Appointments

The Writing Center provides one-on-one consultations, both at our center and through online video chat. We’ll gladly help with whatever concerns or questions you have, no matter what stage your project is in.

Students are allowed one appointment per day up to three days a week. We give priority to writers with scheduled appointments. Walk-ins are welcome, but we can’t always guarantee availability.

To schedule your consultation, please visit our self-scheduling appointment system, call us at (804) 828-4851 or stop by our reception desk. You may request to work with a particular consultant.

Appointment times

We schedule our appointments in hour-long blocks, but your actual appointment time will be 50 minutes. We must stick to this appointment length to ensure we see all students on time.

How to prepare

Come ready. Bring any guidelines or materials related to your project, along with any questions and concerns. You don’t have to bring a complete draft. Making an appointment just to clarify an assignment or generate ideas is fine and even encouraged.

Come early. If you come too close to your assignment’s due date, you might not have time to make all the revisions you’d like. Plus, this leaves time for you to come back for additional feedback at later stages. Also, be on time (or five minutes early) since we give no-show appointments to those on the waiting list. Let us know if you need to cancel your appointment.

Come ready to talk. You’ll accomplish the most when the session is a dialogue rather than a mini-lecture. We won’t just edit your paper for you; we’ll work out ways to make it awesome together.

What to expect

When you arrive at the Writing Center, check in with our receptionist, who will connect you with a consultant who’s eager to hear about your project.

During your session, you might brainstorm to find a good topic driven by your interests and passions. Or you might create an outline, sorting through your ideas to figure out how they fit together. Maybe you’ll want to read through your first draft and talk about transitions, organization or tone. Or you might work together to polish your final draft.