Graduate Writing Support

UNC Charlotte

Writing Classes

The Graduate School offers three writing classes to meet the needs of graduate students at UNC Charlotte:

  • GRAD 6210/8210: Graduate-Level Writing for International Students: This course helps multilingual graduate writers to understand the conventions of advanced academic writing in English and more effectively write academic texts in their disciplines. (3 credit hours; pass/fail)

  • GRAD 6212/8212: Academic Writing: This course helps graduate writers to develop the necessary skills and mindset to produce strong academic writing. (Please note: Multilingual writers must have first taken GRAD 6210/8210 prior to enrolling in GRAD 6212/8212.). (3 credit hours; pass/fail)

  • GRAD 8610: Making Dissertations Happen: This course helps doctoral writers to make consistent progress on their dissertations. (Please note: Doctoral students must be actively writing their dissertations in order to benefit from this course.). (2 credit hours; pass/fail)

Some departments on campus also offer writing courses. Consult the course catalog for more information.

Writing-Related Events

The Center for Graduate Life and Learning (CGLL) sponsors a number of writing-related events. One of the main type of events offered by CGLL is structured writing times.

Structured writing times provide graduate students with a quiet work space so that they can work on their writing; they also feature community building through the sharing of writing goals and achievements. CGLL's structured writing times include:

  • Weekend Write (every Saturday morning)

  • Dissertation Writing Group (one morning or evening for 8 weeks/semester)

CGLL also regularly offers presentations and workshops on various writing-related topics. Past topics have included:

  • Writing dissertations and theses

  • Preparing academic presentations

  • Developing research articles

  • Writing resumĂ©s and cover letters

  • Developing academic job materials

  • Writing grant proposals

  • Using the writing process more effectively

CGLL also sponsors the university's annual 3MT competition and supports the Graduate and Professional Student Government's annual Graduate Research Symposium. Please refer to the CGLL calendar to learn more about these and other communication-skills events.

Individual Writing Support

Writing Resources Center (WRC) is available to support all graduate students in their writing development. The WRC provides one-on-one support for writers, and Chris Harrington, Senior WRC Tutor, works closely with CGLL to meet the needs of graduate writers.

Dissertation support is available for doctoral students at any stage in the dissertation process, from conceptualizing a dissertation topic to wrapping up post-defense revisions. Contact Dr. Lisa Russell-Pinson to schedule an appointment.