Resources & FAQs
We help to power up your success with guidance on business writing, public speaking, and team presentations.
- Mastering the art of business writing: emails, case studies, executive summaries, memos, and more
- Speaking with confidence and authority
- Planning and rehearsing individual and team presentations
- Developing PowerPoint slides and advising on data visualization
- Practicing elevator pitches and Q&A skills
- Preparing for case competitions
- Brainstorming as a team and persuading others of your most critical points
- Understanding what professors expect in written work
- Revising any written assignment at any stage
- Overcoming nervousness when presenting
- Which kind of appointment works best for you?
- Make an appointment online using our online scheduler to meet with a peer tutor.
Bring your assignment instructions and any work you have so far - we'll talk through what's working, what you can improve, and answer any specific questions you might have.
Make a team appointment the same way you'd make an individual one, on our online scheduler. Bring any PowerPoint slides and content that you have completed. Our peer tutors will offer you great feedback and speaking tips to help you bring your team together to deliver a polished, professional presentation.
We have expanded hours for Zoom appointments on weeknights and Sundays. Or, if you need a few quick comments on a finished paper and don't need a face-to-face appointment, just select "e-tutoring" on our online scheduling system and attach your assignment. A peer tutor will comment on your work and return your paper to you within 24 hours of your appointment.
General Questions
Strong communication skills are essential for success in the business world. By coming to the ProComms Center, you'll be getting valuable feedback on your written work and presentations. Our goal is not only to help you improve the quality of individual assignments but to make you a stronger writer and speaker overall throughout your time at Kogod.
We're on the second floor of the Don Myers Technology and Innovation Building, Room 221. We share a space with the Veloric Center for Entrepreneurship.
Not at all! We can help at any point in the writing process, from brainstorming to finding research to polishing your final draft. Upload what you have, even if it's just an outline or the assignment prompt.
Bring your assignment instructions and any work you have completed so far.
Currently, we offer three types of tutoring: face-to-face, virtual meetings on Zoom, or asynchronous e-tutoring.
- FACE-TO-FACE appointments are real-time, face-to-face meetings with a peer consultant in our comfortable Center. We have snacks, drinks, and couches or worktables. Face-to-face meetings support either presentations or early-stage papers. They're especially helpful for rehearsing presentations like News Talks.
- VIRTUAL appointments are real-time meetings with a peer consultant on Zoom. Virtual meetings support either presentations or early-stage papers. When you choose a virtual appointment, a peer consultant will meet with you in their Zoom room to talk through your ideas and organization, offer research advice, or watch you verbally present and offer tips to improve. Virtual appointments work well for both individuals and teams.
- E-TUTORING appointments support only FINAL DRAFTS of written assignments, and the feedback will come to you in a written format. If you choose an E-tutoring appointment, a peer consultant will review and comment on your paper within 24 hours of your appointment. When they’re finished, they'll return your paper to you with embedded comments so you can revise it. If you have questions, we encourage you to make an appointment to follow up and discuss!
Click on the "Make an Appointment" link below. Before you can see the schedule, you'll need to create an account. Don't lose your login information—you'll use it every time you want to make an appointment with the Center for Professionalism and Communications. Click on any open appointment time- the white blocks - on the schedule. A separate window will appear where you'll be asked to provide basic information about the assignment and your class.
No two appointments at the Kogod Center for Professionalism and Communications are the same. Our peer tutors will work with you based on your assignment, where you are in the process, and what skills you want to improve. We hope you'll find that your session was so helpful that you'll want to come back for other assignments throughout your entire time at Kogod. And if we don't deliver on our promise, we hope you'll let us know how we can improve at ProComms@american.edu.
Our consultants are your amazing Kogod peers! They are friendly, skilled communicators who've taken the same classes you're looking for help with, and who excel at giving productive feedback.