Welcome to the University College Writing Center

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What is the Writing Center?

The Writing Center is located in Dacotah Hall 209. We offer free writing assistance to any student from any class on campus, and our primary goal is to help students improve their writing skills. We do not do the work for the students; instead, we assist them in implementing the skills they already possess while also facilitating the development of new skills. Students are encouraged to visit the Center at any stage of the writing process, from choosing a topic to polishing a final draft.

What do Writing Center tutors do?

• We help students generate ideas and find a "focus" for their papers.
• We read through rough drafts with students to help them spot unclear ideas, organizational problems, awkward sentences, underdeveloped paragraphs, etc.
• We show students how to support main ideas with details and examples.
• We help students learn to vary their sentence structures and unify their paragraphs.
• We show students various methods of developing introductions and conclusions.
• We help students understand the importance of audience in their writing.
• We help students spot grammatical and mechanical errors, and we explain these errors to the students.
• We help students with all stages of the research process, from choosing a topic to citing sources using a variety of documentation styles.
• We help students take essay tests more effectively.
• We help students develop resumes and write cover letters/letters of application.
• We help students prepare for the Rising Junior Proficiency Exam and the PPST.
• We present free workshops on different writing-related topics each week.
• We present workshops for any class on campus at the instructor's request.

What don’t Writing Center tutors do?

• We don't re-write students' papers for them.
• We don't simply proofread student papers and make corrections.
• We aren't a fix-it shop; students who use our services discuss their papers with tutors.

For more information contact Vicki Evans, Writing Center Director, at 626-7782 or via e-mail at evansv@northern.edu