Academic language and writing

Advising sessions

If you want to discuss a text or a presentation you are working on, you can book a session with an advisor, specialising in academic language and writing. At the booked time, the advisor will meet with you for a session that lasts approximately 45 minutes. During the session, you can ask questions, discuss your ideas, and get feedback on your work. Advising does not mean that your text or assignment is corrected or assessed. Instead, an advisor can provide suggestions on how you can work on your assignment and continue to develop your written and oral skills in academic contexts.

If you are working on a text, you and the advisor can look at structure and wording together to see how you can develop your text and writing overall. If you are working on an oral assignment, you can get advice on your presentation and performance. The advising session can also be used to address other questions you have about reading, writing, and speaking in academic contexts.

You can book advising sessions three times per term, but only one at a time. If you are two students who are working together on, for example, a degree project, you can book up to three advising sessions for that joint project.

Book via the booking system

You book an advising session using your student account (gus-xxxx) via a booking system where you can see advisors with available times and choose a time that suits you. Bookable time slots are published continuously in the booking system.

Read the booking confirmation in your student email

After you book, a confirmation message will be sent to the email address (gusxxxx@student.gu.se) that is linked to your student account. The confirmation contains information about the booked time and additional information needed for your advising session. Therefore, it is important that you check your student email so that you have contact details for the advisor and know where to meet.

If you do not get a boooking confirmation, please email ask@gu.se and provide your student account (gusxxxx). Please do not provide your password.

Email your text to the advisor

If you want to discuss a text, you will need to email it to the advisor before the session. If you are writing a long text, such as a thesis, please identify a section of approximately three pages that you would like to focus on. If there are assignment instructions, you can also send them to the advisor.

Who are the advisors?

The advisors at the Unit for Academic Language are trained in writing, language, and pedagogy. The peer tutors at the unit are students at the university and have experience with writing in Swedish and English.

Drop-in

If you have questions about academic language and writing, feel free to discuss it with an advisor at drop-in, without booking an appointment. You can come whenever during the drop-in opening hours, but sometimes you may need to wait if several students come at the same time. The advising time is approximately 15 minutes for each student and is suitable for one or two questions. Some examples of questions include:

• What should I think about when organising my text into paragraphs?
• How can I refer to a source I use in the text?
• What should I think about before my oral presentation?

You can also come to drop-in if you have questions about advising sessions or how to use the booking system.  

Book an advising session If you have several questions or if you want to discuss a text you are working on.

Time and place for drop-in

Swedish language and grammar

Do you want to practice and develop your knowledge of Swedish? In the Language and grammar resource on Canvas, you can read about important language and grammar skills and participate in workshops and quizzes.

Swedish language and grammar workshops

The workshops have themes such as Swedish word order, sentence construction, conjunctions, and clear and precise language use. Each workshop is led by an advisor who provides an overview of the specific theme along with exercises and a discussion. You can also ask questions about formulations that you are thinking about.

Events

During the semester, you can participate in open workshops, lectures and other activities to develop your academic reading, writing and oral presentations. Watch this space or check the Student Portal's events calendar for updates.

Autumn 2024

• 13/9 Workshop on generative AI
• 19/9 Lecture (1/3) on academic writing
• 4/10 Reading retreat for students
• 17/10 Lecture (2/3) on academic writing
• 6/11 Short talks for students: Academic writing, part 1
• 13/11 Short talks for students: Academic writing, part 2
• 14/11 Lecture (1/3) on generative AI and university studies 
• 15/11 Writing retreat for students
• 21/11 Lecture (3/3) on academic writing
• 28/11 Lecture (2/3) on generative AI and university studies
• 12/12 Lecture (3/3) on generative AI and university studies

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