FAQs for Students
During an in-person or virtual consultation, you have 45 minutes of undivided attention from one of our consultants. We will have a conversation with you and read through your writing to collaborate with you on identifying and addressing gaps in ideas, problems in organization, grammatical errors, formatting conventions, and elements of style.
You should come with concerns or questions you have about your writing so that our consultants can provide you with directed guidance. We may not get to everything in your paper during one 45-minute session, but your writing skills will improve if you consistently make appointments to work on your writing.
When you submit your paper to the OWL, a consultant will spend 45 minutes reading your paper and the assignment instructions and will give written feedback to help you identify where and why a reader might be confused, where you might need more support for your arguments, and where you might need connection between ideas. We also help to point out any places that you might not be fulfilling the assignment criteria.
When you submit, you should include all instructions, rubrics, or other materials that explain the writing you are doing. That will help your consultant give you the most detailed feedback so that you will have a clear sense of how to make revisions.
We will try to review up to 5 double-spaced pages of your paper; however, depending on the types of feedback needed, we may not be able to get to that much.
If you want help with grammar and sentence-level issues or with creating your references page, you should schedule an in-person or virtual consultation instead; we cannot teach you these skills effectively via written feedback.
If you have a question that will take 10 minutes or less to answer, you may send it via email or Google Chat to writingcenter@unlv.edu, call us at 702-895-3908, or stop by the Writing Center at Campus Resource Center, Room 216. During open hours, a consultant usually can respond within 30 minutes.
You may only submit 1 Quick Question per day. If the consultant believes it will take more than ten minutes to respond, the writer will need to schedule a consultation.
You may call us at 702-895-3908 or stop by the Writing Center in Campus Resource Center, Room 216 anytime to make an appointment. You may also go online to MyUNLV to book a consultation at least 1 hour before your desired time.
We do accept drop-ins, but we cannot guarantee that you will meet with a consultant unless you schedule an appointment in advance.
At busy times of the semester, like midterms and finals, we recommend scheduling appointments about one week in advance because we fill up fast.
Writers are limited to 3 in-person and virtual consultations and 2 OWL submissions each week – a total of 5 sessions. Writers with DRC accommodations may request more by speaking with your DRC specialist.
You may hold more than one in-person and/or virtual consultation in a day, but there must be a two-hour gap between the end of the first appointment and the beginning of the second appointment so you have time to revise and work on what gets covered in the first appointment.
You may only submit to the OWL portal once every 24 hours and only once over the weekend when we can accept OWLs (between 4 p.m. on Friday and 12 p.m. on Sunday). You may submit the same paper twice only if you have made revisions between submissions or if you have a longer paper and want us to look at a different range of pages.
Only writers with DRC accommodations can extend the time of their consultation. Consultations are set at 45 minutes because it is exhausting for both the writer and the consultant to work on one piece of writing for longer than that without a break. The time length ensures that you can get several of your questions answered and will leave with next steps for revising on your own time.
If you do not have a DRC accommodation and want to keep working on your paper with a consultant, simply schedule another appointment. You can even schedule for the same day as long as there is a 2-hour gap between the end of the first appointment and the start of the second. That way you have time to work on those next steps in between sessions.
If you cannot make your appointment, you may cancel online at least an hour in advance and up to the start of the appointment time by calling us at 702-895-3908.
If you are going to be up to 20 minutes late, please call and let us know. If you do not notify us, we will consider you a No Show after 15 minutes. We will not begin any consultation after 20 minutes past the appointment time.
If you are a No Show two times during the semester, you lose the privilege of scheduling appointments online for the rest of that semester. You will have to call us to make any appointments.
Yes! To do so, put your instructor’s full name and email address on your intake sheet. At the end of each week, we will send your instructor an email that includes an overview of what we discussed during your consultation. Consultants will not sign anything, take photos with you, or offer any other options for notifying instructors.
We will not inform your instructors if you do not engage fully with the consultant during the session or if you simply stop by the Writing Center.
You might realize after your consultation that you would like your instructor notified. Just call, email, send a Google Chat, or stop by with that request, and we can send a notification retroactively.
That’s not a problem! We respect your confidentiality and will not communicate anything about your consultations with anyone unless you give us permission.
If you do not want to notify anyone of your visit, simply leave the space for your instructor’s name and email address blank on the intake sheet.
No. Because we want to help writers learn and improve skills, we are not an editing and proofreading service. Instead, we work with writers to help them learn how to identify and correct their own grammar and sentence-level issues.
We understand that sometimes writers have difficulty coming to campus for an in-person consultation. For that reason, we offer virtual consultations and OWL consultations.
The Writing Center’s consultations and resources are free services available to all UNLV students, faculty, and staff.
Our consultants are happy to assist with any writing task, with the exception of legal forms and documents that aren’t written in English. Our consultants have worked with writers from a variety of disciplines who are completing collegiate and post-collegiate work. In addition to academic writing, we also help with application essays, personal statements, resumes, and creative writing.
If you are looking for additional help on a resume, cover letter, or application letter, you can also schedule an appointment with UNLV Career Services.
Yes, you can come for an in-person or virtual consultation. Bring your assignment instructions, any notes you may have, and anything you might have brainstormed. We can help you to develop and organize your ideas, identify strategies for getting unstuck, and locate research sources, if that is necessary.
We cannot promise any particular grade because we are not the ones ultimately grading your paper. Grades depend on many things, including your skill level, the state of your draft, your knowledge of the class content, and what your instructor wants you to demonstrate through your writing.
If you want to maximize your chances of getting an A, be prepared to write several drafts of your paper. When seeking help from the Writing Center, come as early in the drafting process as possible and try to visit more than once.
Yes! Our consultants have received training to work with all writers and have developed strategies for helping multilingual writers with concerns they typically have. Our one-on-one interaction can often help writers learn English grammar and style better and faster than if you worked on your own.
Unfortunately not. Our consultants are only trained to work with writers on papers in English.
You might check with the Language Resource Center to see what services they offer writers working in other languages.
Unfortunately not. We are only able to work with currently enrolled UNLV students and employed faculty and staff.
If you are looking for help on a resume, cover letter, or application letter, alumni can schedule an appointment with UNLV Career Services.
Most of our consultants are graduate students pursuing an M.A. in English Literature or an M.F.A in Creative Writing. We also employ a few instructors from the English Department and undergraduate students from other disciplines every semester. All of our consultants are excellent writers and receive intensive training to work in the Writing Center.
To learn more about each of our consultants, check out our Staff page.
Yes! Consultants can come to your group’s meeting to give a presentation that overviews the Writing Center’s offerings, explains how to schedule an appointment, and clarifies what to expect in a consultation.
We can also conduct workshops on particular writing-related topics. We have several short workshops already created on topics, such as MLA and APA citation, revising and editing, general writing advice, and more. With enough time to communicate with you about your group members’ needs and to research those concerns, we can also create a tailored workshop for your student group.
Email us at writingcenter@unlv.edu for more information and to schedule a presentation. Note that all of these services are subject to consultants’ availability.
Yes! We are happy to work with graduate students of all levels and disciplines.
FAQs for Faculty and Staff
Our website is full of information about what the Writing Center is, the types of consultations we offer, how writers can schedule appointments, and why we don’t edit and proofread pieces of writing for the writer. If you prefer for us to talk to your students about the Writing Center, our consultants can come give a 15-20 minute in-person or virtual class presentation.
View more information about presentations and find the presentation request form. Note that this service is subject to consultants’ availability.
If you don’t have time for a consultant to come to your class, we also offer a video that you can show your students so that they understand when and why to schedule an appointment and which type of consultation would be best for them based on their needs and where they are in the writing process. View the video.
We ask that you do not require all of your students to visit the Writing Center for one assignment. What often happens is that students wait until the last minute, which overwhelms the Writing Center and means that we cannot serve other students those days and often cannot see all of your students either.
If you do want all of your students to experience a Writing Center consultation and you assign several writing activities through the semester, you may require that they come once at some point. That minimizes the number of students trying to schedule an appointment at the same time.
The Director and Assistant Director are also happy to speak with you to determine alternative options to encourage students to hold a Writing Center consultation.
First, let your students know verbally and note clearly on the assignment prompt that they should not use the Writing Center. Because our consultants always ask to see the prompt, they are likely to catch the restriction on that document if the student gives it to them.
Second, contact the Writing Center to let us know what class and assignment you do not want students to work with a consultant on. We cannot guarantee that we will catch every instance, but we will cancel any appointments we detect and direct the student back to you for support on their project.
Yes! We ask all students in the intake sheet to write their instructor’s full name and email address if they want you notified. Because we value all of our writers’ confidentiality, we will only let you know of their visit if they make the request for you to be notified.
Notifications will be emailed out at the end of each week, and will include a brief overview of what was discussed during the consultation. Consultants will not sign anything, take photos with students, or offer any other options for notifying instructors, so please do not ask students to collect these. Us sending out notifications limits the possibility of students attempting to forge anything.
If you wish to be notified that your students came to the Writing Center, ask them to fill out the intake sheet with your contact information during their consultation. If they have already come for an appointment and need a notification sent out retroactively, they may call, email, send a Google Chat, or stop by the Writing Center with that request and we will comply.
We do not send notifications if a student does not engage fully with the consultant during the session or if they simply stop by the Writing Center and ask for a notification without having a consultation.
Absolutely! We work with all students, faculty, and staff at UNLV. Our consultants are able to work on any type of writing, including letters of recommendation, assignment prompts, memos, reports, and research articles.
The goals and logistics of the consultation are the same for faculty and staff as they are for students: Consultations last 45 minutes, and we strive to help you improve as a writer rather than editing and proofreading your writing for you.
Yes! We have a wide variety of handouts and workshop videos available on our website that you can use to teach writing concepts or tasks. You could also link to these in your assignment prompts for students to review.
If it’s easier, link our Canvas module in your WebCampus course page. We include resources specifically covering MLA and APA citations and links to our website so they can find other materials.
You can also request short, in-class workshops on specific writing-related topics. These offerings are subject to consultants’ availability.
Yes! Consultants can come to your class, department, or unit to give a 15-20 minute presentation that overviews the Writing Center’s offerings, explains how to schedule an appointment, and clarifies what to expect in a consultation.
We can also conduct workshops on particular writing-related topics. We have several short workshops already created on topics, such as MLA and APA citation, revising and editing, general writing advice, and more. With enough time to communicate with you about your students’ needs and to research those concerns, we can also create a tailored workshop for your class.
All of these services are subject to consultants’ availability.
View more information about presentations and find the presentation request form. If you would like a workshop that covers more than the Writing Center overview presentation, please include a general description of your needs and the best way for us to contact you to set up a meeting to further discuss it.
Yes! All of the Writing Center’s consultants are trained to closely read assignment prompts to help students ensure they are fulfilling the instructor’s expectations. If you would like an outside reader to explain what they find confusing and offer suggestions on language that might be more clear to students, please schedule an appointment for a consultation or submit to the OWL. View more information about our consultation types.
If you would like more hands-on assistance designing a writing assignment prompt or rubric, Dr. Erin Zimmerman, the Director of the Writing Center can help. Because the Writing Center is currently understaffed, and because much of fall semester is devoted to training consultants, she has more availability for this kind of work in spring and summer terms. To discuss your questions further, email the Writing Center administrators at writingcenter@unlv.edu or Erin directly at erin.zimmerman@unlv.edu.