College writing centers are awesome. They are filled with student-tutors who are both knowledgeable and interested in writing. If you haven’t stopped into your school’s writing center yet, I highly recommend making an appointment. It’s a great way to talk with an objective peer about your writing, to get advice from someone who has been in the same classes, and to get great feedback. Before going to the appointment, however, it would be beneficial to spend a little time preparing for the meeting, which might save you time and help you get the most out of your tutoring session. Below I’ve listed some suggestions on how to prepare for an appointment with a tutor in the writing center. Note: These suggestions are intended for students who are looking for help on a specific paper assignment. Gather All Class Materials Related to the Assignment: In order for the tutor to get a broad understanding of your paper assignment, he or she might need to sift through a few class handouts and other materials the instructor might have given you. He or she might even offer suggestions on how you can incorporate one of these documents into your paper. Bring the Assignment Sheet: This might seem like a no-brainer, but many students often overlook the assignment sheet—not only as a document to bring to the meeting but also as a guide for writing the paper. When I worked as a tutor in graduate school, there were multiple occasions when a student either forgot to bring the sheet with them to the meeting or they simply threw it away. Neither action is very helpful as the assignment sheet is the most important document you have when writing a paper. Assignment sheets are to papers as maps are to tourists. Your tutor will need to know which direction you must take to get to your final destination. Take a Notebook and Pen to the Meeting: Throughout your tutoring session, your tutor will be providing you with a lot of great information about the writing process—and even about classes and college in general. Therefore, to remember all of this fabulous information, it would be a great idea to bring along a notebook and pen for taking notes. Write Down All Questions and Concerns: To gain the most help during the session, it’s important that you write down all of your questions and concerns prior to walking into the writing center. This way, you can be certain that you are able to discuss everything you wanted to bring up. Also, you will save time at the beginning of the meeting. If you don’t have your questions written down, you might lose time as you try to think of your questions and the parts of the paper that you wanted to review. Don’t Forget the Paper: Please don’t take offense to this last suggestion. It seems pretty silly, I know. Who would decide to not bring their paper—the reason for the appointment—to the tutoring session? It seems silly, but sometimes students are so preoccupied with what they’re going to discuss that they forget to bring with them their actual paper. Therefore, before leaving for the writing center, it wouldn’t hurt to double check to make sure you have your paper.