Frequently Asked Questions

Our services at the WLC are for current students taking undergraduate courses at UIW's Broadway campus. You may come to the WLC to receive help on assignments for any of your UIW undergraduate courses. You may also come in to discuss writing that is not for a particular class (e.g. scholarship essays, personal statements, etc.). If you need help with writing for a graduate course, you will need to visit the Office of Research and Graduate Studies.

Additionally, all UIW students have access to Smarthinking, a supplemental online tutoring service available through Cardinal Apps. For more information on Smarthinking, please see our Smarthinking access guide.

There are no additional costs for tutoring; our services are included with your tuition.

At the WLC, we do accept walk-ins, but only if a tutor happens to be available when you come in. Because of this, we recommend you make an appointment ahead of time to ensure a tutor will be available. During busy times, such as midterms and finals, we highly encourage scheduling an appointment a few days in advance.

To schedule, you can visit us in the Student Engagement Center in room 3167 or call us at (210) 829-3870. Be ready to give your name, student ID number, information about what you wish to work on, and the best times you are available. Alternatively, you can email this information to the WLC at wlc@uiwtx.edu to request an appointment.

You can also schedule your own appointment through Cardinal Apps. Open EAB Navigate and select the "Get Assistance" button to begin the scheduling process. For more detailed instructions, please see our Self-Scheduling Guide.

You will work with the tutor to help expand ideas, incorporate research, identify errors, brainstorm, and ensure your work is well-organized and follows the prompt. If it is your first time coming to the WLC or Tutoring Services for the current semester, the tutor will have you sign a small sheet outlining the Tutoring Services and WLC policies and roles of tutors and tutees.

No! We hire writing tutors from a range of majors, including business, the sciences, nursing, and the humanities.

If you need help with a specific kind of writing, like writing for business or science, or with a particular format, like APA or Chicago, please contact us to schedule. Our tutors come from a range of disciplines, and our front desk team will work to put you with a tutor who has experience with your particular type of writing or format.

You may certainly request a specific tutor. If scheduling with the front desk, you can mention the tutor's name, and our front desk team will check that tutor's availability. If self-scheduling, you will be able to select your preferred tutor and book your session(s) with them. In case your preferred tutor is unavailable, you are welcome to see if another tutor is available at a time that works for you.

You must be present and play an active role in the tutoring session. Part of our process is having a conversation with you and supporting you as a writer; therefore, we cannot simply edit or proofread your paper.

Our tutors can meet with you at any part of the writing process, from brainstorming in the beginning to citing at the end. You are more than welcome to bring in whatever work or ideas you have so far.

You may schedule up to two writing sessions ahead of time. Once you attend a session, you are welcome to schedule additional appointments. You are welcome to schedule two hour-long appointments back-to-back. Educational research shows that extended sessions are not optimal for learning; therefore, we ask that you take a small 10-15 minute break after the first session.

Tutoring sessions are typically scheduled in one-hour blocks; however, you are welcome to schedule a thirty-minute session if an hour is not needed. You can use as much of the time as you need.

Yes, you are welcome to schedule a group session. Be ready to give the number of students who will be attending, information about what you wish to work on, and the best times you are available. Note: If you are writing a group paper, it is ideal to have all members present. Because the writing session is an interactive process, our tutors will only be able to fully review parts of the paper that were written by those in attendance.

To get the most out of your session, please be ready to access your syllabus, your professor's prompt, the assignment sheet, and any other information that you think is important for your work.

We understand things happen that may make you late for a session. In these cases, we ask that you please notify us, or the session may be released to other students 15 minutes after the start time.

To cancel or reschedule, you may call us at 210-829-3870, see us in person, or send us an email. Be ready to give your name, student ID number, and the appointment day and time. To make appointments available to other students, we ask that you give us at least two hours' notice if you need to cancel or reschedule an appointment. Any session canceled without at least two hours' notice will be counted as a no-show.

We ask for at least two hours' notice if you need to cancel or reschedule an appointment, or your session will be counted as a no-show. This is to help us ensure that appointments are available for other requesting students. We do understand that things sometimes come up, and you may not always be able to give two hours' notice, so you are allowed up to four no-shows per semester. After five no-shows (including appointments with Tutoring Services), you will not be able to make appointments for the remainder of the semester; however, you will be able to drop in for writing sessions, as available.

If you need tutoring outside our business hours, we recommend Smarthinking. Smarthinking is an online tutoring service available to all UIW students, 24/7, and can be found in Cardinal Apps. For more information, please see our Smarthinking access instructions.

We hire writing tutors who are motivated, responsible, and ready to support UIW undergraduate students throughout the writing process, regardless of the students' skill level. Working at the WLC will give you the chance to be a positive influence on students and to enhance your own writing and leadership skills. Students who would like to apply to become a writing tutor must have a 3.0 or higher GPA. To apply, please submit an application, two faculty recommendations, a sample of your academic writing, and an unofficial transcript. For more information, visit the Work at the WLC webpage or contact the Program Leader for the Writing and Learning Center, Charlie Briggs, at cbriggs@uiwtx.edu or (210) 283-6326.

Our printers may only be used for writing or content tutoring sessions. You may print your paper before or after the session. If you have not had a tutoring session and you need to print your paper, you may go to the library or the Media Center (ground floor of the Student Engagement Center).

You are welcome to use our computers if one is available. You can log into them using your UIW credentials (first part of UIW email and password).

You are welcome to bring snacks and drinks with you into the WLC. We ask that you please be discreet, keep your area clean, and use caution around the computers. We have napkins available if you need them.