W-CATs for the ’26-’27 Academic Year are currently in the hiring process and will begin their Basic Tutor Education (BTE) course in February.

Please visit us again in the Fall to meet our next cohort of W-CATs!

Writing Course Attached Tutors, or W-CATs (formerly known as PWSAs and TWAs) are writing tutors assigned to a specific course. There are W-CATs attached to every First-Year Seminar, which serves as your W1 (GenEd requirement), and sometimes there are W-CATs in W2 courses, which are part of Bates’ Writing-Attentive Curriculum. W-CATs provide class-specific support, including but not limited to written and oral assignments and assessments.

W-CATs have typically demonstrated perseverance in writing in the subject, have nurtured a relationship with the course professor, and/or have previously taken the course or a course in the major or minor. Most W-CATs have also taken at least the first course in our tutor education sequence, EXDS 201: Writing Process, Tutoring Practice (.5 credits, offered every Winter semester) before they being working. W-CATs will introduce themselves to the class they support at the beginning of the semester, but you can also ask your course instructor or come into the Student Writing & Language Center to find out your W-CATs contact information and when they are in the SWLC to support you.

If you are enrolled in a course with a W-CAT attached to it, you may schedule a meeting with the W-CAT through Penji by searching the name of your W-CAT, your course, or your professor. These tutors possess the tools and training to help you reach your goals as a writer in the course. Think of W-CATs as a subset of general writing tutors–their sole responsibility is supporting you in becoming an independent and confident writer and communicator in your course–and beyond!

If you are interested in becoming a Writing Course Attached Tutor and working for SWLC, please visit this page for information about hiring, training, and employment.

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