Writing Lab

Location: 409 SSB
The Writing Lab, a division of the Department of English, is a friendly place to bring your essays, reports, resumé, or term papers for a critique. No appointment is necessary, and tutors are prepared to help both undergraduate and graduate students in all the disciplines. Some of the issues covered in the lab include organization, sentence clarity, development, grammar and usage. The Writing Lab tutors, many of whom have taken the same writing courses you will be taking, can assist you in achieving your best writing effort. A visit to the Writing Lab will give you the opportunity to receive feedback on any writing assignment for any course. Regular visits to the Writing Lab will help you maximize your writing effectiveness.

We offer one-on-one tutoring to help you improve your writing:

No appointment is necessary; use the lab services at your convenience.
We view writing as a learning process rather than a product, and will help you with any step in this process.
Windows, MS Word and laser printers are available for your use.
There is no charge for using the lab.
We will show you how to correct grammar errors, but will not take responsibility for correcting every one. The paper and the responsibility remain yours.

The links below provide help with problems many students encounter in their writing.

The writing process

How to write a thesis statement http://owl.english.purdue.edu/handouts/general/gl_thesis.html
How to outline: http://owl.english.purdue.edu/handouts/general/gl_outlinS.html
How to paraphrase http://owl.english.purdue.edu/handouts/print/research/r_paraphr.html
How to revise: http://www.rpi.edu/web/writingcenter/revise.html
How to proofread:http://owl.english.purdue.edu/handouts/general/gl_proof.html
Standards for Acceptable Submissions- Communication Dept.

Citing sources

Internet citation etc.: http://www.library.ucla.edu/url/referenc/citing.htm l
Quotation marks: http://www2.ncsu.edu:8010/ncsu/grammar/Quotes3.html
APA style: http://www.rpi.edu/web/writingcenter/apa.html
MLA style: http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/557/06/
Chicago style:
Standards for Acceptable Submissions- Communication Dept.
Sample research papers: http://dianahacker.com/rules/model.html
Annotated bibliography: htttp://www.unc.edu/depts/wcweb/handouts/annotated_bibliographies.html#top

Special writing projects

Memos:http://www.ccp.rpi.edu/memos.html
Resume & cover letter: http://www.ccp.rpi.edu/resume.html http://www.ccp.rpi.edu/cover_letter.html
Application essay:http://www.ccp.rpi.edu/gradapp.html
Application essay: http://www.internationalstudent.com/essay_writing/index.shtml
Abstract: http://research.berkeley.edu/ucday/abstract.html

Particular problems

Commas: http://owl.english.purdue.edu/handouts/grammar/g_commaproof.html
Apostrophes: http://www.ncsu.edu/ncsu/grammar/Apostro3.html
Hyphens: http://www.ncsu.edu/ncsu/grammar/Hyphen3.html
Affect/effect, Accept/except: http://owl.english.purdue.edu/handouts/grammar/g_spelprob.html
Active/passive voice: http://owl.english.purdue.edu/handouts/grammar/g_actpass.html
Grammar Rules and quizzes: http://www.ccc.commnet.edu/grammar

For ESL students

Word lookup & grammar info: http://www.m-w.com/

Word lookup for ESL students: http://nhdheinle.com

For creative writers

Advice and encouragement: www.crayne.com

Note: These sites provide general information. Consult your instructors about their particular requirements.

For instructors: Click here for student Writing Lab Referral Form.

Summer 2008 Hours --- May 12-July 31, 2008

Hours subject to change.

Monday	1 to 7 p.m.
Tuesday	10 a.m. to 3 p.m.
Wednesday	10 a.m. to 3 p.m.
Thursday	1 to 7 p.m.
Friday	CLOSED
Saturday	CLOSED
Sunday	1 p.m. to 5 p.m.

Closed May 25 & 26 for Memorial Day and July 6 for Independence Day.

Guides by Writing Lab Tutors

Writing the Graduate School Application Essay

Writing the history paper

Writing the Abstract
Meet the Writing Lab Tutors
To The Point Winter 08 The Writing Lab Newsletter
Writing Lab research project: Novelists' Careers