Graduate Writing Seminar Modules

• Content development & organization pointers
• Essay and journal article strategies
• Dissertation doctor
• APA and/or MLA basics
• Superior literature reviews
• Proctored group writing workshops
• Individual draft consultations

Content development & organization pointers – regardless of the type of academic writing being done, several strategies can be employed to help develop content. Strategies discussed include creating and writing from an outline, the use of inspirational epigrams and headings, narrative story telling, metaphor development, and more.

Essay and journal article strategies – focusing on developing essays and articles up to 6000 words in length, this module addresses how to write to specific prompts found in calls for papers and how to polish an essay for submission to a journal or for presentation at a conference.

Dissertation doctor – this module takes the scariness out of writing a dissertation by breaking it down into a clear sequence of steps, covering expected content in each chapter, teasing conclusions without giving everything away, using previously created content, avoiding plagiarism, admitting flaws in a way that works for your argument, and advice on how to keep going until the final page is written.

APA and/or MLA basics – Everything you need to know about formatting your academic documents but were too busy to ask.

Superior literature reviews – The literature review is a staple of academic writing, but it is rare that anyone is ever taught how to do one well. This module does just that. Topics covered include finding sources, using others’ material to begin crafting your own argument, taking your organization to another level, and properly citing your sources.

 Proctored group writing workshops – This module gives your students the opportunity to work on drafts in development for any purpose, from class work to dissertations. The module begins with an open question/answer time with the editor addressing group concerns, followed by writing time in which the editor will float from student to student as needed to address individual questions.

Individual draft consultations – 60 minute consultations with individual students give them an opportunity to work with an editor on drafts in any state of development. Students desiring to work on completed drafts should expect the editor to be able to cover about 2500 words of completed material during the consultation.

Faculty Seminar Modules

• Ramp up your grading speed
• Dissertation director 101
• Composition basics
• Business writing for academia

Ramp up your grading speed – Grading papers just takes time, but there are ways to speed up your process and get more out of your grading time. From technology help to learning how to pick your battles, faculty can learn how to ease their paper-grading burden.

Dissertation director 101 – Most people agree that just knowing how to do a thing doesn’t necessarily mean you know how to teach that thing, yet faculty get tossed into directing dissertations without a whole lot of advice on how to be a help to students navigating that difficult task. This module covers the basics of what students need, and maybe just as important, what they don’t need from those charged with helping them complete the first major writing of their academic careers.

Composition basics – Learn how to set your students up to do their best writing and how to avoid pitfalls in creating assignments and in working with student writing. This module focuses on helping faculty position students to create superior academic writing.

 Business writing for academia – While faculty don’t often consider themselves business people, there is a lot to be learned from the principles of business writing, from how to create an email that gets desired results to how to prioritize writing tasks. This module teaches faculty tricks and tips of business writing that will improve the effectiveness of all of their written communication.