The Undergraduate Writing Center
The Undergraduate Writing Center:
- Is staffed by undergraduate students from all backgrounds and disciplines who are trained to collaborate with writers from all backgrounds and disciplines.
- Promotes student agency and supports students as they navigate the challenges of reading, writing, and thinking in college.
- Values difference and the multiplicity of student discourse, and aims to mediate the expectations of the discourses present at the university.
- Strives for engaged and experiential learning, and therefore is not a proofreading service.
- Uses conversation as the venue for assisting students in their endeavors.
Writers might work with us to:
- Review assignments and brainstorm possibilities for responding.
- Conceptualize an idea and think through possibilities for its construction and delivery.
- Develop and revise drafts to fulfill assignments and achieve goals.
- Evaluate and respond to expectations of the assignment, professor, and university.
- Make informed communication decisions based on audience, purpose, and genre and discipline conventions.
- Find and use resources related to writing and editing.
Want to know more? Check out our FAQ page for common questions about the Writing Center.
Commitment to Anti-Racism, Equity, and Social Justice
In the Writing Center, administrators and consultants are committed to anti-racist and inclusive pedagogy. We study the intersections of writing centers and social justice to deepen our understanding of the strategies we employ and the effects of those strategies. We use theories and frameworks such as critical literacy, contrastive rhetoric, critical race theory, and rhetorical listening as we attempt to enact a pedagogy of belonging.
Read our Statement of Antiractist and Inclusive Commitment.
Interested in being a writing consultant?
The Writing Center is staffed by WSU students from all disciplines who enjoy talking about writing, collaborating with peers, and supporting the development of their fellow students as writers and engaged learners. Students interested in working for the Writing Center should expect to learn about issues of privilege and power as they relate to academic writing and should be eager to counteract these systems through intentional tutoring methods. Students from disciplines other than English are encouraged to apply.
If you’re interested in becoming a writing consultant, contact the director, Brooklyn Walter: brooklyn.walter@wsu.edu
Tutorial Service for Online Students
Global Campus students and students unable to visit an on-campus Writing Center are encouraged to use eTutoring. Go to eTutoringOnline.org, select Washington State University from the list of participating schools, and follow the first time log-in instructions to gain access.
Please note that like the on-campus Writing Centers at WSU, eTutoring is not a proofreading service. Writers receive written suggestions and feedback, as well as some support with grammar, but online tutors are not equipped or trained to line-edit writing.
We also recommend the Purdue Online Writing Lab for a quick reference for composing, revising, end editing your own essays, and for help with citation: The Purdue Owl.