Writing tutors are happy to work with you at any stage of the writing process, including brainstorming, drafting, organizing, revising, and editing. A writing tutor can help you even if you’ve just started thinking about a paper and haven’t written a single word!

Bring your essay instructions and any notes, outlines, or drafts. Before you see a writing tutor, you may want to make a list of specific questions and issues you’d like to discuss. 

If you have a printed copy of your essay, that’s great. If not, the Writing Support Center has computers and laptops for you to use during your session. 

Yes! Tutors provide instructional guidance to help students learn to identify and correct their grammatical errors. We also have user-friendly software for independent study. 

A writing tutor will not proofread your entire essay; instead, a tutor will help you learn to identify issues so you can become an effective proofreader of your own work.

Yes! The Writing Support Center strives to make materials and activities accessible to all participants. Please indicate on the Penji appointment form anything we can do to make your session more successful and/or contact the Writing Support Center in advance to make arrangements. 

If you visit a writing tutor for an individual session, your writing tutor will send you a post-session email that provides a brief summary of your session. If you attend a Zoom workshop, you will not receive a post-session email, so it is best to take a screenshot during the workshop to keep as your receipt of attendance. You can forward any required proof of attendance to your instructor. The Writing Support Center provides student attendance reports for all English 101 and ESL 110 classes that have embedded tutoring.

You can make one 60-minute individual appointment per day and up to three appointments per week (including paper drop-offs). If you need additional assistance beyond our daily and weekly appointment maximums, you are welcome to drop in for tutoring, and a tutor will help you if they are available. Workshops, group sessions, and drop-ins do not count toward your appointment limit. Please note that if you have already received tutoring assistance, we will prioritize helping drop-ins who have not yet received assistance.

You can make up to three tutoring appointments per week, but in order to get the maximum benefit from tutoring, we recommend spacing out your appointments. Your tutor will provide some clear "next steps" for you during each appointment, and we recommend you spend some time addressing your tutor's suggestions before you return for another appointment.

To cancel your appointment, log into Penji and click on your appointment. Click on the three dots in the upper right-hand corner of your appointment to cancel. 

Missed appointments create an issue in the Writing Support Center because they prevent other students from accessing tutoring. If you miss two appointments, your Penji account will be locked and you will not be able to make further appointments. If your account is locked, please email writingsupport@laccd.edu so an administrator can assist you.

We don't have a wait list, but we do have drop in tutoring anytime! If you are unable to schedule an appointment at a convenient time, please log into Penji and click on "Drop in for tutoring or join the Writers' Room" and we will help you if a tutor is available. 

If you are required to complete tutoring hours for a program such as FYE or for a class, please make sure to schedule your Writing Center tutoring visits throughout the semester. Visiting the Writing Center throughout the semester maximizes the value of your tutoring sessions. If you attempt to schedule unnecessary appointments at the end of the semester simply to fulfill a requirement, the Writing Center may cancel your appointments to provide availability for students who need writing help.