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FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
Welcome to our Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) page. Here you will find answers to questions which cover a range of topics regarding the Writing Centre and its services from consultations and access, to system and technical support.
​WHY VISIT THE WRITING CENTRE?
The Writing Centre is a safe, confidential and encouraging environment to discuss and interactively work to enhance your literacy practices. The service maintains a policy of voluntary usage. This means that students may be referred to the Writing Centre, but not compelled to make use of it. The philosophy of the student consultancy is that all students can improve their writing, whether they are highly experienced academic writers or complete novices.
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Visit the Writing Centre if you want to engage around your writing: conducting a task analysis, structuring an essay, understanding how to write more cohesively or tackling feedback you’ve received on assignments.
​WHERE IS THE WRITING CENTRE?
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The Writing Centre is located in Room 5.19 on Level 5 of the Steve Biko Building. We also have a satellite writing centre, based at the GSB campus (Red Office Solution Space).
IS THE WRITING CENTRE THE SAME AS THE WRITING LAB?
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We offer the same services, but the Writing Lab is based at the Faculty of Health Sciences, and is for FHS students only. You can read more about their staff and services HERE
I AM A DISTANCE LEARNING STUDENT, CAN YOU STILL ASSIST ME?
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We do offer online consultations for students not based in Cape Town. When you make a booking you can select Zoom or MS Teams as your mode of consultation. Otherwise, you can pre-arrange with our systems administrator telephonically, or through email correspondence.
ENGLISH IS NOT MY FIRST LANGUAGE, CAN YOU STILL HELP ME?
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Yes, we are focused on developing your academic language. Our focus is not necessarily on grammar or spelling but rather to assist in communicating your ideas effectively.
WHAT IS THE FEE FOR MAKING AN APPOINTMENT?
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The Writing Centre is a free service available to all registered UCT students and staff.
HOW DO I BOOK AN APPOINTMENT?
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The simplest way to book an appointment at the Writing Centre is to register and make use of our online booking system.
HOW WILL I KNOW IF MY BOOKING IS CONFIRMED?
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Once you have made a booking, you will receive a confirmation email via the email you registered your account with. This will include all the details of your appointment, including the location of the Writing Centre and a link to the online platform should you want to modify your appointment.
IS THERE A LIMIT TO THE NUMBER OF PAGES YOU CAN HELP ME WITH?
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We assist up to a maximum of 15 pages (Times New Roman 12 pt, 1.5 spacing) at a time (including images and tables). It is important to note that issues of cohesion or coherence etc. can be identified in way fewer than 15 pages. We aim to empower students to apply the thinking and learning from engaging around a few pages and paragraphs to entire essays (and essays in the future).
IS THERE A LIMIT TO THE NUMBER OF APPOINTMENTS I CAN MAKE?
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There is no general set limit, however, our role is to develop independent and proficient writers. We expect you to apply what you have learnt during the consultation/s to your future writing pieces. During busier periods we limit appointments to one per student per week.
WHAT IF I WANT TO MODIFY OR CANCEL MY APPOINTMENT?
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You can navigate to your appointment booking via the online system and make the necessary changes; either modify your booking to a later time slot or cancel it. You may cancel your booking up to 2 hours before your consultation, thereafter it will be logged as 'missed'.
I MISSED MY APPOINTMENT, CAN I MAKE ANOTHER ONE?
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Should you not be able to make a confirmed appointment, you MUST cancel your booking by accessing the booking system and making the necessary changes. You can make another appointment, but if you miss TWO appointments without cancelling, your account will be disabled.
WHAT CAN I DO IF THE WRITING CENTRE IS FULLY BOOKED?
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We do book out quite fast and at times extend our hours to cater for the number of appointment requests. To avoid disappointment , we advise you to book at least two weeks in advance . Alternatively, we have a waiting list function that you can opt for. Navigate to the white clock icon next to the day you wish to be notified of an opening, and fill in the necessary details. You will be notified if and when a slot becomes available.
MY ACCOUNT IS BLOCKED AND I CANNOT MAKE AN APPOINTMENT?
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Please email us and someone will assist you to unblock your account. We offer a professional service and in order to create responsible scholars, we expect our clients to also respect our time by acting in a similar manner. We do understand that emergencies happen. One of our consultants will be happy to assist in unblocking your account.
I FORGOT MY PASSWORD, HOW DO I ACCESS THE SYSTEM?
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Navigate to the booking system and choose ‘Having trouble logging in? Reset your password.’ You will receive an email with instructions on how to reset your password.
MY CONSULTATION WAS NOT WHAT I EXPECTED.
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After each consultation you will have the opportunity to complete an online evaluation form and indicate which aspects of your consultation you were happy and unhappy with. We regularly read through all our evaluations and do our best to try and meet your expectations. When you begin your consultation, you and your consultant should start by discussing the plan and expectations of the consultation.