Policies

How many appointments can I have?

Generally, students meet with their academic skills specialist about once every two weeks. In times of high demand, this frequency may be reduced; under some circumstances, this frequency may be increased. There is no other limit on the total number of academic skills appointments students may have.

What if I need to cancel my appointment?

• All fines for missed appointments are currently suspended. However, you are still expected to either attend appointments you have booked, or to cancel them at least six hours in advance.
• Any student who arrives more than 10 minutes late may forfeit that appointment.
• Students who miss multiple appointments without cancelling them may have their booking privileges revoked.
• A student may not transfer an appointment to another student or send a proxy to attend an appointment on their behalf. Any student who violates this policy will no longer be allowed to use the service.
• Appeals due to extenuating circumstances should be made to the director.

Can you help me with take-home exams?

• Take-home examinations cannot be the subject of any SASS consultation (this includes graduate comprehensive exams).
• Students are encouraged to prepare for take-home exams in advance by attending our workshops, reviewing our online resources, and booking appointments to work on their general writing and exam preparation / exam-taking skills.

Can you help with course content / comment on a mark I got on an assignment?

• SASS staff do not appraise comments and/or the grade on a marked paper, nor do they advocate on behalf of students. We adhere to a strict policy of non-interference in regard to student-instructor relations.
• SASS staff cannot fulfill the duties of a teaching assistant. Questions about course content, including questions about citation format, should be directed to your instructor or TA.
• Although some members of our staff teach or act as TAs or markers for various Queen’s courses, appointments may not be used for students to meet with their instructor or TA.

Online appointments

• Students must have a viable internet connection for online appointments.
• We encourage students to log in to their appointments several minutes before their appointment time to ensure that connections and functions are all working properly. Online consultations are best facilitated through a Chrome browser.
• Students are responsible for uploading any document(s) they wish to discuss in their appointments.
• Generally, online appointments at SASS have few or no technical issues, but in the case of audio or video failure, appointments may rely on text box communications / document markup only.

Appointment fines

• Please note: all fines for missed appointments are currently suspended. However, you are expected to attend any appointments you have booked or to cancel them within the six-hour cancellation window.
• A student who arrives (online or in person) more than 10 minutes late for an appointment may forfeit that appointment.
• Students who miss multiple appointments may have their booking privileges revoked.

Appointment conduct

• When engaging with SASS services, students are expected to conduct themselves in a professional and respectful manner.
• SASS does not tolerate subtle or overt discriminatory or offensive behaviour towards our staff or other students.
• SASS’s team comprises skilled professional staff and peer volunteers who are trained to address the academic skills and writing needs of Queen’s students. Our staff are committed to using their expertise to work professionally and respectfully with students at all times.

Any student with questions or concerns about SASS programming or policies should make an appointment to speak with the Director of SASS, Susan Korba, at 613-533-6000, ext. 77630, korbas@queensu.ca.

How many appointments can I have?

Students may have a maximum of one EAL appointment per week. The frequency of EAL appointments is determined during and after the introductory meeting by the EAL coordinator and the student.

What if I need to cancel my appointment?

• All fines for missed appointments are currently suspended. However, you are still expected to either attend appointments you have booked, or to cancel them at least six hours in advance.
• Any student who arrives more than 10 minutes late may forfeit that appointment.
• Students who miss multiple appointments without cancelling them may have their booking privileges revoked.
• A student may not transfer an appointment to another student or send a proxy to attend an appointment on their behalf. Any student who violates this policy will no longer be allowed to use the service.
• Appeals due to extenuating circumstances should be made to the director.

Can you help me with take-home exams?

• Take-home examinations cannot be the subject of any SASS consultation (this includes graduate comprehensive exams).
• Students are encouraged to prepare for take-home exams in advance by attending our workshops, reviewing our online resources, and booking appointments to work on their general writing and exam preparation / exam-taking skills.

Can you help with course content / comment on a mark I got on an assignment?

• SASS staff do not appraise comments and/or the grade on a marked paper, nor do they advocate on behalf of students. We adhere to a strict policy of non-interference in regard to student-instructor relations.
• SASS staff cannot fulfill the duties of a teaching assistant. Questions about course content, including questions about citation format, should be directed to your instructor or TA.
• Although some members of our staff teach or act as TAs or markers for various Queen’s courses, appointments may not be used for students to meet with their instructor or TA.

Online appointments

• Students must have a viable internet connection for online appointments.
• We encourage students to log in to their appointments several minutes before their appointment time to ensure that connections and functions are all working properly. Online consultations are best facilitated through a Chrome browser.
• Students are responsible for uploading any document(s) they wish to discuss in their appointments.
• Generally, online appointments at SASS have few or no technical issues, but in the case of audio or video failure, appointments may rely on text box communications / document markup only.

Appointment fines

• Please note: all fines for missed appointments are currently suspended. However, you are expected to attend any appointments you have booked or to cancel them within the six-hour cancellation window.
• A student who arrives (online or in person) more than 10 minutes late for an appointment may forfeit that appointment.
• Students who miss multiple appointments may have their booking privileges revoked.

Appointment conduct

• When engaging with SASS services, students are expected to conduct themselves in a professional and respectful manner.
• SASS does not tolerate subtle or overt discriminatory or offensive behaviour towards our staff or other students.
• SASS’s team comprises skilled professional staff and peer volunteers who are trained to address the academic skills and writing needs of Queen’s students. Our staff are committed to using their expertise to work professionally and respectfully with students at all times.

Any student with questions or concerns about SASS programming or policies should make an appointment to speak with the Director of SASS, Susan Korba, at 613-533-6000, ext. 77630, korbas@queensu.ca.

How many appointments can I have?

Because of high demand for appointments, students are limited to one writing appointment per week.

What if I need to cancel my appointment?

First, be aware that students who have booked writing appointments can benefit from them even if they don’t have a draft to work on. Writing consultants work with students at every stage of the writing process.

• All fines for missed appointments are currently suspended. However, you are still expected to either attend appointments you have booked, or to cancel them at least six hours in advance.
• Any student who arrives more than 10 minutes late may forfeit that appointment.
• Students who miss multiple appointments without cancelling them may have their booking privileges revoked.
• A student may not transfer an appointment to another student or send a proxy to attend an appointment on their behalf. Any student who violates this policy will no longer be allowed to use the service.
• Appeals due to extenuating circumstances should be made to the director.

Can you help me with take-home exams?

• Take-home examinations cannot be the subject of any SASS consultation (this includes graduate comprehensive exams).
• Students are encouraged to prepare for take-home exams in advance by attending our workshops, reviewing our online resources, and booking appointments to work on their general writing and exam preparation / exam-taking skills.

Can you help with course content / comment on a mark I got on an assignment?

• SASS staff do not appraise comments and/or the grade on a marked paper, nor do they advocate on behalf of students. We adhere to a strict policy of non-interference in regard to student-instructor relations.
• SASS staff cannot fulfill the duties of a teaching assistant. Questions about course content, including questions about citation format, should be directed to your instructor or TA.
• Although some members of our staff teach or act as TAs or markers for various Queen’s courses, appointments may not be used for students to meet with their instructor or TA.

Can I get help with comprehensive exams (PhD exams)?

• PhD students can meet with a writing consultant to discuss and receive feedback on their specific comprehensive exams with permission from their PhD supervisor. This collaborative discussion and feedback covers topics typical of all writing consultations, such as identifying an argument and its supporting points, integrating research, clarifying and showing relationships among ideas, using transitions, strengthening structure, and improving clarity and concision, but staff cannot edit or proofread a draft. 
• SASS writing consultants and/or academic skills specialists can address how to approach comprehensive exams in general, without specific reference to the student's actual comprehensive exam, if the student does not have permission from their supervisor for more specific feedback.

Appointments with professional writing consultants:

• We want to help you as much as possible, but we cannot be very helpful if you visit us the day your assignment is due. Leave enough time (at least a few days) to revise your work after your appointment.
• You are welcome to book appointments weeks in advance, to help you plan your writing. The earlier you start on your writing, the better quality it will be.
• Our writing consultations are not intended to be used for editing or proofreading your paper. Although our staff will point out patterns of grammatical or stylistic weakness and explain how to identify and fix them, they mainly concentrate on structure, strength and clarity of argument, integration of sources, and writing process strategies, leaving it up to you to apply them. The responsibility for making any changes to your work rests with you.
• For in-person appointments, please bring a hard copy of your work. In-person appointments will not be conducted on laptops.
• Students may use one writing appointment only to seek help with a job search document or other application (personal statement, cover letter, graduate or professional program application, etc.). These appointments are intended to help the student clarify and reorganize the document and do not involve editing or proofreading. The final document is the student’s own responsibility and should reflect the student’s own voice and skill level.

Online appointments

• Students must have a viable internet connection for online appointments.
• We encourage students to log in to their appointments several minutes before their appointment time to ensure that connections and functions are all working properly. Online consultations are best facilitated through a Chrome browser.
• Students are responsible for uploading any document(s) they wish to discuss in their appointments.
• Generally, online appointments at SASS have few or no technical issues, but in the case of audio or video failure, appointments may rely on text box communications / document markup only.

Appointment fines

• Please note: all fines for missed appointments are currently suspended. However, you are expected to attend any appointments you have booked or to cancel them within the six-hour cancellation window.
• A student who arrives (online or in person) more than 10 minutes late for an appointment may forfeit that appointment.
• Students who miss multiple appointments may have their booking privileges revoked.

Appointment conduct

• When engaging with SASS services, students are expected to conduct themselves in a professional and respectful manner.
• SASS does not tolerate subtle or overt discriminatory or offensive behaviour towards our staff or other students.
• SASS’s team comprises skilled professional staff and peer volunteers who are trained to address the academic skills and writing needs of Queen’s students. Our staff are committed to using their expertise to work professionally and respectfully with students at all times.

Any student with questions or concerns about SASS programming or policies should make an appointment to speak with the Director of SASS, Susan Korba, at 613-533-6000, ext. 77630, korbas@queensu.ca.

How many appointments can I have?

Students seeking help with writing assignments in first- or second-year courses may book up to two Peer Writing Assistant appointments per week, in addition to any appointments with professional writing consultants that they may book.

What if I need to cancel my appointment?

First, be aware that students who have booked writing appointments can benefit from them even if they don’t have a draft to work on. Writing consultants work with students at every stage of the writing process.

• All fines for missed appointments are currently suspended. However, you are still expected to either attend appointments you have booked, or to cancel them at least six hours in advance.
• Any student who arrives more than 10 minutes late may forfeit that appointment.
• Students who miss multiple appointments without cancelling them may have their booking privileges revoked.
• A student may not transfer an appointment to another student or send a proxy to attend an appointment on their behalf. Any student who violates this policy will no longer be allowed to use the service.

Appeals due to extenuating circumstances should be made to the director.

Can you help me with take-home exams?

• Take-home examinations cannot be the subject of any SASS consultation (this includes graduate comprehensive exams).
• Students are encouraged to prepare for take-home exams in advance by attending our workshops, reviewing our online resources, and booking appointments to work on their general writing and exam preparation / exam-taking skills.

Can you help with course content / comment on a mark I got on an assignment?

• SASS staff do not appraise comments and/or the grade on a marked paper, nor do they advocate on behalf of students. We adhere to a strict policy of non-interference in regard to student-instructor relations.
• SASS staff cannot fulfill the duties of a teaching assistant. Questions about course content, including questions about citation format, should be directed to your instructor or TA.
• Although some members of our staff teach or act as TAs or markers for various Queen’s courses, appointments may not be used for students to meet with their instructor or TA.

Appointments with Peer Writing Assistants:

• We want to help you as much as possible, but we cannot be very helpful if you visit us the day your assignment is due. Leave enough time (at least a few days) to revise your work after your appointment.
• You are welcome to book appointments weeks in advance, to help you plan your writing. The earlier you start on your writing, the better quality it will be.
• Our writing consultations are not intended to be used for editing or proofreading your paper. Although our staff will point out patterns of grammatical or stylistic weakness and explain how to identify and fix them, they mainly concentrate on structure, strength and clarity of argument, integration of sources, and writing process strategies, leaving it up to you to apply them. The responsibility for making any changes to your work rests with you.
• For in-person appointments, please bring a hard copy of your work. In-person appointments will not be conducted on laptops. Students may use one writing appointment only to seek help with a job search document or other application (personal statement, cover letter, graduate or professional program application, etc.). These appointments are intended to help the student clarify and reorganize the document and do not involve editing or proofreading. The final document is the student’s own responsibility and should reflect the student’s own voice and skill level.

Online appointments

• Students must have a viable internet connection for online appointments.
• We encourage students to log in to their appointments several minutes before their appointment time to ensure that connections and functions are all working properly. Online consultations are best facilitated through a Chrome browser.
• Students are responsible for uploading any document(s) they wish to discuss in their appointments.
• Generally, online appointments at SASS have few or no technical issues, but in the case of audio or video failure, appointments may rely on text box communications / document markup only.

Appointment fines

• Please note: all fines for missed appointments are currently suspended. However, you are expected to attend any appointments you have booked or to cancel them within the six-hour cancellation window.
• A student who arrives (online or in person) more than 10 minutes late for an appointment may forfeit that appointment.
• Students who miss multiple appointments may have their booking privileges revoked.

Appointment conduct

• When engaging with SASS services, students are expected to conduct themselves in a professional and respectful manner.
• SASS does not tolerate subtle or overt discriminatory or offensive behaviour towards our staff or other students.
• SASS’s team comprises skilled professional staff and peer volunteers who are trained to address the academic skills and writing needs of Queen’s students. Our staff are committed to using their expertise to work professionally and respectfully with students at all times.

Any student with questions or concerns about SASS programming or policies should make an appointment to speak with the Director of SASS, Susan Korba, at 613-533-6000, ext. 77630, korbas@queensu.ca.