English Language Skills for University Success
The School of Graduate Studies offers free workshops for Memorial University graduate students. These non-credit workshops are offered to registered students in graduate diploma, masters, or doctoral programs and designed to help improve speaking and writing skills for a variety of contexts.
Fall 2024 writing and speaking skills workshops will be held once a week from 12:00 pm to 1:30 pm on the dates below. All workshops will be offered online in Newfoundland Daylight Time (NDT) via Brightspace.
Writing and Speaking Skills Workshops:
Setting Goals & Staying Motivated
Explains why it is important to set goals and offers suggestions to stay motivated to accomplish them.
Date and Time: Tuesday, October 1, 12:00 pm - 1:30 pm
Mode: Online
Registration Deadline: September 30
REGISTER
Professional Correspondence
Describes email writing and how to write an effective email that warrants an immediate reply.
Date and Time: Tuesday, October 8, 12:00 pm - 1:30 pm
Mode: Online
Registration Deadline: October 7
REGISTER
Writing for Clarity
Discusses strategies to develop clarity to make your writing more intelligible and coherent
Date and Time: Tuesday, October 22, 12:00 pm - 1:30 pm
Mode: Online
Registration Deadline: October 21
REGISTER
Speaking in Discussions
Examines ways to interrupt and respond politely during a discussion and gives strategies to address various opinions.
Date and Time: Tuesday, October 29, 12:00 pm - 1:30 pm
Mode: Online
Registration Deadline: October 28
REGISTER
Writing for Conciseness
Presents how to convey ideas clearly in a few words. Practical tips are discussed with examples.
Date and Time: Tuesday, November 5, 12:00 pm - 1:30 pm
Mode: Online
Registration Deadline: November 4
REGISTER
Grammar-Punctuation
Punctuation matters which is why this workshop is necessary to review the rules of punctuation in academic texts.
Date and Time: Tuesday, November 12, 12:00 pm - 1:30 pm
Mode: Online
Registration Deadline: November 11
REGISTER
Asking & Answering Questions
Outlines ways to ask questions for information or clarification and answer questions effectively.
Date and Time: Tuesday, November 19, 12:00 pm - 1:30 pm
Mode: Online
Registration Deadline: November 18
REGISTER
Paragraph Organization & Flow
Discusses reasons why paragraph organization is important in academic writing and ways to enhance the flow of a paragraph.
Date and Time: Tuesday, November 26, 12:00 pm - 1:30 pm
Mode: Online
Registration Deadline: November 25
REGISTER
Citing Sources & Avoiding Plagiarism
Reviewing literature is the foundation of most academic writing. We will examine the function and form of literature reviews and discuss proper methods for capturing the work of other researchers.
Date and Time: Tuesday, December 3, 3:00 pm - 4:30 pm
Mode: Online
Registration Deadline: December 2
REGISTER
Formal Speaking
Interviews and meetings require precise language. This session will review aspects of effective formal speech and discuss strategies to improve your speaking skills in formal environments.
Date and Time: Tuesday, December 10, 12:00 pm - 1:30 pm
Mode: Online
Registration Deadline: December 9
REGISTER
Online Individual Appointment for English Language Skills
If you are interested in improving your spoken and written English proficiency or have any inquiries regarding English language skills, please arrange an individual online appointment with the ESL instructor at esl@mun.ca.
If you have any questions about these workshops or other English language training supports for graduate students, please contact Xin Wang at xw8080@mun.ca.