meet with us so that we may assist you!

• Students must book 60-minute appointments and send the marked version of their document that includes the instructor's feedback as a Word file at least three business days in advance.
• Requests with insufficient lead time will result in the appointment being cancelled.

On the day before the appointment, we will send you written feedback in your graded essay (see Stage 1: Written feedback below) as well as recommended resources to view before the appointment. Reading the feedback and viewing the resources will take at least one hour, so please choose a date and time that will give you sufficient time to complete those tasks before the meeting.

What to expect from a 60-minute appointment

These appointments have two stages:

Stage 1: Written feedback

We provide detailed feedback on one graded individual essay, and we use the graded version of the work that includes the instructor’s comments so we can address aspects of writing identified by the instructor in our feedback and conversation. Using a graded essay also allows us to confirm the assignment has been marked and will not be resubmitted for further grading, either as a rewrite or as part of an iterative process, to ensure we are not inadvertently providing a detailed edit on the document.

In our written feedback, we provide specific, constructive comments and suggestions regarding all aspects of writing, such as organization, structure of arguments and paragraphs, incorporation of research data, style, grammar, punctuation, and APA Style formatting. We return the document to the student with our feedback and any recommended materials the day before the appointment to give the student time to view all the materials and prepare questions. 

Stage 2: Meeting

During the meeting, we'll have a maximum of 50 minutes to discuss positive and challenging patterns in the work, offer specific suggestions that incorporate the student’s preferred approaches to thinking and writing, and answer any questions. The goal of these conversations is to give students practical, helpful information and tools that will assist them to be confident about writing for a variety of audiences.

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