
Academic Success Workshops
Synchronous Sessions
These live, 75-minute, free sessions provide students with strategies and tools, hands-on activities, and opportunities to ask questions.
In-person delivery
In-person workshops are in classroom EL 1451B (in the Riddell Library and Learning Centre).
If you have a laptop or tablet, please bring it to the workshop. You can also request a free laptop rental from the Library.
Online delivery
Webinars use Google Meet. You will receive an email with the link to the meeting room on the morning of the webinar. You must register before 8 am on the day of the workshop to receive the link.
Please note: online offerings are not recorded.
Registration
Workshops can fill up quickly, so register early to avoid disappointment.
To register for a workshop, follow the same procedure you would use to register for a credit course at MRU:
- Log in to MyMRU and click on the "Register & Pay" tab
- Scroll down to Register, and click on "Registration Landing Page"
- Click on "Add/Drop/Withdraw Classes"
- Under "Term Selection," select "Winter 2023 CREDIT," and click "Continue"
- In the "Subject" field, select Student Learning Services, and click "Search"
- Select the session you want, and click "Add"
For more detailed instructions, see this handout on registering for courses.
Proof of Participation
Do you need to provide proof of participation to an instructor for a particular course? Fill out the Reflection & Participation Form after each workshop you attend. The link is provided during the workshop — you must attend the entire workshop to receive the link. Once you complete and submit the form, you will receive a copy of your responses via email. You can forward the email, with your answers, to your instructor.
Studying
Determined to stay on track when life gets busy? We'll introduce you to helpful concepts, strategies, and tools to maintain your motivation and strive for better work-life balance.
Date | Time | Location | CRN |
Monday, January 16 | 2:30 pm - 3:45 pm | EL1451B | 12845 |
Friday, January 27 | 11:30 am - 12:45 pm | Online | 12846 |
Wednesday, February 1 | 11:30 am - 12:45 pm | EL1451B | 12847 |
Friday, March 3 | 1:00 pm - 2:15 pm | Online | 12848 |
Tuesday, March 7 | 1:00 pm - 2:15 pm | Online | 12849 |
Monday, March 13 | 4:00 pm - 5:15 pm | EL1451B | 12850 |
Maximize your study potential! We’ll discuss how the key strategies of retrieval practice, spaced repetition, and interleaving will help make your learning stick.
Date | Time | Location | CRN |
Wednesday, January 18 | 4:00 pm - 5:15 pm | EL1451B | 12867 |
Friday, February 3 | 11:30 am - 12:45 pm | Online | 12868 |
Thursday, March 9 | 11:30 am - 12:45 pm | Online | 12869 |
Boost your test-taking confidence by optimizing your preparation, increasing your focus and efficiency during the test, and reflecting on your test experience and results to propel you forward the next time.
Date | Time | Location | CRN |
Monday, February 6 | 4:00 pm - 5:15 pm | EL1451B | 12821 |
Friday, February 17 | 11:30 am - 12:45 pm | Online | 12827 |
Tuesday, March 14 | 2:30 pm - 3:45 pm | Online | 12828 |
Math
Identify expectations for courses requiring math, and establish a solid study plan based on effective learning strategies to work towards those expectations. We’ll discuss how to use concept summaries as math studying tools..
Date | Time | Location | CRN |
Thursday, January 19 | 2:30 pm - 3:45 pm | EL1451B | 12817 |
Wednesday, January 25 | 11:30 am - 12:45 pm | Online | 12822 |
Reading
Wondering what all the fuss is about when it comes to academic journal articles, or how you can read them more efficiently? We’ll discuss what scholarly journal articles are, how they’re organized, and what to prioritize when reading them, which will help you save time and avoid common (mis)reading pitfalls.
Date | Time | Location | CRN |
Wednesday, January 18 | 11:30 am - 12:45 pm | Online | 12876 |
Thursday, February 2 | 4:00 pm - 5:15 pm | EL1451B | 12877 |
Friday, February 17 | 1:00 pm - 2:15 pm | Online | 12878 |
Do you find yourself reading a journal article and skipping over the sections with data and statistics? In this workshop, we will discuss the foundational concept of hypothesis testing and other common statistical vocabulary. We’ll then explore strategies to help you engage with journal articles containing quantitative content and empower you to begin thinking critically about statistical evidence.
Note: “Reading Scholarly Journal Articles” provides a helpful foundation for this workshop.
Date | Time | Location | CRN |
Wednesday, February 8 | 2:30 pm - 3:45 pm | EL1451B | 12843 |
Thursday, March 2 | 11:30 am - 12:45 pm | Online | 12844 |
Writing
University courses feature a much larger array of writing assignments than high school classes. We’ll discuss how to better understand university writing, covering how to effectively understand the purpose of various assignment types and their corresponding thesis statements, think about the audience and their needs, and consider how university writing genres function.
Date | Time | Location | CRN |
Friday, January 20 | 1:00 pm - 2:15 pm | Online | 12873 |
Monday, January 23 | 11:30 am - 12:45 pm | Online | 12874 |
Wednesday, February 15 | 4:00 pm - 5:15 pm | EL1451B | 12875 |
It’s tempting to rush the planning stage, but making time for a few key steps can improve the quality of your paper. Learn how to get started on your assignment, use brainstorming to direct your research, and leverage outlining to shape your ideas and grow your draft.
Date | Time | Location | CRN |
Thursday, January 19 | 1:00 pm - 2:15 pm | Online | 12825 |
Friday, February 3 | 1:00 pm - 2:15 pm | Online | 12826 |
Wednesday, February 8 | 11:30 am - 12:45 pm | EL1451B | 12819 |
Monday, February 27 | 2:30 pm - 3:45 pm | EL1451B | 12820 |
Want to ensure your writing is focused and powerful? In this workshop, we’ll consider some “dos and don’ts” of thesis statements, identify the components of strong body paragraphs, and discuss how to effectively integrate information from sources to support your ideas.
Note: We recommend completing the "Planning Research Papers" workshop first.
Date | Time | Location | CRN |
Monday, January 30 | 2:30 pm - 3:45 pm | Online | 12870 |
Thursday, February 16 | 1:00 pm - 2:15 pm | EL1451B | 12871 |
Friday, March 10 | 11:30 am - 12:45 pm | Online | 12872 |
All academic writers strive to create texts that flow smoothly. In this workshop, you’ll learn how to use reverse outlining to improve the logical flow of your ideas, and you’ll discover how different types of connectors contribute to smooth writing.
Date | Time | Location | CRN |
Thursday, February 9 | 2:30 pm - 3:45 pm | Online | 12840 |
Tuesday, February 28 | 4:00 pm - 5:15 pm | EL1451B | 12841 |
Friday, March 17 | 11:30 am - 12:45 pm | Online | 12842 |
Paraphrasing is an essential skill for any academic writer. We will discuss when to quote and when to paraphrase, highlight the importance of fairly representing the work of others, differentiate between paraphrasing and patchwriting, and learn how to assess an effective paraphrase.
Date | Time | Location | CRN |
Tuesday, January 24 | 4:00 pm - 5:15 pm | EL1451B | 12831 |
Monday, January 30 | 11:30 am - 12:45 pm | Online | 12832 |
Tuesday, February 7 | 1:00 pm - 2:15 pm | Online | 12851 |
Wednesday, March 8 | 1:00 pm - 2:15 pm | EL1451B | 12852 |
Thursday, March 16 | 2:30 pm - 3:45 pm | EL1451B | 12853 |
Friday, March 24 | 11:30 am - 12:45 pm | Online | 12854 |
Learn to spot and fix common grammatical errors (i.e., comma splices, fragments, and run-on sentences), and discover strategies to help you become a more confident editor of your own writing.
Date | Time | Location | CRN |
Monday, January 23 | 2:30 pm - 3:45 pm | EL1451B | 12865 |
Friday, February 10 | 11:30 am - 12:45 pm | Online | 12864 |
Wednesday, March 15 | 1:00 pm - 2:15 pm | Online | 12866 |
Academic Integrity
Working with others is encouraged in many MRU classes, but it is important to understand which types of collaboration are acceptable and which may constitute academic misconduct. We’ll discuss a few tricky scenarios, explore the grey areas between collaboration and collusion, and suggest ways to become confident about expectations for assignments and tests.
Date | Time | Location | CRN |
Friday, January 27 | 1:00 pm - 2:15 pm | Online | 12833 |
Tuesday, February 14 | 2:30 pm - 3:45 pm | EL1451B | 12834 |
Monday, March 20 | 1:00 pm - 2:15 pm | Online | 12835 |
Referencing
APA style for referencing is used by many disciplines as a way to credit others’ work. In this workshop, we’ll help you grasp the basics of the rules outlined in APA’s 7th edition. We will practice citing sources in text and building accurate reference list entries.
Date | Time | Location | CRN |
Tuesday, January 17 | 2:30 pm - 3:45 pm | Online | 12856 |
Friday, January 20 | 11:30 am - 12:45 pm | Online | 12857 |
Tuesday, January 24 | 1:00 pm - 2:15 pm | EL1451B | 12858 |
Wednesday, January 25 | 4:00 pm - 5:15 pm | EL1451B | 12859 |
Thursday, February 2 | 2:30 pm - 3:45 pm | Online | 12860 |
Monday, February 13 | 11:30 am - 12:45 pm | EL1451B | 12861 |
Tuesday, March 7 | 4:00 pm - 5:15 pm | EL1451B | 12862 |
Wednesday, March 22 | 1:00 pm - 2:15 pm | Online | 12863 |
Want to take your APA referencing skills to the next level? Embark on an adventure that will take you to the depths of the sea and the limits of space as you work together in small groups to solve common referencing challenges in APA Style. This webinar is highly collaborative and interactive, and participants will be expected to participate in group work.
Note: Knowledge from “APA: An Introduction” is needed to participate in this webinar.
Date | Time | Location | CRN |
Tuesday, February 7 | 4:00 pm - 5:15 pm | Online | 12837 |
Friday, March 10 | 1:00 pm - 2:15 pm | Online | 12838 |
MLA citation style is the most commonly used format in the Humanities (e.g., English) to provide credit for others’ work. This workshop will help with the basics as outlined in MLA’s 9th edition, from the creation of in-text citations to the development of your Works Cited page.
Date | Time | Location | CRN |
Thursday, January 26 | 1:00 pm - 2:15 pm | Online | 12823 |
Wednesday, February 1 | 2:30 pm - 3:45 pm | EL1451B | 12818 |
Friday, March 3 | 11:30 am - 12:45 pm | Online | 12824 |