Workshops – The Writing Center

Fall 2026 Kick Off Series

Start strongly! Join us for helpful workshops designed for international graduate students but open (and useful!) to all. We’re offering three strands in September:

Reading/Writing Series: Wednesdays 2:30-3:20 in person
Grammar Series: Thursdays 9:30-10:20 on Zoom
Oral Communication Series: Fridays 1:45-2:45 in person

Reading/Writing Series

Wednesdays, 2:30-3:20 pm. Graduate Student Center 211A W. Cameron Avenue.

Reading Efficiency September 2
Learn to manage your reading load before you fall behind or get overwhelmed. We’ll cover three major groups of metacognitive reading strategies with specific techniques for each. We’ll also share resources for keeping your notes organized and for maximizing comprehension and recall.

Research Introductions September 9
The typical research article introduction has a very predictable structure and language. Learn the formula for the introduction so you can find information quickly when you read and know where to put critical information when you write.

Response/Reaction Papers September 16
Come learn strategies for completing one of the most assigned graduate writing projects. We’ll discuss conventions of the genre and what makes this such a common assignment.

Principles of Citation and Avoiding Plagiarism September 23
Why is citation so important in US universities? How do you know what you should or shouldn’t cite? How can you work with language to avoid plagiarizing? How can a citation manager help you?

Using Generative AI and Translation Software September 30
Come learn strategies and best practices for using generative AI and machine translation responsibly and ethically. We’ll discuss when generative AI may be helpful and what its limitations are.

Grammar Series

Thursdays, 9:30-10:20 on Zoom. We’ll send the link.

Writing About Gender and Sexuality September 3
Should I write woman or female? What’s the difference? What does the acronym LGBTQIA stand for? Explore the answers to these questions and learn suggestions for making your writing about gender and sexuality more accurate and appropriate.

Writing About Race September 10
What are the appropriate/preferred terms for referring to people of different races/ethnicities? What does the acronym BIPOC stand for? How can article (a, an, the) use change the way my writing about race may be interpreted? We’ll try to demystify writing about race in the American academy. Come with lots of questions!

Improving Flow September 17
If you’re writing or presentation “flows,” your audience can follow the information easily. Come to this workshop to learn strategies to enhance the flow between paragraphs and individual sentences.

Verb Tenses in Discourse September 24
English has twelve tenses! Luckily, you only need to master three of them. This workshop will focus on using these three tenses correctly in research article introductions and discussion sections.

Oral Communication Series

Fridays, 1:45-2:45, FedEx Global Education Center room 2010

Cross Cultural Communication August 28
Several dimensions of culture may affect the success of our communication with people from other cultures. This workshop will describe these dimensions and invite participants to analyze their experiences, discuss strategies, and explore resources for more successful communication.

Pronunciation Assessment September 4
Come to this workshop and complete a quick assessment of your US English Pronunciation. Learn where you can best focus your energy to improve your pronunciation and comprehensibility.

Pronunciation: Why Stress? September 11
Getting the stress in the expected part of the word is the most important part of making sure your spoken English is understood. Come practice and learn strategies for pronouncing new words correctly.

Pronunciation: Vowels September 18
How many vowel sounds are there in US English? What’s the most common, and underappreciated, vowel sound in English? How does switching a word from a noun to a verb affect the vowel sounds? Come learn the answer to these questions and more!

Pronunciation: Consonants September 25
Do you struggle with “v” and “th”? What about “r” and “l,” or “ch” and “sh”? Come get targeted instruction with any consonant sounds you find difficult. Practice with one of our wonderful volunteers.

Pronunciation: Consonant Clusters October 2
Some consonants can be tricky, and it can be even more difficult when we start combining consonants to form consonant clusters. Come practice and improve!

Pronunciation: Bringing it All Together October 9
Learn how we use focus and reductions to get our message across. We’ll look at how we can best pronounce phrases and sentences to be understood and keep audiences engaged.

FALL BREAK – No Workshop October 16

Presentations: Planning October 23
What information will should I include in my presentation? What should I leave out? What should guide these decisions? How will I organize the information? How will I make sure I am prepared for my presentation?

Presentations: Slide Design October 30
What makes slides effective or ineffective? How do I make my slides stand out? What are some best practices for slide design? How can slides best support my message? What’s the most important thing to avoid in my slides?

Presentations: Delivering a Confident Presentation November 6
What do I do if I’m really nervous? How do I appear confident? Where should I look? What should I do with my hands? How can I make sure I’m understood? What makes a speaker sound interesting or boring?

Presentations: Handling Questions and Wrapping-up November 13
How do I prepare for questions at the end of my talk? How do I know what people might ask? What if I don’t understand the question? What if the question is bad and I don’t want to answer? What’s the best way to end my talk?

Presentations: Practice! November 20
Come practice giving a presentation incorporating all the strategies you’ve learned in prior weeks!

Presentation Practice & Feedback Sessions

Are you preparing for an important presentation? Schedule a 45-minute individual appointment to practice your presentation and get feedback on your slides, presentation style, and any other concerns. For international graduate students and postdocs.
Schedule a practice presentation here.