First-Year Writing Seminar Add-Drop for all students begins at 9:00 AM on August 25. This will be the first opportunity for incoming students to change their FWS placement, or to enroll if they did not do so in July. For a complete list of Fall 2021 First-Year Writing Seminars, click HERE.
To find open First-Year Writing Seminars during the Add/Drop period:
- Go to Student Center.
- At the search screen, click on “Additional Search Criteria.”
- Choose “FWS Session” from the “Session” field to see the list of open seminars and make changes to your schedule.
- Remember that the list of open seminars can change as students drop and add, so you should check frequently.
Enrollments for First-Year Writing Seminars are strictly capped; no over-enrollments are permitted.
Questions and concerns about FWS enrollment procedures should be directed to the Office of the Vice Provost for Undergraduate Education and the Office of the University Registrar.
Important Dates
- First-Year Writing Seminar course information will be available HERE beginning at noon on July 7th.
Enrollment for incoming freshmen will occur during July pre-enroll and during add/drop as noted below.
Incoming freshman will enroll during their pre-enrollment period from July 12th at 9:00am through July 16, 4:30pm. (dates and times subject to change)
First-Semester transfer students, sophomores, and all freshmen will be able to enroll during the add/drop period beginning on August 25th at 9:00 am. (dates and times subject to change)
Fall instruction begins on August 26.
Last day to add a First-Year Writing Seminar is September 9.
FWS Writing Consultation
Because Cornell’s writing seminars may expect a greater range of writing abilities than many students have exposure to in high school, the Knight Institute offers a FWS Writing Consultation to give students an opportunity to discover how well current writing skills fit into what Cornell expects.
During the FWS Writing Consultation, students submit short writing samples and meet with writing instructors for advice on which First-Year Writing Seminars are most appropriate for their learning styles and previous experience with academic writing.
Students can participate in the FWS Writing Consultation in one of two ways:
- submit a writing sample from a previous FWS or college-level writing course to the FWS Writing Consultation Canvas site; or
- submit a short essay in response to one of three writing prompts available on the FWS Writing Consultation Canvas site.
For more information about the FWS Writing Consultation process, students can attend INFORMATION SESSIONS during the Summer Scholars Institute, the PREPARE Program for International Students, and Cornell's New Student Orientation. They can also consult directly with Writing Workshop Director Tracy Hamler Carrick:
- email Dr. Carrick and/or
- schedule a 15-minute FWS Writing Consultation
Watch this Fall 2021 Knight Institute FWS Orientation video for guidance:
In this 20-minute video, 
Follow this link to the GoogleDoc referenced in this video: Fall 2021 | Knight Institute FWS Orientation First-Year Writing Seminars and Writing Support
