University Writing

Frequently Asked Questions About Writing Fellows

Why do I have a Writing Fellow?

Your professor requested to have Writing Fellows assigned to your class. This service is provided through BYU's Writing Across the Curriculum Program at no cost to the professor or the department. Your professor knows that writing is one of the most important skills you can gain, and that one of the best ways to learn is by receiving personalized feedback and revising based on this feedback. The purpose of the Writing Fellows Program is to help students become better writers overall, not just to write one good paper. (Though your papers for this class will certainly improve as you work with your Writing Fellow.)

What can I expect?

About two weeks before the final paper is due to your teacher, you will prepare a good draft for your Writing Fellow to review. The better this draft is, the more the WF can help you. After about a week, your WF will return this draft to you with detailed comments and a one-page personal letter explaining what is working well in the draft and what might benefit from revision. 

During the next week, you will have a personal conference with your WF. Make revisions to your draft before the conference.(Make revisions based on the WF comments and your own review of the paper.) Come to the conference ready to discuss your draft. Bring your own specific questions (i.e. "What do you think of this transition?" "Do you think I need more support here?"). This is a great opportunity to get one-on-one help.

Why should I trust the Writing Fellow?

The Writing Fellow has undergone thorough training in how to spot potential problems in student papers and how to help students to revise, as well as working closely  with your professor to  learn about specific expectations for this paper.  He or she will give you good feedback based on this knowledge. However, you are in charge of your paper, and it will be up to you to make decisions about how best to revise.