The NWU Writing Centre offers services dedicated to the improvement of students’ academic writing. We follow a student-centred approach by harnessing the students’ abilities to develop autonomous academic writing skills. Our experienced consultants are trained to address the following areas of interest:

Clarification

Students frequently need help to clarify what is expected of them in the assigned tasks. Our consultants therefore assist students with task analysis in order to help students understand assignment instructions.

Planning and organisation

In order to write clear and focused arguments, one first needs to plan the writing process. The writing process consists of the pre-writing, writing and post-writing phases.

In the pre-writing phase one plans the writing task at hand. This phase entails finding and analysing appropriate sources to inform the argument. After properly analysing said sources, the writing phase can commence.

The subsequent writing phase consists of developing the building blocks of one’s argument, in other words coherent paragraphs and appropriate subsections. During this phase, consultants guide students in the writing process as a whole, dividing the writing task into manageable chunks, ordering ideas, and building arguments.

In the post-writing phase, and before submission, the writer needs to revise and proofread. By revising and proofreading the text, the writer checks whether the language is accurate, the argument follows a clear line, and all the sources are cited properly. Although the Writing Centre does not provide a proofreading or editing service, the consultants guide students to develop proofreading skills, reconsider main arguments and ideas, and check if all sources are cited correctly where and if necessary and appropriate.

Source integration

Academic writing can be conceived as a conversation between the writer, the sources, and – most importantly – the reader. The writer should aim to construct the text in such a way as to convey the argument as clearly and accurately as possible. In doing so, the writer cites external sources to build a credible argument and substantiate their ideas. Here, the consultants guide students on how to properly use and insert in-text references, create reference lists and bibliographies, use the appropriate referencing styles and pay special attention to academic integrity.

Take advantage of these services free of charge – they are available on all three campuses (Mahikeng, Potchefstroom, Vanderbijlpark). Click here to make a booking on our user-friendly online booking system.