Academic Support

At Slippery Rock University, we believe that academic support lays the unshakeable foundation for student success. Explore all of the resources designed to help build your monumental future.

• The Writing Center is available to students in all disciplines looking for peer feedback on their work and insight into the writing process as a whole.

• The Tutorial Center will connect students with a highly qualified undergraduate peer tutor who can assist with supplemental instruction and study skills individually or in a group, at no out of pocket cost.

Writing Center

Talking with others about academic, professional, or personal writing projects is one very important aspect of strengthening ourselves as writers. Writing Center Consultants work with you collaboratively to help you navigate your writing goals, obstacles, or challenges rather than revise or edit for you. They provide one-to-one support at any stage of your writing process and with any writing-related assignment. You may benefit from brainstorming your approach to an essay or research assignment, talking through a drafted paper, or working with a Writing Consultant on revising or resubmitting your draft. All Writing Center consultants are professionally qualified and trained to assist.

The Writing Center Offers:

• In-person, one-to-one sessions
• online-synchronous, one-to-one sessions
• Writing Workshops with specific topics (e.g., Getting Started on Research Papers)
• 10–15-minute Writing Center Introductions (Faculty can request a consultant to visit their classroom)
• Special requests from Faculty (e.g., writing assignment support)

Hours of Operation (Spring 2023)  

(From September 5 – December 8)

Monday-Thursday: 9:00am-7:00pm

Friday: 9:00am-4:00pm

Appointment Scheduling

All appointments, including workshop sign-ups should be scheduled using our online scheduling platform. Follow this link to make an appointment. While we do take walk-ins, you will still be asked to create an appointment on our scheduling system for the time you walk in. New users will be asked to complete a registration form before having access to the schedule. Further instructions for making and accessing your appointment are posted at the top of the scheduling platform once you are logged in.

The last 5-10 minutes of your appointment is reserved for re-capping your session, planning next steps, and completing the end-of-session report with the Writing Center Consultant. Students receive this report via their SRU email, which we can send to instructors if requested during the session.

In-person (face-to-face) Sessions (for students)

You will chat in person with a Writing Center Consultant. 

• Go to Bailey Library, First Floor, Room 100
• Arrive five minutes before your scheduled appointment time with your document and any supporting notes or instructions that correspond to your assignment. 
• You can also attach your document to the appointment scheduling system. 
• See the note above for walk-in appointments. 

Online-synchronous Sessions (for students)

You will chat in real-time with a consultant either through messaging, audio, and/or video through our online scheduling system, WCO. 

• login to your sru.mywconline.com account at least 5 minutes before your appointment
• select the orange appointment slot on the day and time you scheduled your appointment for
• select the red “Start Online Appointment” link on the appointment form
• Follow the instructions on the online platform or wait for your consultant to assist

Writing Center Workshops on Specific Topics (for students)

Are you looking for help with common writing issues or particularly challenging projects? Consider signing up for a Writing Center workshop focused on specific topics (e.g., how to get started on scientific research papers; how to incorporate scholarly sources and in-text citations; strategies for brainstorming your personal narrative). These workshops are held in the Writing Center. Dates, topics, and sign-ups will be available throughout the semester under the Fall 2023 Workshop tab on the scheduling system.

Writing Center in-class Introductions (for students but scheduled by faculty)

We would love to provide a 10–15-minute Writing Center Introduction in your classroom to share who we are and what we do. These introductions are interactive and incorporate your writing goals/ assignments. For example, we might provide suggestions on when to visit us during the process of writing a research paper or class portfolio and how students might best prepare for various sessions. We will also walk students through the scheduling system and how to make appointments. Please contact writing.center@sru.edu at least one week before your requested date for a Writing Center Introduction.

Special Requests from Faculty (for faculty)

If you would like support on creating writing assignment descriptions, lesson plans, or activities or would like to talk through how the Writing Center can provide support for you and/or your students through a specialized in-class workshop or structured peer-review session, please contact writing.center@sru.edu and the Director will reach out. All other ideas/requests not listed above are also welcome. Let’s collaborate!

Note on Required or Extra Credit Visits (for faculty)

If you plan to require students to visit the writing center or offer extra credit as a part of your class, please reach out to the Writing Center Director ( writing.center@sru.edu ) before doing so. Required and extra credit visits can be beneficial for students but without necessary context and preparation from Writing Center staff, those sessions can inscribe negative connotations with writing, unintentionally. Just reach out and we will schedule an in-class Writing Center Introduction and then work through the specifics of your required or extra credit student visits, giving consultants time to prepare for any specific needs.

Please note that we are not equipped to take full class walk-ins and we will re-direct students to make individual appointments. 

Please also note that the Writing Center does not replace course writing instruction and instead serves as a supplemental aid to writing support. Consultants can send an end-of-session report form to you if the student requests so during their appointment. Students can also forward their report post-session. 

SRU Writing Center Contact

Email writing.center@sru.edu or call (724) 738-2654.

Tutorial Center

The SRU Tutorial Center offers free academic assistance to SRU students. Our highly qualified peer tutors are trained to provide students with quality services through in-person or virtual appointments. Individual and Group Tutoring Sessions are available. For more information or questions about tutoring, please contact us per the information below.  

Contact Information: 

• Hours: Monday – Thursday, 9 a.m. – 7 p.m. and Friday, 9 a.m. – 4 p.m. 
  
• Location: 113 Bailey Library 
• Phone: 724.738.2845 
• Email: sru_tutoring@sru.edu (Please allow a reasonable amount of time for a response)  

How to Request Tutoring

Students can request a tutor by visiting their MySRU portal and selecting Tutor Request. Students will then be redirected to the Accudemia website where they can schedule an appointment with a tutor for academic assistance. If no tutor is listed for the desired course, please email us at sru_tutoring@sru.edu.

Summer & Winter Session Tutoring

Students taking summer classes can receive academic support through Tutor.com, which a virtual 24/7 tutoring platform. To request a tutor during the summer and winter sessions, please visit your D2L portal and select the “Tutor.com” tab on the main page.  Please note that the Tutorial Center does not offer in-person, peer tutoring during the summer and winter sessions.  

Apply to Be a Tutor

The Tutorial Center invites upper-class students from all academic areas to apply to be a peer tutor. Our tutors gain valuable leadership, communication, and problem-solving skills to prepare for their future career goals. Peer tutors must have received a grade of an A or B in the class they wish to tutor and have an overall GPA of 2.7. Please visit Handshake to submit your application today! Visit https://sru.joinhandshake.com/jobs/4967739/ to apply today!