Graduate Seminars in Academic Writing Coming Back this Fall | These are Free |
Apply by August 22, 2014 for Full Consideration for the First Fall Session
During the 2014-15 school year, the University Writing Center will offer no-cost seminars in academic writing for UConn graduate students. While there will be some direct instruction and individual conferences, the seminars will focus on peer-reviewing each participant’s working draft—that is, the course will adopt neither a lecture nor skills-and-drills format. Instead, the seminars will function as an interactive workshop.
Learning to write well takes time, commitment, and experience, and while no single course can do the job alone, this 5-week seminar will give participants guided practice in becoming more skilled writers of research and scholarship. Students must come with a working project (for example, a dissertation chapter, journal article, grant proposal, or course paper) because they will apply the strategies covered in class to that ongoing project.
These seminars do not carry UConn academic credit, nor are they graded. We simply aim to help graduate students improve their writing in ways that will serve them well in their academic careers.
During the Fall 2014 semester, the seminar will be offered twice:
o First Session: September 10th – October 8th, Wednesdays, 3 – 6 pm
o Second Session: October 21st – November 18th, Tuesdays, 1 – 4 pm (an announcement to apply for the second session will be sent out in late September/early October)
Important Details About the Seminar:
o Applicants must be full-time, degree-seeking UConn graduate students. International grad students are welcome
o Participants are expected to commit 3 additional hours per week (outside of the meeting time) to complete assignments and to peer-review the drafts of others
o Submission of a working draft (at least 5 double-spaced pages) is required prior to the beginning of the session
o Submission of a $100 deposit check is required (it will be refunded upon satisfactory completion of the seminar, which is based solely on attendance and participation—if you attend and do your part, you get your deposit back!)
o For full consideration, please submit your application by August 22nd
o Applications submitted after that date will be considered if spaces are available.
o Course enrollment is limited to 25 students per session. If we receive more applications than there are seats available (which is likely), we will make decisions about enrollment based on seniority, the urgency of the proposed project, the degree of fit between the course and the applicant’s writing project, the application submission date, and the motivation of the applicant. We expect to inform applicants about acceptances and session assignments in early September.
o Apply online using your UConn email address:
o If you have questions about the seminar, please contact us at: gradwriting@uconn.edu
These seminars are made possible through funding from the Graduate School and the University Writing Center. Other opportunities for graduate writing support include individualized tutorials at the Writing Center, Graduate Writing Retreats, and Dissertation Boot Camps.