The Writing Center holds one or two open workshops every month during the academic year. Regular topics include structuring an argument, finding your voice, research, note taking and organization, professional writing, oral presentations, time management, stress management, and test preparation.

Workshops meet at the University Writing Center, 71 Fifth Avenue, 9th floor, unless otherwise specified. Reservations are not required but are recommended, as space is limited. To make a reservation, email writingcenter@newschool.edu or call 212.229.5121.

Dates and descriptions of the spring 2012 workshops appear below. Check back for updates, as some workshops do not yet have a date. 

Time Management     Thursday, February 2, 12:00 noon

 Effective time management is a key not only to academic and professional success but to your enjoyment of the writing process. Learn practical strategies that will help you better plan and budget your time, overcome procrastination, and feel in control of your written work.

Presenter: Emma Komlos-Hrobsky

Workshop Flyer (PDF)

A Creative Approach to Critical Voice—Two-Part Workshop
 Part 1: Close Reading and Analysis Activity     Wednesday, February 8, 5:00 p.m.
 Part 2: Debatable Points in Academic Writing      Thursday, February 23, 5:00 p.m.

 Learn how to think critically about your readings and develop original ideas and arguments. Through close reading exercises, these workshops are designed to help you feel more comfortable with language, develop personal style and perspective, write with authority about your subject matter, and practice exploratory writing approaches that can open up and push your ideas on any subject. It is recommended that you attend both sessions to get the most out of the workshop; however, each workshop will stand on its own if you can only attend one.

Presenter: Jaclyn Lovell 

Workshop Flyer (PDF)

Oral Presentations     Wednesday, February 29, 3:00 p.m. 

Location: 232 West 40th Street, room 1102

Whether you are a confident public speaker or fearful of speaking in front of an audience, this workshop can help you develop oral presentation skills. The workshop leader demonstrates and discusses techniques for engaging an audience and helping a speaker feel comfortable and confident in front of even the toughest crowds. This workshop is most effective if you bring a work in progress to practice with, such as a class presentation you are preparing.

Presenter: Jesse Day

Workshop Flyer (PDF)

Graduate Writing Workshop: Using Sources Effectively     Tuesday, March 6, 12:00 noon  

This workshop is open only to students currently enrolled in MA and PhD programs. Learn how to use sources more effectively in your writing. The workshop includes useful tips about when it’s appropriate to quote or paraphrase, avoiding plagiarism, and effectively integrating sources. There is a general discussion of how the use of sources can either improve or weaken academic writing. Students are encouraged to bring to the table their particular questions and examples of problems they are grappling with.

Presenter: Max Tremblay

Workshop Flyer (PDF)  

Structuring an Argument     Wednesday, March 7, 12:00 noon

 Weaving together our thoughts is sometimes difficult. Encounters with new or complex material can leave us with fuzzy knots of thinly related concepts, opinions, and impressions. If you'd like to learn some techniques for pulling apart the threads, understanding how they hang together, and spinning a better web of ideas, this workshop is for you. 

Presenter: Jeannie Kahaney

Workshop Flyer (PDF)  

Writing Research Papers    Thursday, March 22, 4:00 p.m.

Writing a research paper is not intimidating if you break it down into steps. This workshop walks you through every stage of the process, from gathering sources and material, to developing an angle for your paper, to drafting and revising your work. A library representative shows you various research database sources and the best ways to use them.   

Presenter: Emma Komlos-Hrobsky

Workshop Flyer (PDF)

Don't Write Like A Graduate Student: A Workshop on Style and Clarity    Thursday, March 29, 12:00 noon

This workshop is open only to students currently enrolled in MA and PhD programs. Learn to shed the amateur style that weakens your writing. This workshop reveals the importance of clarity, identifies problems common to graduate student writing, and recommends methods to improve your style. Please bring some short examples of your own academic writing. 

Presenters: Katie Kelley and Kevin Temple

Workshop Flyer (PDF)

Creative Writing Workshop      Wednesday, April 18, 6:00 p.m.

Are you interested in making your prose clearer and more evocative? Do you want to get feedback on creative pieces you're working on? In this workshop, we will look at successful writing techniques used by great authors and learn how to incorporate those techniques into our own work. The workshop is highly interactive, so come prepared to write, read your writing aloud, and talk about it. Feel free to bring work in progress: fiction and nonfiction writing is equally welcome.

Presenter: Lisa Yriart 

Workshop Flyer (PDF)

Professional Writing     Tuesday, May 1, 6:00 p.m.

 Whether through cover letters or emails, writing is often the first communication of your ideas and credentials to others in professional settings. This workshop can help you refine the tone of your professional writing in order to communicate clearly and powerfully with colleagues and prospective employers alike.

Presenter: Victoria Somogyi  

Workshop Flyer (PDF)