As internationals not all of us are gifted with great writing skills…English may not be your first language…If you are in graduate school and end up taking courses that involve lot of writing like papers, presentations, etc…you may need some help with them… In your home country, some of you might go to a friend, tutor or pay someone to help you correct them, but in US schools there are writing centers to help you. I have used writing centers in all the schools I studied and they helped me quite a bit. Let me explain you how they can help you.
What are writing centers in US schools ?
As the name suggests, they are student service centers to help you with your writing skills. Writing centers are FREE to students. It is part of your differential tuition fee that you pay every semester. Writing centers have professionals with strong English writing skills. Typically, if you specifically writing a research paper in certain style or format like APA or Chicago style, they are trained to helped you.
How do Writing centers work ?
Most of the writing centers work on an appointment basis. You would have to book an appointment. You can also walk-in and see if they have a spot, but it is always recommended to call and book appointment or book on their website. So, when you meet a tutor in writing center, they ask your project details and what you want to accomplish and may be share the draft, they explain you how to write…they help you brainstorm ideas and put a draft…you schedule a follow up appointment and then go over final paper…In fact, they helped me get an ‘A’ grade in a research paper that I was supposed to write in APA style…
Writing center website would have some resources to improve your writing as well. For instance, check out APA style guide by Purdue Univ Writing center.
Most of the schools have this free service for students, why not take advantage and improve your writing skills…
Did you ever use writing center in US ? Any experiences ?
Image credit : http://www.english.ccsu.edu/writing/images/writing%20center%20C.jpg