Frequently Asked Questions

A writing consultation is an opportunity for UBC students to receive peer feedback on their writing at any stage in their writing process, from first drafts to final revisions. Doctoral writing consultants ask non-judgemental and non-evaluative questions, and offer observations using a pedagogically sound approach based on research in the field of writing studies. The formative feedback provides students with strategies aimed at revision.

Writing consultations are for all UBC students, writing in any discipline or profession, at any level of expertise. We serve students new to university writing, masters students in professional and academic programs, and doctoral students completing course work or writing the dissertation.

Doctoral writing consultants provide feedback (aimed at revision) on any and all documents: assignments set during a first-year writing course, thesis and dissertation chapters, research articles for publication, scientific abstracts, grant and scholarship applications, and all forms of creative writing.

If you are meeting with a writing consultant in person, feedback will involve a dialogue, with the consultant asking questions and offering real-time comments and suggestions as they read your work. If you have booked a written feedback appointment, feedback is provided as written commentary in the document you upload. To see examples of what this feedback might look like, see our bank of examples here.

Writing consultations are beneficial for a number of reasons. They support students at no cost, providing feedback additional to that of instructors, teaching assistants, and peers. Writing consultations motivate students to reflect on the particular writing situation. For example, doctoral writing consultants might ask about the purpose of the document, the intended audience, the overall organization or structure, and the in-text citation practices.

Writing consultations aim to introduce students to a broader perspective about the typical kinds of writing practices that take place at a research institution like UBC. Students can book multiple appointments (one a day), and choose to consult the same or a different writing consultant, from within their own discipline (as available) or outside of their discipline.

This video further explains the benefits of a writing consultation.

Writing consultations are available once a day. They can be booked up to fourteen days in advance. Writing consultations are limited to once a day for accessibility and pedagogical reasons. First, there are many students at UBC Vancouver and they all deserve equal opportunity to book a consultation. Second, more sessions per day risk providing a greater amount of feedback than can be incorporated in a revised draft.

Writing consultations are limited to twenty-five minutes for two reasons. First, there are many students at UBC and they all deserve equal opportunity to book a consultation. Second, sessions of longer than twenty-five minutes risk providing a greater amount of feedback than can be incorporated in a revised draft. The same is true of more than one session a day. Our goal is to make students’ time with us as impactful as possible, while reaching as many as we can.

Writing consultations are given by a team of trained doctoral writing consultants representing a broad spectrum of UBC disciplines, from Biomedical Engineering to Education, Neuroscience to Forestry, and Law to Political Science! All doctoral writing consultants provide the same pedagogically-informed feedback derived from detailed research in the field of writing studies. Students can meet with the same consultant over a succession of appointments, or they can select different consultants fresh perspectives on their writing.

Upload the document you want feedback on prior to your appointment time using the Attach File option in WCOnline. If you also have the assignment description or rubric, upload those as well. Complete the appointment form specifying what you would like feedback on.

If your appointment is for written feedback, that is all you need to do. You will be able to download your feedback from WCOnline at the end of the appointment time. If your appointment is in person, arrive at the location of your appointment no more than five minutes before your appointment time. You will receive a map specifying the location when you receive the email confirming your appointment.

You may submit co-authored articles and research papers for a writing consultation. You should mention this on the appointment form. If you are booking an in-person appointment, only one co-author can attend. The same document can only be submitted once per day for feedback. Different co-authors can submit the document for feedback, but this must be on different days.

Email the Centre for Writing and Scholarly Communication: cwsc.info [at] ubc.ca