Center for Speaking, Writing, and the Image FAQs

To book an appointment:

1. Visit our scheduler
2. Register for an account
3. Log in with the email address and password you created
   • Be sure to select the box “Writing Appointments” before you click “log in”
4. Book an appointment!

The CSWIM offers students the opportunity to work on their writing by engaging in discussions with an experienced reader. We believe that students, just like professional writers, benefit from having a focused conversation with their peers as they draft and revise their work. The Writing, Speaking, and Image Partners who staff the CSWIM are Pomona students – sophomores, juniors, and seniors – majoring in subjects as varied as English, politics, environmental analysis, and physics. Partners are trained to work with writers at all levels, at all stages of the writing process, and on assignments in any discipline.

All Pomona students are encouraged to take advantage of the CSWIM throughout their time on campus. 5-C students taking Pomona classes are also welcome to visit Pomona's CSWIM. 5-C students who wish to make an appointment should email the CSWIM.

When you visit the CSWIM, you will meet with a Partner for a consultation up to 50 minutes long (or a 20 to 40-minute consultation if you drop in). You and your Partner will work collaboratively to identify and help with any potential areas of improvement. Working closely with your Partner can help you improve your skills as a writer, not just for the writing project you brought in but also for future projects.

CSWIM consultations are question-driven and collaborative. Conferences focus primarily on higher-order strategies focus on argument and organization. Although Writing Partners do not edit or proofread, they can teach you techniques for addressing sentence-level patterns. Please know that your Partner will not know exactly what your professor expects and will not be able to predict your grade. At the start of your appointment, your Partner will ask you about your writing project and what you'd like to focus on, and you will work with your Partner to develop an agenda for what you'd like to accomplish. At the end of the session, you'll work together to develop a plan of next steps. You can also expect tea, candy, and comfy couches!

You don't have to have anything written down when you come to the CSWIM. If you are just beginning, bring your prompt and any ideas that you have. If you have a rough outline or a polished draft, bring that work with you, in addition to your writing prompt. If you have a draft of more than 10 pages, we recommend booking two appointments in a row, so that you will be sure to have enough time.

Yes! Students can make appointments online or drop in as needed. If you would like to work on your writing throughout the course of the semester, you should email the CSWIM to ask for a Regular Writing Partner. Your Regular Writing Partner who will meet with you every week or every other week at the same time, and who has experience in the areas that you are studying. Many students benefit from having a Regular Writing Partner, from students who are nervous about making the transition to college-level writing to students who are making a foray into a new discipline to seniors working on thesis projects. Working with your Regular Writing Partner, you will not only address your current writing projects, but you will also actively develop your skills as a writer throughout the semester.

Speaking appointments are made with Speaking Partners, who are comfortable working with the spoken word, from presentations to classroom discussions. They can give advice on presentation clarity, slides, public speaking anxiety, and more, letting you practice or plan an oral presentation ahead of time.

When you make an appointment at the CSWIM, you will get a confirmation email, as well as reminder emails 24 hours and 2 hours in advance of your appointment. If you fail to cancel your appointment at least an hour before your appointment begins twice during the semester, you will not be able to make appointments for the remainder of the semester, although you will be able to come to drop-ins. We limit students to two scheduled appointments per week to make sure that all students who want to make appointments at the CSWIM are able to do so.

You shouldn't expect your Writing Partner to be familiar with your class/text/professor. However, all Partners have been trained to work with students at all stages of the writing process, even if they don't know the specifics of your class. In fact, in many cases, it may be better that your Partner isn't familiar with your course, since that can help them evaluate your writing more objectively. You can also use the scheduler to filter partners by disciplines and subjects they're more comfortable with.

The CSWIM is able to work with students on all types of writing and speaking projects. However, there are four specific areas that require that your Writing Partner have a very specific background:

• Foreign language papers
• Creative writing
• Upper-level science papers that are not lab reports
• Thesis projects

If you are working on this type of project, please email the CSWIM ahead of time.

Yes! If you are interested in becoming a Writing Partner, and you are currently a first-year or a sophomore, please email the CSWIM to let us know you are interested by late February. We will send you an application to apply in the spring semester for Speaking, Writing, and Image Partner positions that will begin the following academic year. Visit our Writing Partners page to learn about the responsibilities of a Writing Partner and the training process. Because of the intensive training process, we do not accept nominations for full-time Partners from juniors, although they still may be considered Attached Partners assigned to an individual class.

Yes! We ask that you book an appointment on the CSWIM Scheduler and select the option to do the appointment online. Appointments are listed in Pacific time, so you will need to do the timezone conversion and plan accordingly.