Email Tutoring

For those students who can’t come to campus for a face-to-face session with a Writing Center tutor, email tutoring can be an effective option.  But there are some things you should know about working with an online tutor:

1.  While your tutor will be happy to help you improve your grammar and proofreading skills, she will not “fix” your paper for you.  The Writing Center is not an editing service, but instead a way to get helpful feedback at various points in the writing process.

2.  The turn-around time will be at least two days, so plan ahead.   

3.  When you submit a draft to the online tutor, you will get a quick reply acknowledging receipt of the draft. Also, the tutor may send back a few questions if something isn’t clear.  If you don’t receive an acknowledgement within 24 hours, contact the Writing Center assistant Kurt Bouman at kbouman[at] matcmadison [dot] edu or Writing Center director Sarah Z. Johnson at szjohnson[at] matcmadison [dot] edu.  

4. In the message of your email, please include your name and student i.d. number.  Attach the draft as a Word document.     

Okay, now you're ready.  Clickwritingcenter[at] matcmadison [dot] edu ( here )to send your draft.

The important thing to remember about your session is that the Writing Center is not a magic drop box that erases errors while you’re sleeping, doing the laundry, or going to class.  You need to be involved in the process to make it work.