This page is part of the Graduate School Writer's Nexus. The information here is provided as a resource for faculty members working with graduate student writers.

Advising & Mentoring Writing Groups Non-Native English Speakers/Writers Interdisciplinary Dissertation-Writing Seminars Teaching with Writing and the Center for Writing More Resources for You and Your Students

Advising & Mentoring

Are you looking for ideas about how to be a better advisor, committee member, or mentor?

• These resources from other universities can help get you started:
  • Guidelines for Faculty Mentors from the University of California-San Francisco
  • How to Mentor Graduate Students from the University of Michigan
  • Best Practices for Faculty Mentoring of Students from UC-Berkeley
  • Graduate Student Mentoring from Penn State
• Faculty may also glean particularly helpful ideas from two publications aimed at--believe it or not!--students. At Minnesota, the Council of Graduate Students (COGS) offers cogent advice in Staying on Course; see especially the section called "Getting More from Your Advisor." Michigan's Rackham Graduate School also offers the very insightful booklet, How to Get the Mentoring You Want: A Guide for Students at a Diverse University.
• The Graduate School's mentoring resources page points you toward a range of resources.

Writing Groups

Would you like to start a writing group or writing workshop for a group of graduate students? UNC-Chapel Hill has brief but valuable pages for people runnning or participating in writing groups, including a page for writing group mentors and another on responding to other writers. Also see the information about writing & research groups on our Writing and Research support page.

Non-Native English Speakers/Writers

Working with non-native English speakers? The Center for Writing offers these quick tips for helping non-native speakers writing in English. The Writing Center at UNC-Chapel Hill also offers an ESL Resources page that includes their tips on teaching ESL students. Need more? Don't forget that the Graduate Writer's Nexus has a page about support available for international students and non-native English speakers.

Interdisciplinary Dissertation-Writing Seminars

If your students are working on dissertations that cross disciplinary boundaries, you might encourage them to enroll in one of the new interdisciplinary dissertation-writing seminars sponsored by The Graduate School. The seminars will be led by University of Minnesota faculty members selected for their distinguished records of interdisciplinary research and teaching and for their innovative seminar plans, which mesh with student interest as gauged by a 2008 survey of graduate students who described their work as interdisciplinary.

Ten different seminars will be offered over the course of academic years 2008-2010. The first of the seminars will be Academic Life as Pragmatic Action, led by Professor Thomas Wolfe of the History department in fall 2008.

Teaching with Writing and the Center for Writing

Teaching with Writing is a program of the Center for Writing that offers supportive materials, workshops, and consultations about teaching effectively with writing assignments. Some of the services offered here are more geared toward undergraduates, but others, such as their suggestions about commenting on student writing, will also be useful for faculty working with graduate student writers. Don't forget, too, that your graduate students can get help from the Center for Writing through online or face-to-face appointments. In addition to getting feedback on their writing, one of the most valued services dissertation writers have found at the Center for Writing is the chance to set up a writing schedule with the help of a writing consultant.

More Resources for You and Your Students

The Graduate School Writer's Nexus will connect you and your students to numerous sources of support for research and writing. Other Web resources that may be helpful include the Graduate School's dates and deadlines calendar and degree completion procedures page. For more, visit the Graduate School pages with information for Current Students, Faculty and Staff, or Directors of Graduate Study.

Do you want to suggest a resource to include here? Have a question or comment? Let us know, please.