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Learn About the ASC

In this guide, students, faculty members, and staff can learn more about the ASC's tiers of service, policies, and staff.

Reserving Your Session

Please use the Academic Success Center Appointment Scheduler to reserve your seat to attend any of the available group sessions. 

Review the Register tab of the Learn the ASC page for assistance with registering for scheduled coaching.

*All session times are scheduled in Pacific Time (PT).

Dark blue key with two gears below  Writing Sessions Dark blue key with two gears below

Academic Writer Made Easy Icon

Monday 2:00 p.m. 

Are you using all the features available in Academic Writer? New and experienced users are invited to join us on a tour of Academic Writer’s three centers. During this interactive group session, you will learn how to explore the Learn center to locate APA guidelines and samples, use the Reference center to build and import references, and create papers using APA templates in the Write center. 

Analyzing Literature group session icon

Saturday 8:00 a.m. 

The Analyzing Literature group session will help you understand how to critically analyze literature and prior studies into common themes and outliers. During this session, you will have the opportunity to practice implementing various analysis strategies, with emphasis on the research funnel to support flow and structure. Students are encouraged to come with topic ideas for the coach to use as an example. This session is helpful to attend if you would like to learn how to analyze research.  

Basics of APA Style icon glasses on book

Wednesday 3:00 p.m. 

Learn more about the basics of APA Style in this group session. During the session, you will learn basic document setup, citation formatting, where to locate additional APA resources, and review some of the updates in the seventh edition of the Publication Manual. Through guided practice, you will build citations and references from sample sources. There is always time provided for interactive group discussions, so each session is unique. 

Decoding the Assignment Prompt icon hand holding magnifying glass

Thursday 3:00 p.m. 

There are times when it is hard to understand what you need to do after reading the assignment prompt. What are you being asked to do? What does it mean to discuss, argue, or justify? What parts need to appear in your finished product? If you’ve ever faced these questions or struggled to understand an assignment prompt, this group session is for you. Together, we will learn a variety of strategies for clearly identifying what you need to do based on the assignment description. 

Go with the flow Word Cloud

Sunday 1:00 p.m. 

How many times have you read an article and felt jolted by a poorly written passage? The ability to string words and sentences together so they provide a pleasant reading experience for your audience separates the amateur from the professional. In this interactive group session, you will be given strategies to recognize the causes of problems with flow, and you will learn how to create flow in your writing. You are encouraged to attend this session if you want to improve the flow of your writing.  

Mechanics Drive-In: Building Strong Writing icon- sign saying never give up

 

Wednesday 4:00 p.m. 

The Mechanics Drive-In will take the mystery out of academic writing in a supportive small group setting. Through guided practice and discussion, students will develop an understanding of the academic writing process. Students will practice the structures of academic writing, including but not limited to sentence structure, transitions, paragraph and section development, and building a thesis statement. 

MS Word Formatting Advanced Icon - Lined paper with a W

 

Thursday 4:00 p.m. 

Do you wish you knew easier ways to navigate Microsoft Word to create documents and tables? Join the group session to learn ways to use this software more effectively. During this session, you will discover shortcuts and tricks for tasks such as formatting essays and tables, alphabetizing lists, and creating hanging indentations! See step-by-step instructions for formatting tables and tables of contents, and practice these processes with a writing coach

MS Word Formatting Basics Icon - Lined paper with a W

 

Monday 4:00 p.m. 

Have you ever struggled with navigating Microsoft Word? Have you ever thought, “There has to be an easier way to use this software!” If so, help is here! Join the MS Word Basics Workshop to learn techniques to make writing and formatting more efficient and effective! See real-world formatting situations worked out step-by-step and practice these processes under the guidance of a writing coach

Outlining (Scholarly Writing) Icon Hand drawing a mind map

Tuesday 4:00 p.m. 

Outlining is a way of organizing ideas and is a helpful strategy for academic success. There are multiple ways to outline and doing so before and after composing a paper can help with the paper's arrangement and help ensure alignment with assignment prompts. This group session will include general organization techniques, creating an outline from an assignment prompt, creating an outline from a thesis, outlining for larger projects, and reverse outlining. 

Paragraph Development Icon- pyramid of building blocks

Thursday 4:00 p.m. 

Paragraphs are the building blocks of longer documents. Join this interactive group session to share, discuss, and practice strategies for building developed and effective paragraphs. You are encouraged to attend this group session whenever you have questions about paragraph development.

Proofreading Icon Magnifying glass with a red pencil

Tuesday 4:00 p.m. 

Learn best practices for proofreading during this hands-on session. A member of ASC's Proofreading Team will demonstrate how to proofread using documents submitted during sign-up. By focusing on APA, formatting, and grammar, writing content gains clarity and connection for the reader. Although not all documents or pages will be reviewed, all participants can gain insights into improving their work.

Properly Paraphrasing icon word cloud about paraphrasing

Tuesday 3:00 p.m. & Friday 4:00 p.m.

This group session provides students with strategies and tips to help students build paraphrasing skills. Students can bring their questions and concerns about paraphrasing to the session, participate in paraphrasing activities, group discussions, and evaluate sample paraphrases. You are encouraged to attend this group session whenever you have questions about paraphrasing or want to brush up on your paraphrasing skills. 

Scholarly and Academic Writing

Monday 3:00 p.m. 

During this group session, you will have the opportunity to discuss your questions about scholarly writing. You will be provided with resources so you are able to continue developing your scholarly voice after the session. There will be discussions over topics such as scholarly voice, concise writing, and writing guidelines. Interactive practice opportunities will be provided to help you develop your unique scholarly voice. 

Sensational Sentences Gray box with three gears

Wednesday 4:00 p.m. 

Have you ever read an article and wished you could write like that? Great writing begins with great sentences. In this interactive group session, you will learn how to create sentences that will elevate your writing, and you will be given strategies to recognize and correct common sentence construction errors. You are encouraged to attend this session if you want to improve your sentence writing skills.

Synthesis and Analysis group session icon

Tuesday at 4:00 p.m.

The Synthesis and Analysis group session will help you understand and utilize the key concepts of synthesis and analysis in academic writing. During this session, you will have the opportunity to practice synthesis and analysis through use of an outline for paragraph and paper development. Students are encouraged to come with topic ideas for the coach to use as a research example. This session is helpful to attend if you would like to learn how to synthesize information. 

Synthesizing Research group session icon

Sunday 8:00 a.m. 

The Synthesizing Research group session will assist you in understanding the outlining process starting with a main research topic. During this session, you will practice identifying themes, topics, or evidence for collaboration or divergence. Students are encouraged to come with topic ideas for the coach to use as an example. This session is helpful to attend if you need guidance on how to organize your ideas. 

Bookshelf with multicolored books and human shaped bookends

Monday 3:00 p.m. 

The introduction to any type of writing is important as it sets the tone for the reader and builds their expectations for what is to come. Equally important is the conclusion since it is the last contact a writer has with the reader. Together, they form the bookends that encapsulate the argument made within the paper itself. In this interactive group session, you will learn how to create scholarly introductions and conclusions that will capture your reader’s interest and ensure that they leave knowing your intended points. 

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