I was privileged to spend two years as a Royal Literary Fund Writing Fellow based at Anglia Ruskin University in Chelmsford from 2021 to 2023.
The scheme was set up to place professional writers in higher education institutions to offer writing support to all students, fostering good writing practice across a range of disciplines and media.
“I am so pleased to have had the chance to work with you! You have been a tremendous help to me beyond just the writing – but reassuring and empowering me to believe I can do this! Your support has been invaluable… thank you from the bottom of my heart! I’ve reflected on our conversation earlier – with the viva in mind! Very helpful indeed!”
feedback from a doctoral student
When I found out I was to be hosted by Anglia Ruskin University, I was delighted. Having graduated from a teaching degree from (then) Anglia Polytechnic in the 1990s, it seemed fitting to return to my place of entry into higher education. The campus I attended in Brentwood was long gone; I was to work at Chelmsford with a mixed delivery of campus and online sessions. My first day on campus was exciting, watching students milling about as life slowly returned to a new normal after the pandemic closures. It was my co-ordinator’s first day back on site too, after working from home for many months.
As I set up for my first face-to-face session, the fire alarm went off and I had to pack up and exit the building, unable to contact my student who had travelled all the way from London to Chelmsford for our 50 minute appointment. When we finally got back in and found each other, my real work began. She had brought draft material to look at together. It was going to be okay.
Offering online alongside campus sessions allowed a diverse mix of students to access the service, including those based on and off campus. I worked with students across a range of subject areas including criminology, theology, occupational therapy, social work, nutrition, child mental health, science, engineering, economics, law and business studies. It was a fantastic opportunity to work with students studying topics so outside my field of knowledge. In many ways, this proved a blessing for the students, as having to explain terminology to an educated lay person required the students to think clearly about communicating with clarity. I learned a lot about a range of topics from reading the students’ fascinating papers too!
Students used the sessions in various ways. Some emailed draft writing in advance or brought work to look at, whereas others wanted to discuss ideas and worries. Some students wanted very technical advice on the nuts and bolts of academic writing –grammar, readability, referencing, structure – whereas others required more of a writing coach or mentor.
One postgraduate researcher turned up at our first online session anxious and upset, telling me she was ready to pack her bags and leave. She’d had negative feedback, she felt; she wasn’t up to the course. Having recently submitted my own PhD thesis after seven long years, I could empathise with the pressure of academic scrutiny and interrogation. She talked, I listened and shared my own experience and tips. At our next session, it was like seeing a completely different person as she beamed through the webcam, telling me that everything had fallen into place and that our session was just what she needed at that time.
Having embarked on a PhD in my forties, completing my own student journey through higher education in middle age, it was a wonderful experience supporting others on their academic paths.
shanta everington 