How to use this guide

As peer tutors and administrators at the Writing Center, we recognize that it can be overwhelming to work on a document that will permanently become part of your formal academic record, especially when the only requirements are that it’s 750 words and due before you graduate. We know from our sessions, our talks with our peers, and our own experiences that sometimes it’s hard to find the right strategies.

We hope this guide will help you to:

• Understand Academic

Statement requirements • Use the processes you know work well for you • Explore techniques that may be new and welcome to you

We also hope to point you in the direction of useful resources should you need them:

• Writing Center tutors (of course!) • Academic and Career Advisors • TRiO staff • First Peoples Multicultural, Trans, and Queer Support Services staff • Veterans Resource Center staff • Student Wellness Services Counselors • Student Activities staff • Your faculty and other trusted individuals

We can’t provide a one-size-fits-all approach, nor tell you what your Academic Statement should be. At the Writing Center, we believe that there is no fundamentally right or wrong way to approach any writing. But we do know many approaches and many ways that an Academic statement could be. Not all of these resources will work for everyone, so pick the ones that feel right for you. You got this!