Fall 2018 Writing and Research Workshops

The Graduate Writing Center offers a wide variety of writing workshops, ranging from general to more specialized topics, such as academic genres, writing in certain disciplinary areas, or writing English as a Second Language. We also provide information on workshops and services from selected campus offices that provide assistance with research, data management, and data analysis. Special thanks to our campus programming partners: the UCLA Library, Writing Programs, the Institute for Digital Research and Education, Counseling and Psychological Services, and the Career Center.

Past Workshops

Workshop Videos

General Workshops

Writing the Personal Statement
Robert K. Smith, English, Graduate Writing Center Consultant
This workshop will cover strategies for writing personal statements for fellowship applications, residencies, and Ph.D. programs. Among other topics, we will discuss organization, introductions and conclusions, and use of examples. Students from all schools and departments are welcome to attend. If you are currently working on a personal statement, we encourage you to bring your draft to the workshop.
Thursday, October 25th, 5:30-6:30 PM
Location: Conference Room 4, Student Activities Center (basement level) ( map )

Strategic Reading
Allison Collins, Comparative Literature, Graduate Writing Center Consultant
Brandon Archambault, Comparative Literature, Graduate Writing Center Consultant
Marilyn Gray, Graduate Writing Center Director
Feeling overwhelmed by your reading lists? Concerned that you are missing the point of what you have just read? Are you taking pages of notes for every article you read? This workshop will cover effective reading and note-taking strategies so that you read more efficiently, assess your reading with a critical eye, and annotate each work so that important concepts are easily accessible. Note: This workshop does not teach speed-reading techniques.
1) Friday, September 28th, 12:30-2:00 PM
Location: Conference Room 2, Student Activities Center (basement level) ( map )
2) Tuesday, October 2nd, 3:00-4:30 PM
Location: Conference Room 2, Student Activities Center (basement level) ( map )
3) Wednesday, October 3rd, 3:00-4:30 PM
Location: Conference Room 2, Student Activities Center (basement level) ( map )

Getting Started on the Dissertation: How to Get Going and Keep Going
Marilyn Gray, Graduate Writing Center Director
This workshop gives an overview of organization, time management, writing process issues and writing strategies. Recommended for people in the early stages of the dissertation, but useful for all stages.
Thursday, October 18th, 5:10-6:50 PM
Location: Conference Room 4, Student Activities Center (basement level) ( map )

Getting Started on the Master's Thesis
Bobby Smith, English, Graduate Writing Center Consultant
This workshop will give an overview of how to write a master's thesis. It will include writing activities and discussion to help participants develop their thesis topics. We will also present strategies for organizing research and literature reviews, as well as tips for drafting and revision.
Thursday, November 1st, 5:10-6:50 PM
Location: Conference Room 4, Student Activities Center (basement level) ( map )
Master's Thesis Writing Program: Would you be interested in a writing consultant mentor while working on your master's thesis or qualifying paper? If so, please fill out the questionnaire linked here. (link coming in mid-October)

Expanding Your Audience: How to Publish Outside Academia
Macrina Cooper-White, Psychology, Writing Consultant
Eric Newman, English, Writing Consultant
Where can your writing and research interests go beyond a field-specific journal article or academic conference presentation? Writing for non-academic publications offers graduate students the opportunity to flex their creative muscles and develop a broader audience for their work. This workshop will help orient students within the world of non-academic writing, providing guidance on where to publish, how to translate complex ideas for a general audience and strategies for writing a pitch letter to a non-academic publication.
Thursday, November 8th, 5:10-6:50 PM
Location: Conference Room 4, Student Activities Center (basement level) ( map )

Workshops on Writing Grants and Fellowships

Applying for the NIH Training Fellowship
Karen Cheng, NIH NRSA Recipient, Graduate Writing Center Consultant
This workshop will cover the application process and required components of an NIH NRSA application. We will discuss preparation, documents needed, and writing strategies. The workshop will mainly focus on NIH Grant F31, but F30 and F32 are very similar. The workshop will also address how to find appropriate materials/resources for a complete application.
Friday, September 28th, 12:00-1:30 PM
Location: Conference Room 4, Student Activities Center (basement level) ( map )

Writing Successful Grant and Fellowship Applications (Science and Engineering Focus)
Macrina Cooper-White, NDSEG Recipient, Graduate Writing Center Consultant
Ariella Machness, NSF GRF Recipient, Graduate Writing Center Consultant
This workshop will first briefly review funding opportunities for graduate students in sciences and engineering. The workshop will then focus on strategies for writing effective applications for grants and fellowships to support graduate study and research, especially for students seeking doctorates and research MAs. The workshop will also cover tips for organizing the application process.
Tuesday, October 2nd, 5:15-7:15 PM
Location: Conference Room 2, Student Activities Center (basement level) ( map )

Writing Successful Grant and Fellowship Applications (Humanities and Social Science focus)
Amber Villalobos, NSF GRF Recipient, Graduate Writing Center Consultant
This workshop will first briefly review funding opportunities for graduate students in humanities, social sciences, and related fields. The workshop will then focus on strategies for writing effective applications for grants and fellowships to support graduate study and research, especially for students seeking doctorates and research MAs. The workshop will also cover tips for organizing the application process.
Wednesday, October 3rd, 5:15-7:15 PM
Location: Conference Room 2, Student Activities Center (basement level) ( map )

Applying for the NSF Graduate Research Fellowship
Ariella Machness, NSF GRF Recipient, Graduate Writing Center Consultant
Amber Villalobos, NSF GRF Recipient, Graduate Writing Center Consultant
Shannon Yu, Graduate Division Fellowship Services
This workshop will discuss strategies for applying for the National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship. Open to US citizens in the Social, Physical, and Biological Sciences, this highly competitive fellowship provides three years of fellowship funding to successful applicants. The workshop will focus on the intellectual merit and broader impacts criteria for NSF grants, the structure of the research proposal and personal statement, suggestions for writing style, and tips for Fastlane submission.
Friday, October 5th, 2:15-3:45 PM
Location: Conference Room 2, Student Activities Center (basement level) ( map )

Humanities Writing Workshops

Social Sciences Writing Workshops

Applying for the NSF Graduate Research Fellowship
Ariella Machness, NSF GRF Recipient, Graduate Writing Center Consultant
Amber Villalobos, NSF GRF Recipient, Graduate Writing Center Consultant
Shannon Yu, Graduate Division Fellowship Services
This workshop will discuss strategies for applying for the National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship. Open to U.S. citizens in the Social, Physical, and Biological Sciences, this highly competitive fellowship provides three years of fellowship funding to successful applicants. The workshop will focus on the intellectual merit and broader impacts criteria for NSF grants, the structure of the research proposal and personal statement, suggestions for writing style, and tips for Fastlane submission.
Friday, October 5th, 2:15-3:45 PM
Location: Conference Room 2, Student Activities Center (basement level) ( map )

Science and Engineering Writing Workshops

Applying for the NIH Training Fellowship
Karen Cheng, NIH NRSA Recipient, Graduate Writing Center, Consultant
This workshop will cover the application process and required components of an NIH NRSA application.. We will discuss preparation, documents needed, and writing strategies. The workshop will mainly focus on NIH Grant F31, but F30 and F32 are very similar. The workshop will also address how to find appropriate materials/resources for a complete application.
Friday, September 28th, 12:00-1:30 PM
Location: Conference Room 4, Student Activities Center (basement level) ( map )

Applying for the NSF Graduate Research Fellowship
Ariella Machness, NSF GRF Recipient, Graduate Writing Center Consultant
Amber Villalobos, NSF GRF Recipient, Graduate Writing Center Consultant
Shannon Yu, Graduate Division Fellowship Services
This workshop will discuss strategies for applying for the National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship. Open to U.S. citizens in the Social, Physical, and Biological Sciences, this highly competitive fellowship provides three years of fellowship funding to successful applicants. The workshop will focus on the intellectual merit and broader impacts criteria for NSF grants, the structure of the research proposal and personal statement, suggestions for writing style, and tips for Fastlane submission.
Friday, October 5th, 2:15-3:45 PM
Location: Conference Room 2, Student Activities Center (basement level) ( map )

Practical Tips for Writing a Scientific Paper
Karen Cheng, NIH NRSA Recipient, Graduate Writing Center Consultant
Macrina Cooper-White, NDSEG Recipient, Graduate Writing Center Consultant
This workshop will cover the basics of how to plan for, prepare, and organize science-specific writing, including term papers, manuscripts and abstracts. We will also cover style, common structure, active versus passive voice, and first pronoun versus third pronoun usage. We will offer tips for avoiding problems such as excess jargon and ambiguously stated hypotheses.
Thursday, November 15th, 5:10-6:45 PM
Location: Conference Room 3, Student Activities Center (basement level) ( map )

ESL Workshops

Academic Writing Skills Workshop for ESL Graduate Students
Adrienne Lynett, Graduate Writing Center Program Manager
In this interactive workshop, ESL graduate students will learn skills and strategies to build their fluency, accuracy, and comprehensibility in English academic writing. In addition, we will discuss useful on-campus, online, and print resources that will help students to work independently to improve their writing. There will also be time for questions and answers about ESL writing issues and concerns.
Thursday, October 4th, 4:00-5:30 PM
Location: Conference Room 2, Student Activities Center (basement level) ( map )

Email Etiquette at the University
Adrienne Lynett, Graduate Writing Center Program Manager
A graduate student will write hundreds of emails while getting his or her degree—emails that invite professors to serve on thesis/dissertation committees, emails that ask for extensions on papers, emails in which graduate students introduce themselves to potential mentors or advisors. Designed for graduate students who speak English as a second or foreign language, this workshop breaks down the language necessary to make polite requests over email. It also covers basic email etiquette and includes opportunities to edit real example emails written by graduate students.
Tuesday, October 9th, 5:15-6:45 PM
Location: Conference Room 4, Student Activities Center (basement level) ( map )

Statistical Software Workshops and Consultation

Current and former workshops may be found here.

For walk-in consulting information, Stat books for loan, and the most up-to-date listing of seminars, please see the Statistical Consulting Services web page of the Institute for Digital Research and Education.

Research Workshops at the Library

To see the most complete, current schedule of UCLA Library advanced research workshops, consult the UCLA Library research workshop page.

Click the link below for more information about the research and teaching support offered by the UCLA Library: http://www.library.ucla.edu/support

Research Guides
Online research guides link to key resources and reference books for certain courses and disciplines. Subject guides, course guides, and general research guides are available.

Research Appointments
Graduate students are encouraged to contact the Library's subject specialists for more specialized and personalized assistance with research, library resources, and subject databases; find a complete list of all subject specialists here.

Copyright Questions
Contact the Library's copyright experts for assistance with copyright, publishing, intellectual property, and other related issues at copyright@library.ucla.edu.