Frequently Asked Questions

Can I make an appointment or just walk into the Writing Center to work with a consultant?

You can do both: you can make an appointment via elon.mywconline.com or you can walk in and work with a consultant, if one is available. If you walk into the Writing Center and a consultant is available, we will ask you to use our scheduling software to book a current appointment session. PLEASE NOTE: if you are more than five minutes late for an appointment, the consultant will work with any clients that walk in and you may have to reschedule your appointment.

Do I have to have a final draft to meet with a consultant?

No! In fact, we encourage you to visit us early in your writing process. Our consultants are prepared to work with you on any stage of the writing process, including understanding an assignment, brainstorming, starting your research, drafting, revising, editing, and documenting sources.

What should I bring with me?

Our consultants can assist you better if they understand your purpose for writing. Therefore, if possible, it is very helpful for you to bring your assignment handout for the consultant to read. You may also bring any other materials you will find helpful, such as notes, outlines, laptop, books, articles, etc.

Do you only work with humanities or first-year writing?

No—all majors and levels of writing are welcome. Our consultants take a class in which they study how people learn to write and how writing differs across different disciplines. While no one could be an expert in writing in all of the different disciplines, our consultants understand how different disciplines value different kinds of writing, and they know how to work with you and where to look for answers about different kinds of writing.

How many times can I visit The Writing Center?

We encourage you to visit us as many times as you’d like, and you may bring in one assignment several times. We do ask that after working with a consultant, you take some time to work on your assignment alone before visiting us again. This way, you get a chance to practice some of the strategies and to experiment with the ideas that the consultant suggested, before meeting with the same or another consultant.

Will you edit my paper or correct my citations?

Our goal is to help you develop strategies and practices that can help you with your current and future writing assignments. Editing and correcting your citations does not achieve these goals. However, a consultant can work alongside you as you practice editing strategies or check your citations using an online or print resource.

What does a typical session look like? How long does a session last?

When you make an appointment, you fill out a “Client Needs Survey” — this helps you figure out your priorities, and it will help the consultant understand your needs. When you arrive, you and your consultant will work collaboratively through your piece of writing and/or on your questions. You might read parts of your work together and then discuss those parts, both of you asking and answering questions that have been raised, going online to identify helpful resources, etc. At the end of the session, your consultant may ask you to set some goals for yourself as you continue to work on your writing project. Then the consultant will complete a Report for your professor explaining what you worked on in that session. A session can last up to 45-minutes.

Do you have to inform my professor that I visited The Writing Center?

If you prefer that a Report not be sent to your professor, tell your consultant at the end of your session. You should know, however, that working with a consultant in The Writing Center shows that you care enough about your writing, your assignment, and your education to take the time to get peer feedback, and most professors will view your visit to the Center positively. In addition, professors find it useful to read about what kinds of writing-related issues their students want to work on with a Writing Center consultant.

How can I get a job as a Writing Center consultant?

Enroll in English 3090: Writing Center Workshop. In this class, students study theories about how people learn to write, strategies for helping people become more effective writers, how writing differs across the disciplines, etc. After completing this class successfully, students are then eligible to apply to work for pay in The Writing Center.