The Writing and Communication Center (WCC) at MIT offers free one-on-one professional advice from communication experts.
What are writing consultations?
- The WCC helps you think your way more deeply into your topic and helps you see new implications in your data, research, and ideas.
- The WCC helps you strategize about different types of academic and professional communication.
- If you experience problems at any stage of the writing process, the WCC can address strategies to boost your productivity.
- The WCC is happy to work with multilingual or English as a Second Language writers and communicators on topics ranging from writing and grammar to pronunciation and conversation practice.
Disclaimer: The WCC is not a copy-editing service. WCC lecturers should not be expected to make any edits to your drafts or go through your draft to correct mistakes.
How do I make an appointment?
To make an appointment, go to https://mit.mywconline.com.
NOTE: For the first visit, click on Register for an account and follow the directions.
Every scheduled session is 50 minutes long. You can schedule two 50-minute appointments per week so that the WCC could provide advice to as many clients as possible.
- If you are working on a document, please upload to your appointment and bring to your session the information about your project (the assignment description, the fellowship/grant requirements, or the job description).
- To help us access your project easily during the session, please provide the link to your project in Google Drive (outline, draft, slides, etc) or upload your file as a pdf when you schedule your appointment and/or bring a printed document to the in-person session.
▷ Who can use consultations?
The WCC works with all currently registered or affiliated MIT community members, including undergraduate and graduate students, postdoctoral and visiting scholars, faculty and staff from all MIT departments and disciplines. The WCC does not provide support to MIT scholars’ or students’ partners or children. The WCC does not provide support to MIT alumni/ae.
▷ Who are the writing consultants?
The WCC is staffed completely by MIT lecturers, who are communication experts with advanced degrees and years of experience working with students, researchers, faculty and staff. They all are instructors of communication, published scholars and writers, and skilled coaches. To learn more about WCC lecturers, please check the WCC team page
▷ What types of work can we help you with?
Written Communication
You may consult the WCC during any stage of the thinking or writing process: prewriting (generating and exploring ideas), writing a first draft, revising a draft, or editing. You may consult the WCC before submitting your draft or after receiving feedback on the project that you would like to revise.
You may consult the WCC’s lecturers about all types written communication, including but not limited to:
- assignments for any MIT course, including CI (Communication Intensive) or CI-M (Communication Intensive in Major) course
- Research papers and articles for publication
- undergraduate and graduate theses
- proposals for grants, books, and dissertations.
- Fellowships and grant applications
- personal essays
- essays for graduate school applications
- Scientific and technical writing
- business and professional letters
- resumes and CVs
- conference papers
- oral presentation practice
- interview practice
- slide or poster design
- pronunciation and conversation practice
- Fiction and poetry
You can also consult on the writing process or writer’s blocks that hinder your progress, including the following:
- Reading or note-taking strategies
- Pre-writing and outlining techniques
- Organizing and drafting your ideas
- Avoiding procrastination
- Dealing with writing fear
- Understanding the effects of perfectionism
- Preventing demoralization
- Conquering imposter stress
Oral Communication
We will help at any stage of the oral presentation process–e.g., developing ideas, writing the speech or oral presentation, developing useful visuals.
At the WCC, you can receive advice on:
- how to prepare and write a speech or conference talk
- how to use visual aids
- how to design effective slides
- how to present information for different audiences
- the performance aspects (e.g., eye contact, gestures, rate of speech, articulation, voice projection)
- the organization of the presentation’s content
You may practice any type of oral presentation and receive feedback on:
- presentations for classes (e.g., Communication Intensive classes)
- presentations of your research
- job and conference talks
▷ Where do consultations take place?
▷ No available consultations in the schedule?
If you open the schedule and there is no time slot available (everything is booked) and you wish to make an appointment, please use the waitlist function:
- On the scheduler, click Waiting List in the lower right-hand corner of the day you wish to be added to the Waiting List.
- Add your name to the Waiting List for either any open appointment or for a specific time or WCC lecturer.
- The online scheduler will notify you via email or text the moment there is a cancellation and a time slot becomes available.
- Go immediately to the scheduler to book the appointment.
Please note that you can schedule an appointment up to the time of the appointment (even 1 minutes before the appointment starts).
▷ What is the cancellation, late, or no-show policy?
Cancellations: To cancel an appointment, please go to the online scheduler and cancel your appointment as soon as you can, but no later than 120 minutes before your appointment (so that someone has a chance to use that appointment slot). Please do not email or call the WCC and say you want to cancel; you must cancel your appointment on the online scheduler.
If you want to cancel less than 120 minutes before your appointment, then this will count as a no-show
Late Policy: If you do not connect or show up to your appointment within the first 10 minutes, we count this appointment as a “no-show,” and your appointment-making privileges are restricted (see below).
No Shows: If you miss an appointment without canceling in advance or cancel it less than 120 minutes before your session, your appointment-making privileges will be automatically rescinded for one week. Also, any pre-existing appointments you have for one week will be canceled automatically.
If you are a no-show a second time, you will not be allowed to make another appointment for a month and any pre-existing appointments will be canceled. If you are a no-show a third time, you will not be able to make an appointment for the rest of the semester and any pre-existing appointments will be canceled. This policy exists to prevent appointment slots from going to waste when other clients need them.