Thinking about graduate school or professional school, but not sure how to write a strong personal statement, admissions letter, scholarship, fellowship or other award statement?
If so, the Writing Forward Initiative is for you!
The New College Writing Centre (NCWC) and New College Registrar’s Office (NCRO) are teaming up to offer Writing Forward, a series of virtual workshops designed to help you take your next step, whether it’s graduate school, professional school or applying for awards, scholarships and/or fellowships.
Why Writing Forward?
Over the years, we’ve learned that
- These kinds of statements take longer to write than students expect
- The writing process is way more manageable with feedback early and often
- It helps so much to connect with others who are on the same journey
The Writing Forward Initiative offers a chance to learn and grow in the company of your peers, with writing instructors available to provide feedback at any stage of the writing process. We’re confident that this will be a valuable resource as you navigate your next chapter.
What to Expect
Writing Forward includes a series of Lunch & Learn Virtual Workshops on select Fridays starting July 18, 2025, at 12 PM, followed by Get Writing! Drop-In Online Sessions at 1 PM with writing instructors Dr. Susan Hopkirk and Dr. Marci Prescott-Brown.
Lunch & Learn Virtual Workshops and Schedules:
Writing Personal Statements and Admissions Letters, Part 1: The General – Learn about the typical parts of a strong statement (intro, body, academics, experience). How to organize by topic, skill and position.
Friday, July 18, 2025 @ 12 – 1 PM
Presented by: Dr. Susan Hopkirk and Dr. Marci Prescott-Brown
Writing Personal Statements and Admissions Letters, Part 2: The Specific – Learn about the details of a statement such as demonstrating a good fit for different schools/programs and how to use websites to customize a statement.
Friday, July 25, 2025 @ 12 – 1 PM
Presented by: Dr. Susan Hopkirk and Dr. Marci Prescott-Brown
Strategic Planning: Awards, Applications and Personal Statements – Learn about the various New College and U of T awards available for students to apply and strategies to plan and create personal statements for these contexts.
Friday, August 8, 2025 @ 12 – 1 PM
Presented by: Kerri Huffman, Assistant Principal and Registrar at New College
Government Research Funding – Learn about the Ontario Graduate Scholarship (OGS) and the various Tri-Council Awards such as Canada Graduate Scholarships: Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR), Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC) and the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRC).
Friday, August 15, 2025 @ 12 – 1 PM
Presented by: Amber Gertzbein, Academic Advisor, New College Registrar’s Office
Get Writing! Drop-in Online Session Schedule
You do not need to attend a Lunch & Learn Virtual Workshop to drop in for Get Writing!
(If you do attend a Lunch & Learn, you will not need to change sessions – the Zoom Link remains the same)
Drop in to receive feedback on your award/personal/graduate school statement from a writing instructor or write in the company of your peers.
Please note: Friday, August 22, 2025, will run for 2 hours from 12 – 2 PM
Dates and Times:
- Friday, July 18, 2025 @ 1 – 2 PM
- Friday, July 25, 2025 @ 1 – 2 PM
- Friday, August 8 2025 @ 1 – 2 PM
- Friday, August 15, 2025 @ 1 – 2 PM
- Friday, August 22, 2025 @ 12 – 2 PM
The Writing Forward Initiative and the Get Writing! Drop-ins Online Sessions are open only to undergraduate New College students and students taking courses in New College programs (any NEW, AFR, CAR, CSE, BPM, WGS, HMB, JNH, JLN, JNS, JNR, JQR, JHN or JHA course).
Discover your next writing-related steps and connect with others on a similar path. Choose to Write Forward—move towards your promising future today!
Register Today!
Registrants will receive confirmation and reminder emails with Zoom links. If you have any questions or did not receive a Zoom link prior to the virtual workshop, please contact: newcollege.writingcentre@utoronto.ca.