Hello Highlanders! We hope all of you have been having a great year thus far. The 2023-2024 academic school year has been flying by! Many of you have been working diligently this school year and knocking out assignment after assignment. Or maybe, though you managed to turn in that paper, you felt like that writing assignment took a toll on you.

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Sometimes, the writing process can be semi-traumatic. Nevertheless, you turned in a complete paper. Well done!

Early on, one of my English teachers once told me that the word essay comes from the French infinitive essayer, which means “to try” or “to attempt.” This small definition still encourages me very much. It reminds me that whenever I write anything – I just have to give it my all and try my best. If this is my view, something of value will come forth in the end. Without the words of our teachers, where would we be? Thankfully, there are some who can give us some advice. But even more, sometimes—in fact, a lot of times—we need direct writing suggestions and constructive feedback.

That said, we at the Graduate Writing Center invite you to our Spring 2024 Workshops! We would like to offer you a few tips we have learned ourselves during our academic and professional journeys. All of the workshops will be hosted online. This quarter, we have a list of workshops that cover topics such as writing for the Fulbright Program, Grant Writing for STEM, Editing Strategies, Diversity Statements, Writing a Successful Abstract, and more! If you have time in your schedule, please drop by and attend! 

Applying to the Fulbright Program
Thursday, April 4th, from 2pm-3pm

If you need to conduct research abroad, the Fulbright Program can help you fund it. The upcoming application cycle begins on April 2nd. If you are considering applying, attend this workshop session to learn about the application timeline, campus resources, and what is new about the program for the 2025-26 cycle. Below are other workshops covering particular writing statements that the Fulbright Program requires. 

Grant Writing for STEM
Wednesday, April 10th, from 11am-11:50am

While many of you are advancing in your academic and professional careers, perhaps you are considering grant writing to obtain some funds to support a research project or an organization’s goals. This workshop will offer an overview of the basics for grant writing specifically tailored to STEM fields.

Editing Strategies
Wednesday, April 24th, from 10am-10:50am

As we all know, sometimes papers require multiple drafts. As you revise and edit, what are some things to remember? In this workshop, we will discuss different types of editing, equip students with strategies for editing their papers, and offer resources and tools to help with the self-editing process.

Diversity Statements
Wednesday, May 1st, from 2pm-2:50pm

If you are entering the job market or just want extra tips before applying, check out this workshop on writing diversity statements. As we become increasingly connected to people of diverse backgrounds, it's good to consider how this impacts our learning and work environments. This workshop aims to define “diversity” and other relevant terms in relation to the expectations for academic job and fellowship applications to help students develop strategies for writing their own statements.

Writing a Successful Abstract
Monday, May 13th, from 2pm-2:50pm

Condensing our complex and thoughtful essays into a 200- or 250-word abstract can be difficult at times. Are there any rules or principles we should follow as we write our abstracts? This workshop will discuss the basics of abstract writing, explain why writing successful abstracts is important, and offer tools to help students draft their own abstracts.

Fulbright Program: Writing the Statement of Grant Purpose
Thursday, May 30th, from 12pm-1pm

Again, if you are applying to the Fulbright US Student Program, learn how to write a statement of purpose tailored to this program and how it differs from others you may have written in the past. During this workshop, we will engage in some guided brainstorming and review sample statements.

Fulbright Program: Writing the Personal Statement
Thursday, June 6th, from 3pm-4pm

And lastly, in this workshop, come find out what to highlight about yourself to be a competitive applicant for the Fulbright U.S. Student Program. During this time, we will engage in some guided brainstorming and review sample statements.

That's all the upcoming workshops for Spring! We look forward to seeing you at our upcoming workshops and hope they can help you with your writing process!

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