Freqently Asked Questions

• How much does tutoring cost?
• What happens during a tutoring session?
• How can I sign up for a tutoring appointment?
• Can I just drop in without an appointment?
• What if I am late for my appointment?
• How can I cancel an appointment?
• How long does a tutoring session last?
• How many tutoring sessions can I sign up for in a week?
• Can I drop my paper off for a tutor to correct?
• What is the best point in a paper to ask for help?
• What if my tutor is sick?
• What do I do if I have been a "no show" two or more times and cannot register online?

Q: How much does tutoring cost?

A: Appointments at the SSC are free. In order to support these services for all students, every student pays a small semester fee when they register for courses. That fee provides you consistent access to any of our tutoring or SSC services throughout the semester. ________________________________________
Q: What happens during a tutoring session?
 A: To a large degree, this is up to you*. The tutor will ask you what you would like to work on during your session based on the amount of time the two of you have; however, because the main point of tutoring is to help you improve your skills, the tutors will not do things like edit a paper for you or give you answers to homework assignments. They will help you develop your own skills so that you will feel more and more confident doing the work on your own.

*See the Student Success Center homepage for a list of services the tutors provide.

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Q: How can I sign up for a tutoring appointment?
A: On the Student Success Center homepage, click on the "Making/Canceling an appointment" box. The first time you sign in, click on "click here" to get a username and password. After that, just sign in with your email and password.

To make an appointment, select the day and tutor you want; then click on a white square under the time you want to start (white squares mean open tutoring sessions). In the pop-up box, make any time adjustments you need to, and then click "Save Reservation". A confirmation email will be sent to you.

*The system will let you sign up for the current week and the following week.

If you have any questions, ask a tutor for help, or email Corrine at ssc@uwest.edu.

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Q: Can I just drop in without an appointment?
A: You are welcome to drop in to see if a tutor is available due to a cancelation, but if you are counting on tutor help, it is safest to make an appointment.

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Q: What if I am late for my appointment?
A: If you are more than 10 minutes late for an appointment, your appointment will be canceled if there is a drop-in student who needs tutoring help. We have this policy because we want to help as many students as we can, and we will not know if you are just late or if you have forgotten your appointment. Failure to show up for your appointment may result in a $5.00 fine.

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Q: How can I cancel an appointment?
A: Please try to keep the appointments you make. When you sign up for a tutoring session, that means others cannot use that time. If you know that you cannot come to your tutoring session, please cancel your appointment as soon as possible so that another student can take your place. In order to avoid a late cancelation fee ($5.00 per incident), you should cancel 3 or more hours before your appointment time. This way, we can find another student to use the time.

To cancel, go to the Student Success Center homepage, click on the "Make/Cancel" box; sign in; then, click on the appointment you want to cancel (in blue). At the bottom of the pop up window, check "Delete this reservation?" Then click on "Save Changes". A confirmation email will be sent to you.

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Q: How long does a tutoring session last?
A: A tutoring session usually lasts 50 minutes. ________________________________________

Q: How many tutoring sessions can I sign up for in a week?
A: Currently you may sign up for a maximum of 1 hour per week. As we are able to hire more tutors, this number may increase.

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Q: Can I email or drop my paper off for a tutor to correct?
A: No. The Student Success Center is not an editing service. Since the focus of our tutoring services are to help you learn and improve your skills, we ask that you work closely with the tutor during all tutoring sessions.

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Q: What is the best point in a paper to ask for help?
A: Do not wait until your paper is due to see a tutor. There may not be any tutoring times left; your tutor could be sick, or your paper may be too long or involve too many issues for one session. It is best to work with a tutor throughout the paper writing process.

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Q: What if my tutor is sick?
A: Unfortunately your tutor may have to call in sick. If another tutor is available, you can work with him or her, but if that is not possible, you will need to reschedule. This is one reason why it is important to schedule a tutoring appointment as early as possible - that way you can get additional help or reschedule a make-up appointment.

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Q: What do I do if I have not shown up for an appointment more than once?
A: If you do not cancel your appointment and you do not show up for a scheduled appointment more than once in a semester, you may incur a $5.00 fee. Additionally, you will be unable to make appointments using the online system until you've spoken with the SSC Coordinator.

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