We are nearly a month into the Fall semester. By this point, you probably have multiple assignment deadlines leering at you from your Google Calendar. Maybe it’s a Problem of Practice Assignment. Maybe it’s a seminar paper. Maybe it’s an IMRaD report.
Regardless, you may be feeling a bit stressed about your writing. You are not alone! Whether you are a brand new graduate student fresh from undergrad who is feeling insecure about writing at the graduate level, or a graduate student who’s returning to academia after years of working in “the real world” and wondering if you still remember how to write academically, Baylor has a range of resources to support you as a writer. Read carefully through the resources below to see which option best suits your needs.
The Graduate Writing Center
The Graduate Writing Center (GWC) is a free resource to all graduate students, no matter their discipline or stage in the process. The GWC is staffed by late-stage doctoral students who serve as “expert readers” for your writing projects – think of your tutor like a preview of a blind peer reviewer at an academic journal. The GWC will not proof-read papers, but aims to identify higher order concerns within a piece of writing, with the ultimate goal of equipping graduate students with the tools and confidence to improve their writing acumen. You can request an appointment by emailing a copy of your document (no PDFs, please), a brief list of concerns, and your project deadline to gwc@baylor.edu. The GWC coordinator will connect you with a tutor, who will read through your work and then meet with you to talk through potential areas for growth and improvement. The GWC does not offer day-of appointments. The GWC also has a small staff, so we cannot guarantee appointments on the exact day or time you request. Each tutor works with their clients to arrange a mutually agreeable time. The GWC is closed for appointments over weekends, after business hours, and for all university holidays and breaks. You can check out the GWC’s additional resources at their website.
The University Writing Center
The University Writing Center (UWC) offers free personal consulting in all areas of writing and composing at any stage of the writing process. Whether you want a reader for a final draft, to schedule a brainstorm session, or to discuss the scope of a longterm assignment, the UWC can help. Because everyone writes differently, we tailor our support to meet each writer’s needs. We believe that writing benefits from feedback and response, so the UWC is a place for dialogue and conversation. We take the time to talk about your writing so that you can become a better writer, reviewer, and editor of your own work. We offer three types of consultations at the UWC: In-Person Tutoring, Online Synchronous Video Conferencing, and Online Asynchronous Written Feedback (returned within 48 business hours). For concerns or questions, please email us at uwc@baylor.edu. Any student, faculty, or staff member is welcome to schedule an appointment using our online scheduler. Drop-ins are also welcome, but we can’t guarantee availability so we recommend making an appointment. For more information on how to schedule your appointment, visit our Schedule an Appointment page.
The Online EdD Writing Center
If you are one of Baylor’s over 500 online EdD students, then there is a Writing Center dedicated solely to you and your needs. The EdD Writing Center provides writing support exclusively to Baylor’s Online Ed.D. students through all stages of the writing process. We offer regular writing workshops and individualized writing consultations via Zoom. The EdD Writing Center specializes in writing development strategies, meaning that rather than proofreading documents, we focus on identifying key writing techniques and practices that can help students grow as writers beyond the individual documents that we review. All appointments must be scheduled online. We recommend scheduling at least two weeks in advance to allow for a broader selection of available appointment times. Students wishing to have a document reviewed must submit the document to EdD_Writing@Baylor.edu or directly to their designated writing consultant at least two business days before the scheduled appointment to allow time for the Writing Consultant to review the document and provide quality written feedback. Students may schedule up to one writing consultation every three weeks. Students requiring more frequent support may request an exception with the written support of their faculty advisor.
Anna E. Beaudry is a second-year English PhD student studying 19th-century American literature. Her primary area of research focuses on female writers in the New England regionalist movement and material feminisms. She earned her Master’s at Baylor University in May 2020. Anna is Baylor’s Graduate Writing Center coordinator and president of the English Graduate Student Association. She is also BearTracks blog editor for the Graduate School.