Services for Students - North Park University

Academics
Writing Center
Services for Students

Services and Resources for Students

Learn more about the support provided by the Writing Center

Undergraduate students

How to Start a Drop-in Conference
The Writing Center offers both in-person and online drop-in conferencing. For in-person, visit us in Brandel Library, room 123. For online:

Check which Writing Assistants (WAs) are on duty.
Be ready to share your writing and prompt and discuss it with your WA in real time. The Writing Center is a “drop-in” center, not a “drop-off” center—you cannot send your paper for feedback later.
Email or message your WA on MS Teams saying, “I am ready for a conference.”
Once connected, choose to continue on Microsoft Teams or another agreed platform.
Sign in once your conference begins.

Need help? Watch our “How to Initiate a Drop-in Conference” video. {embed video}
Looking for a WA with specific expertise? Check our WAs’ subject specialties.

ESL Support
The Writing Center welcomes multilingual writers for drop-in conferences with undergraduate Writing Advisors (WAs). For more specialized support, students can register for “The English Language Clinic” (ESL1000/ACSR1020), where an ESL professor provides one-on-one coaching on grammar, academic vocabulary, essay organization, and formatting. Email mpavlik@northpark.edu for more details.

Writing Center Resources
Several WAs specialize in working with multilingual writers. Check the drop-in schedule and specialty sheet to find their availability. We also offer grammar handouts, ESL workshop materials, vocabulary-building resources, and style guides.

Helpful Links

Purdue University’s ESL Guide – Offers resources for adapting to U.S. college writing conventions.
Writing English as a Second Language, The American Scholar – Insights on writing and language history for international students.

Graduate and SPS students

Graduate and SPS students can access the Writing Center in several ways:

Conferencing: Available by appointment (in-person or online) for DNP, DEMSN, MBA, Seminary, Counseling/Psychology, and other programs. Contact Nancy Hostetter (nhostetter1@northpark.edu) or Kadria Hisai (khisai@northpark.edu) to schedule.
Undergraduate Writing Advisors (WAs): WAs serve as “sympathetic first readers” who can work on higher order concerns such as interpreting prompts, paper organization and development, or checking citation format. They may refer content-related questions to professors or Melissa Pavlik for grammar/ESL concerns.
Individual Appointments: Graduate students can schedule individual sessions with Melissa Pavlik (call (773) 244-4918 or email mpavlik@northpark.edu or book via Calendly).
Writing Coach: Free coaching is available for students committing to regular one-hour sessions per semester. Once you sign the letter of understanding, the Writing Center will pair you with an available professional coach. Contact Melissa Pavlik (mpavlik@northpark.edu) to be matched with a regular writing coach.
Professional Writing Coaches: Graduate students can also consult professional writing coaches with prior experience working with NPU students. Interested students can contact the coaches, agree on a fee, and schedule appointments. Contact Melissa Pavlik (mpavlik@northpark.edu) for more information.

Resources and workshops

Workshop videos and handouts

Access materials used in the Writing Center, in-class workshops led by writing advisors (WAs) or faculty, and a growing collection of workshop videos. While instructors may use these independently, synchronous or in-class sessions offer the added benefit of real-time collaboration among WAs, instructors, and students.

Videos