Tutoring

Tutoring is available on a drop-in basis or by appointment. All our appointments are made online through our Online Reservation System. The SJSU Writing Center is staffed by professional instructors and upper-division or graduate-level Writing Specialists who have met a rigorous GPA requirement and are well trained to assist all students at all levels within all disciplines. Writing Specialists will help you find a topic, organize your paper, cite sources, avoid plagiarism, and use correct grammar and punctuation. We understand the special needs of students learning English as a second language and returning students, and we're experts in all phases of writing.

Harilaos was a huge help. He sat down with me and helped me come up with an entire thesis. He also helped me organize my whole paper in 45 minutes. He knew exactly how to guide me, and he had really great ideas that got me motivated to finish the paper. Very inspirational!

Marie Dennis
Junior, Sociology

How should I prepare?

Before you come in, review the assignment and talk to your instructor about his or her expectations. You may want to research in advance, or even just write down an outline or some brief notes about your ideas.

What should I bring?

Bring whatever writing you want to work on during the session, along with the details of your assignment, any preliminary research or notes, and a general idea of what you would like us to help you with. If your instructor has made comments on other papers that might be relevant to the current assignment, bring them along as well. Remember that you must bring your assignment already printed out -- the Writing Center cannot provide computers or printing services, and tutors will not work from documents on laptops.

Here's an example of a standard tutoring session:

After arriving at the Writing Center (on time, or even a little early), check in with the Admin at the front desk. When it's time for your appointment, the Admin will introduce you to your Writing Specialist. Your Writing Specialist will greet you and guide you to a table in our tutoring room.

The Writing Specialist will begin your session by asking what type of document you've brought to work on and what concerns you have—what exactly do you want to cover during this session? Give the Writing Specialist your assignment, prompts, or any other relevant material. The Writing Specialist will do his or her best to address as many of your concerns as possible.

During the session, your Writing Specialist may ask you to read your paper aloud. By hearing the paper read aloud, you will catch errors in the paper and correct them. You will also identify sentences that sound awkward or incoherent.

After you have read the paper aloud, your Writing Specialist will jot down one or two things you will focus on during the session. You have only a thirty-minute session, so you must use your time efficiently. If you have other things you want to work on, you may make another appointment.

You, the student, will retain ownership of your work. The Writing Specialist will ask you to write comments and suggestions on your paper. You will be actively involved in figuring out ways to improve your work.

At the end of the session, your Writing Specialist will take two minutes to review and reinforce what you worked on during the session. If you weren't able to get through the entire paper, the Writing Specialist may recommend that you make another appointment to continue working on your assignment.

With your permission, the Writing Specialist will follow up the session with an e-mail to your instructor. The e-mail will give your name and course, and it will briefly state what you worked on. Instructors find it very helpful to receive this information.

Group Tutoring

The Writing Center is happy to assist with group projects. When you schedule your appointment, simply let the administrator know that you're bringing a group so that we can make the appropriate seating arrangements. Before coming to the Writing Center or setting up your appointment, you should discuss possible appointment times with your group. Ideally, everyone in the group should attend, but if that's not possible, we'll gladly meet with one or more participants.

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SJSU Writing Center
One Washington Square
San José, CA 95192-0172
408.924.2308
Located in Clark Hall, Suite 126

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San José State University - Home of the Spartans
One Washington Square - San José, California USA, 95192 - 408.924.1000