Book an appointment with an academic skills tutor

This guide is about how to book a general academic skills appointment. Appointments are normally for 30 minutes and bookable using our online form. The form offers a selection of times and online or face-to-face options, depending on availability. 

These appointments are to discuss any academic skills related issues you might have, including academic writing, however, we also offer slightly longer 50 minute appointments with a writing tutor to look specifically at academic writing.  

Before you book

Think carefully about what you want to discuss with your assigned ASC writing tutor. The more focused and specific your enquiry, the more helpful you will find the appointment. We aim to enhance your student learning experience and to help you to develop independent learning skills so that you thrive at university.  

Before you make an appointment check out our academic skills related online resources. If you have already booked a time, then find what you need in our online resources, remember to cancel your appointment to free it up for someone else.  

If you have a quick question to ask, use our Quick Query Drop-in service.

Written work

If your appointment relates to a piece of written work, there are some additional things to know about your appointment.

What we will do:

• Support your development in specific aspects of your writing.
• Provide general feedback on a sample of your work to help you identify areas for improvement.
• Suggest techniques and resources which can help you make improvements in your work.
• Indicate areas of spelling, grammar or punctuation you may need to work on and suggest ways you can do so.
• Help you to develop the skills and confidence to proofread and edit your own work.
• Look at specific sections or issues that you wish to work on or look at a sample/samples at random.
• Help you to understand and act upon the feedback you’ve received from your marker.
• Help you to understand the question. Bring a copy of the assignment brief/question with you to your appointment – this will allow your tutor to better understand the task you have been set.

What we can't do

• Offer a proofreading service.
• Provide quick-fix corrections for a current piece of coursework.
• Look at an entire piece of work with you.
• Offer a checking service to see if you have fully implemented feedback from ourselves or your course tutor across an entire assignment.
• Correct all errors in spelling, grammar, or punctuation.
• Look at the same piece of work multiple times (although the ASC tutor may agree at their discretion to see the same piece more than once for enhancement purposes).
• Tell you if a piece of work will pass or fail, or whether it will receive a certain mark.
• Comment on the mark awarded by your module tutor.
• Offer subject-specific advice or guidance (talk to your module tutor).
• ASC tutors offer support for international students with general academic skills but are unable to advise on English language issues. If your first language is not English, visit the English for International Students (EIS) web page for details of courses available each semester.

How to book appointments

1. To book an online appointment with an academic skills tutor use the button below.
2. Choose Student login and login with your University user id and password.
3. Once logged in you’ll be able to browse available appointment times and select one that suits

If you click or tap Appointments, you’ll see booked appointments and have the option to cancel them.

Book an appointment on Kirkcaldy campus

To book an appointment on the Fife (Kirkcaldy) campus see the Hub schedule for times and details and the location guide.

How to cancel appointments 

• ASC tutor - go to your Appointments page and you will have an option to cancel
• Writing tutor - email the tutor you booked with to cancel
• Kirkcaldy – email the tutor you booked with to cancel