Just as there are few hard and fast rules for tutoring, there is no such thing as a typical session or a typical client.  While the George Mason University Writing Center clientele includes student, staff, faculty and alumni, this section will focus on our students.

Sometimes Writing Center clients may seem to be here under some duress, having come to the Writing Center only because they have felt compelled by their instructor to do so.  The great majority of our clients, however, are here because they genuinely want our help.  Unfortunately, they don’t always know how best to express that request.

A number of clients come in asking to have someone proofread their papers.  Tutors should avoid the temptation to grant this request or to simply turn the client away.  Instead explain that while we cannot proofread, we are here to work with writers, to talk with them about their writing, and to help writers learn to find their own patterns of errors so that they can do their own editing and proofreading.  Encourage the client to make an appointment to see one of our tutors to go over the paper together. Returning students, on the other hand, are familiar with our procedures and often have high expectations for their sessions.  These students tend to be very focused

There are also a number of special client populations that the Writing Center services.  Each of these groups requires different kinds of attention.  Non-traditional students are often very realistic about the work involved in the writing process, but can also be discouraged by a tutor who does not take the time to reassure them that they are on the right track.  Clients with learning disabilities may require tutors to think creatively about how they can best help such clients with their particular areas of difficulty. 

Click here to learn more about the Americans with Disabilities Act and some characteristics of the written expression of some learning disabled students.  Keep in mind, Writing Center tutors do not diagnose learning disabilities, nor do they suggest the possibility.

A large number of Writing Center clients write and/or speak English as a second (sometimes third or fourth) language.  Although the percentage varies from one semester to another, usually about 55-60% of Writing Center clients are ESL students.

One of the situations tutors may encounter with students whose native language is not English is a desire for definite answers.  For a variety of reasons, these clients sometimes are less comfortable with non-directive tutoring.  Tutors try, in this case, to resist the urge to “give clients what they want.”  To focus on correcting surface-level errors is only to give such students the impression that the product is more important than the process.

A piece of writing should be seen as a holistic unit, a transaction between writer and reader, not as a series of sites of potential errors.  Our job, therefore, is to help the writer recognize error patterns—types of errors that he or she is specifically apt to make, errors that the writer may have been making repeatedly over a period of years.  (And remember those patterns have accumulated over time; don’t expect them to disappear instantly simply because a tutor has helped the writer spot them.)  Above all else our tutors should remember that their work should always be geared toward a client’s overall writing development.

Tutors should, as much as possible, familiarize themselves with writing conventions and discourses in a variety of disciplines.  To assist tutors in their development in this area, the University Writing Center library has multiple books about writing in the disciplines.

Our website is also an excellent resource for both tutors and clients, especially for information on how to cite print, non-print, and electronic sources in a variety of styles.  Tutors may take a client to a computer and help the client navigate our website before they leave the physical Writing Center.

Referring Students in Distress
Since the demands of course-work can be stressful for our clients, tutors should know what to look for, and where to turn, when a client appears distressed. GMU's Counseling and Psychological Services have a helpful guide for staff that can be useful in identifying a student for whom "the stress exceeds their coping resources." Their list of "Signs of Distress" is useful in identifying signals that might indicate a potentially upset student, as well as a set of options for how to respond to a student in this situation.

The Database
The Writing Center keeps a statistical database of all of our clients’ records.  We use these statistics to compile an annual report and to analyze the demographic breakdown of our clients.  Currently this database is maintained using Microsoft Access.  An office assistant and/or tutor will be responsible for maintaining this database.

Writing Center Clientele Report