Online Writing Center

The OWC Grammar Coach is a bot trained by Liberty IT and faculty that will provide a free, safe grammar review of assignments for online courses only. Students enrolled in Liberty online courses may use this tool without fear of being penalized for using AI. Uploaded work will not be used for any other purpose.

First-time users should review the 3-minute tutorial before uploading a draft, as it contains vital information about the tool’s limitations and yours.

Draft reviews are provided by human tutors, referred to as  Hosts on the OWC Dashboard link below. Please review all policies below and the OWC Dashboard Guide PDF before attempting to submit your first assignment.

Hours of Operation

Assignments may be submitted 24/7 using the OWC Dashboard link under the policies below. A maximum of 10 pages will be reviewed per assignment (the first 9 pages and the first references/bibliography page).

For targeted reviews where you choose only one aspect of tutor focus, feedback will be given within 24 hours from the time of submission.

For full reviews, feedback will be given within 48 hours from the time of submission.

NOTE: You may submit a paper of any length, but the tutor will only review the first 9 pages and the first references/bibliography page. The first 9 pages will include any front matter you submit (title page, TOC, abstract, etc.). Please apply your tutor’s feedback on the first 9 pages to the rest of your draft.

Policies

One draft review is permitted per assignment, whether a targeted or full review. Drafts already containing comments and drafts written for previous terms will not be reviewed. Already graded papers will not be reviewed without prior permission from the instructor to the Online Writing Center (OWC). Mid-term and final exams will also not be reviewed. Tutors will only review 9 pages and the first reference page of longer drafts. In keeping with the OWC’s ‘no editing’ policy, end-of-program projects and any sections of such projects will not be reviewed. Students working on end-of-program projects should contact their departments or search online for qualified editors.

Group projects may only be submitted if the student clearly identifies the portion that he or she has written. In keeping with the OWC’s mission of improving an individual’s writing skills, each student will receive a review only of the section identified as his or her own.

Audio/Visual projects such as PowerPoint slides or transcripts, Infographics, video transcripts, or any other audio/visual scripts or images will not be reviewed. In accordance with our mission to improve academic writing skills, only papers and essays and their stages of development will be reviewed.

End-of-program projects: End-of-program projects and any sections of such projects will not be reviewed. Students working on end-of-program projects should contact their departments or search online for qualified editors.

An “end-of-program project” refers to the final written project of any program and any parts written in the immediate classes leading up to submission and/or defense of said project, including but not limited to dissertations, theses, and final case studies. Such final projects often but not always include a prospectus or proposal, a literature review, methodology, results, analysis, and discussion and must conform to final project formatting provided by the department.

Editing and plagiarism disclaimers: OWC tutors will not edit papers or point out every single error but will note patterns of error and provide instruction, explanations, examples, and links to resources. OWC staff cannot be held responsible for recognizing AI use or plagiarism and will not interpret Turnitin scores but will note any improper citations, documentation, or formatting.

Troubleshooting: You must be logged into your Liberty account (myLU) to enter the dashboard. If you try submitting an assignment and none of your courses are listed, please do the following:

Submit a Helpdesk Ticket referencing the Online Writing Center’s writing help dashboard, explaining that none of your courses appear, though you are enrolled in online courses.

Double-check that you are currently enrolled in a Liberty Online course.

The session option allows you to set an appointment with a tutor to discuss one Microsoft Word draft in real time via the OWC Dashboard’s virtual classroom. Please review the policies under “Draft Review” above as to what types of drafts will and will not be reviewed, as they also apply to live sessions.

Before submitting a session review request, be sure you review the policies below and the OWC Dashboard guide, particularly the sections on Session Reviews.

Hours

Requests for live session reviews may be submitted 24/7 using the OWC Dashboard link under the policies below. Live session appointments must be made 48 hours in advance and must fall between 8 a.m. and 11:00 p.m. Eastern Time. If you live in a different time zone, the dashboard will show tutor (host) availability in your own time zone.

Policies

Live sessions may be booked for a maximum of 1 hour per day, 3 times per week and require a headset or microphone and speakers.  You must attach to your live session request form a draft of the exact document you want to discuss with your tutor (a thesis statement, research question, outline, discussion board post, rough draft, etc., which you yourself have written). You may add to that document by the time you meet with the tutor, but you may not discuss a different document or assignment than the one you originally used to book the session. 

Pending Approval: You may submit your draft and book time with a tutor, but your session request will not be finalized until you receive an email that your request has been approved. If you receive a disapproval notification, you will also receive the reason and will either be able to resubmit or will not be able to. Continue to check your Liberty email or the OWC Dashboard for approval after submitting your request for a live session.

*Please note: Make sure that the device you use for your appointment can display your draft and allow you to make edits while speaking with your tutor during the session (smartphones will not suffice).

Please be respectful of your tutor’s time and cancel the request prior to the appointment time if you cannot make it. See the OWC Dashboard Guide for cancellation instructions.

• Before the appointment, Ensure your Internet connection is strong and that your incoming and outgoing audio is fully functional. Make sure you will not be interrupted, are in a quiet environment with no distractions, and have prepared questions and concerns about your paper to discuss with your tutor. Please review the OWC Dashboard Guide below, especially the sections on session reviews. The meeting will be audio-only with screensharing as you and your tutor discuss your writing. If you are deaf or hard of hearing, please email onlinewriting@liberty.edu with your ODAS accommodation documentation to make other arrangements.
  
  During the appointment, make sure you take notes, make changes to your draft, type tutor suggestions on your draft, and/or choose to record the session.
  
  After the appointment, you will receive your draft back with general comments summarizing points of discussion and/or links to recommended resources.

Writing styles and general resources are located in the Academic Success Center. For APA 7^th edition questions, please see the “APA Formatting” link below. For a complete list of the writing styles in one place please visit the online writing styles guides page.

Writing Styles

• Turabian Formatting
• AMA Formatting
• APA Formatting
• MLA Formatting
• Bluebook Resources

General Resources

• Writing Aids

Our Facebook Group offers weekly encouragement and writing tips. We will also keep you updated on new resources, services, and rare site issues.

GRST 500/501 are now 2 separate courses designed to be taken in conjunction with at least 1 other course, created to equip you with the organization and revision skills necessary to produce good graduate-level writing. They do not require purchasing a separate textbook (textbooks are integrated into each course and course fee) and have a pass/fail format to give students a low-stress and low-pressure educational experience.

• GRST 500: “Introduction to Graduate Writing” is an optional course for online graduate students who may or may not be accepted on caution and are apprehensive about future graduate-level writing assignments. Strongly recommended but not required for graduate students accepted on caution. The course fee is a flat $125.
• GRST 501: “Graduate Success Strategies” is an extremely beneficial required course for all online graduate students who are placed on Academic Warning or Probation. It is geared toward helping students obtain the mindset, support resources, and writing skills to succeed both in academics and life. The course fee is a flat $125.

What are these courses like?

GRST 500 and 501, designed to be taken in conjunction with at least 1 other course, are 8-week courses created primarily to equip you with the organization and revision skills necessary to produce good graduate-level writing. In addition to their reduced cost, these courses differ from other Liberty online courses in a variety of ways:

• GRST 500/501 provides instruction and feedback – from both the course instructor and a writing tutor – on a paper of your choice, selected from any other course you are taking that same term.
• Because of its pass/fail format, GRST 500/501 is a low-stress, low-pressure educational experience and will not affect your GPA. As long as you complete all work and show significant improvement between your rough and final drafts, you will pass the class and add a graduate-level writing course to your official transcript.
• Finally, GRST 500/501 are courses from which you will reap long-term benefits according to the level of effort you put into the class. The course may merely be helpful instruction that introduces you to the type of writing expected in graduate-level course work or, if given your best effort, can permanently improve your writing skills.

What is the bottom line?

For only the flat course fee cost mentioned above, you will receive guided instruction and feedback on a writing project of your choice from another class, the chance to develop organization and revision skills needed for future assignments, and a graduate-level writing course on your official transcript. If you are apprehensive about future writing projects, please take advantage of this unique opportunity by enrolling in GRST 500 along with your other courses in one of your earlier terms.

How do I register for GRST 500 or 501?

If you are placed on Academic Warning, you will automatically be enrolled in GRST 501, and if you do not pass the course the first time you take it, you will automatically be re-enrolled in a subsequent term and charged another flat course fee.

If you are NOT a student on Academic Warning, simply register for GRST 500 through the Course Registration Tool as you would any other course. Select “Graduate Studies” (GRST) 500 as the subject in the course lookup feature when you go to register, and be sure to select “online” as the instructional method.

GRST 500/501 Writing Textbook

Reviewed Paper

To access your reviewed paper, click the link to your completed request in your notification email and locate the document next to “Tutor Revised Copy.” Click on the paper clip to the left of the document box then click the small gray paper clip that appears to select “download” and access your paper. You may need to adjust your pop-up blocker or hold down the ctrl button to download your reviewed paper. 

Tutor’s Comments

To read the tutor’s comments on your paper, click on each individual comment. This will automatically highlight the word, punctuation, or phrase to which the comment is attached so you can easily understand the tutor’s advice.

If tutor comments do not appear to be visible, double-check whether “All Markup” is selected in the drop-down menu under the Review tab’s tracking options and that all items are checked under the “Show Markup” drop-down menu.

Problems connecting to the request form?

• Any operating system older than Windows XP will not work with the request form.
• Try entering your entire email address as your username, including @liberty.edu.
• Try clearing your browser’s cookies and cache, closing your browser, and restarting.
• Try using different browsers such as Internet Explorer, Google Chrome, or Mozilla Firefox.
• If you are trying to access the form from a place of business or from an institution-owned laptop, there may be a network firewall preventing your access. If so, speak with your IT personnel or log in from a personal device or location.
• If none of the methods above work, please contact Helpdesk at (866) 447-2869.