Policies
Reserving, Canceling, or Missing an Appointment
- Can I walk-in or drop by for tutoring?
Yes! Please know that you are always welcome to visit us during our open hours. Tutoring as walk-in or drop-in is on a first come, first serve basis. This means you may be seen immediately or you may have to wait if someone came before you.
- How do I reserve an appointment?
To reserve an appointment, click the "Reserve an Appointment" button on our homepage, or visit http://appointments.csusm.edu/. Be sure to select "Writing Center" when making the appointment because other campus services use the same scheduler.
- When is the soonest I can make an appointment?
You can reserve an appointment 2 hours before the appointment time.
- When is the farthest out I can make an appointment?You can reserve an appointment at most 2 weeks in advance.
- What if I can't make my scheduled appointment?
If you can't make your appointment, please cancel it as soon as possible to avoid restrictions on future visits. Here are the ways you can cancel an appointment:
- Login to the online appointment system
- Call us at (760) 750-4168 *this is the best option if you are sick or unable to get to campus.
- What happens if I don't show up for my appointment and I forgot to cancel?
Your tutor will wait a few moments before taking a walk-in session. If you miss too many appointments without cancelling, then you will be unable to make appointments through our online scheduler without permission.
- How many appointments can I reserve?
You can reserve two 30-minute or two 1-hour sessions a week. Additional sessions will be available on a walk-in basis.
- What if I need to go to the Writing Center for GEW, but there are no appointments
left?
If you are unable to make an appointment, you will have to visit as a walk-in. If there are many people with the same need as you, then you and they might have to wait a while for an available tutor.
So this does not happen to you, come early and come often!
- If I am sick, can I still come to my appointment?
If you are sick, we kindly ask that you take advantage of our online tutoring until you are able to see us in-person.
In-person tutoring occurs in close proximity, and tutors work with many students each day. A tutor may ask that you reschedule for an online session or a session at a later date, should they be concerned for their health.
Editing or Proofing Student Work
- Can a tutor edit my work?Absolutely not. Editing your work is your responsibility, not the tutor's responsibility. Please refer to our polcies regarding plagirism.
- Can a tutor tell me what to edit in my work?No. The tutor may help you find errors in your work if you would like. Your discussions, however, will be guided by the sole purpose of helping you learn how to identify these issues on your own and fix them on your own.
Plagiarism
- Can a tutor write my essay for me?Absolutely not. That is plagiarism.
- Can a tutor tell me what to write?
Absolutely not. That is also plagiarism.
- Does the Writing Center follow CSUSM's plagiarism policy?Absolutely yes. CSUSM introduces its plagiarism policy:
Each student shall maintain academic honesty in the conduct of his or her studies and other learning activities at CSUSM. The integrity of this academic institution, and the quality of the education provided in its degree programs, are based on the principle of academic honesty.
The maintenance of academic integrity and quality education is the responsibility of each student within this university and the California State University system. Cheating and plagiarism in connection with an academic program at a campus is listed in Section 41301, Title 5, California Code of Regulations, as an offense for which a student may be expelled, suspended, put on probation, or given a less severe disciplinary sanction.
CSUSM defines plagiarism as:
Intentionally or knowingly representing the words, ideas, or work of another as one's own in any academic exercise, including:
(a) the act of incorporating the ideas, words, sentences, paragraphs, or parts thereof, or the specific substance of another's work, without giving appropriate credit, and representing the product as one's own work;
(b) the act of putting one's name as an author on a group project to which no contribution was actually made; and
(c) representing another's artistic/scholarly works such as musical compositions, computer programs, photographs, paintings, drawings, sculptures, or similar works as one's own.
Visit Verification
- How do show my instructor that I visited?
If you are a GEW student, you need to fill out an Agenda Form before your session. This form helps guide the session's focus. At the conclusion of a full and successful session, your tutor will sign and stamp your form. It is your responsibility to submit that form to your instructor.
If you need to show evidence of your visit for a class other than GEW, ask your tutor or front desk assistant at the Writing Center for a verification slip, which will be signed and stamped at the conclusion of your session.
- I need to visit for a scholarship. How do I show that I visited?Your visit will be verified using our computer system. Make sure you sign in at the beginning of your visit with us.
- How many required visits can I complete in a day?
We will only verify one required visit per class each day. If you need two visits for GEW, those visits will have to be on two separate days.
- When do you stop verifying visits (signing and stamping forms)?We stop signing and stamping visit forms two weeks before the end of the semester. Put another way, during the last two weeks of the semester (finals week and the week before finals), we will not stamp or sign agenda forms.