THE SPEAKING CENTER POLICIES

 

Scheduling Policies

  • To ensure equal access to consulting services at The Speaking Center, individuals are limited to two (2), non-consecutive, 45-minute scheduled appointments per week.
  • Appointments must be scheduled at least two (2) hours prior to the beginning of the appointment.
  • Requests to move an in-person consultation online should be made as soon as possible after scheduling and no less than two (2) hours prior to the appointment.

 

Cancellations and No-Show Policies

  • If you cannot make a scheduled appointment, please cancel it by accessing your TutorTrac account at http://tutoring.bjtvalve.com. Cancellations must occur no less than two (2) hours prior to the appointment time.
  • Speaking Center staff will not cancel appointments for you.
  • If you cancel within two (2) hours of the appointment time or do not show up to your appointment, it will be marked as a “no-show.” No-shows impact the consultants who anticipate your session as well as a student who could have been seen in the spot you missed.
  • If you accumulate three (3) no-shows or make five (5) cancellations within one semester, your online scheduling privileges will be suspended for the remainder of the semester.

 

Plagiarism Policy

  • Plagiarism occurs when writers claim—deliberately or inadvertently—someone else’s writing as their own. Plagiarism is a violation of academic integrity, and FAU treats it with serious consequences.
  • If plagiarism is apparent, a consultant will help the speaker identify, eliminate, and/or rework the questionable text. In the event of a second incident, the instructor will be notified.

 

Exam Policy

  • Consultants may not help students with tests, mid-terms, or final exams unless the course instructor has written on the exam paper explicit instructions that permit outside assistance.

 

Consultant/Consultee Expectations

  • Speaking Center consultants are trained to support speakers throughout the process of preparing a speech or presentation. Although consultants can help speakers navigate this process and provide constructive feedback throughout, the work is ultimately the speaker’s responsibility.
  • One consultation will not be sufficient to work through the speech-preparation process from start to finish. You should identify a particular stage to focus on and may schedule subsequent consultations for assistance with later stages of the process.
  • In providing feedback, consultants will help speakers identify patterns and general areas for improvement. They will not provide line-edits of entire speeches or presentation scripts.
  • You should bring a copy of your assignment/task, a current draft of your speech or presentation, and any additional relevant materials, such as research, notes, visual aids, etc. to your consultation.

*These policies were adapted with permission from the University Center for Excellence in Writing (UCEW) and the Center for Learning and Student Success (CLASS).