Policies and Service Agreement

Policies and Service AgreementWriting and Tutoring Services

To ensure that we offer each Tyndale student an equal opportunity for appointments and that we provide the best services possible, Writing and Tutoring Services operates according to the following policies. You will be required to (re)confirm your agreement with these policies each semester before you can book an appointment:

Cancellations

In the event that you need to cancel an appointment, you may do so without penalty up to 5 hours before your scheduled appointment. To cancel your appointment, please log into WC Online, click on your appointment to open your appointment information in a new window, and then click the “Cancel Appointment” button at the bottom of that window. 

If you need to cancel with less than 5 hours’ notice, you may do so on WC Online as well, but it will be counted as a “Late Cancellation.” After three “Late Cancellations” in a semester, your booking privileges with Writing and Tutoring Services will be forfeited for the remainder of the semester. These are counted separately from “Missed Appointments.” Your booking privileges will be reinstated at the beginning of the first month of the following semester subject to your continued enrollment at Tyndale.

We understand that emergencies and unforeseen circumstances sometimes occur. If you feel that your “Late Cancellation” should be excused, please contact the Learning Specialist at bbonvanie [at] tyndale [dot] ca. Excusable reasons for a late cancellation include those outlined in Tyndale's Academic Calendar as follows: personal illness or injury, hospitalization of an immediate family member, or death in the family.

Late Arrival

Please be punctual for your appointments. If you know that you are going to be late, let us know as soon as you can and we will try to make arrangements with you.

If you have failed to notify us and do not arrive within

  1. the first 10 minutes of your 30-minute appointment, or
  2. the first 15 minutes of your 60-minute appointment,

your session will be marked as a “Missed Appointment.” At that point, the waitlist will be notified. If anyone on the waitlist fills that time before you get in touch with us or show up for your appointment, then your appointment will be forfeited and the “Missed Appointment” will stand. You may, however, rebook later in the week, subject to availability, if your booking privileges have not been suspended (see "Missed Appointment" policy below).

If, however, you notify us of your situation OR you arrive at your appointment before someone on the waitlist books it and your Consultant is still available, then your Consultant may alter the missed appointment to a late arrival. Two late arrivals will count as one strike, as per our “Missed Appointment” policy.

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Missed Appointments

A “Missed Appointment” is where you fail to attend your scheduled appointment for a non-excusable reason. Missed appointments are still counted towards your weekly maximum of 1 hour of appointments per week. (For example, if you miss an hour-long appointment on Tuesday, you will not be able to book another appointment for the rest of that week. You can, however, book again for the following Monday). 

After two “Missed Appointments” in a semester, your booking privileges with Writing and Tutoring Services will be forfeited for the remainder of the semester. These are counted separately from “Late Cancellations." Your booking privileges will be reinstated at the beginning of the first month of the following semester subject to your continued enrollment at Tyndale.

We understand that emergencies and unforeseen circumstances sometimes occur. If you feel that your “Missed Appointment” should be excused, please contact the Learning Specialist at bbonvanie [at] tyndale [dot] ca. Excusable absences that would exempt you from a “Missed Appointment” include those outlined in Tyndale's Academic Calendar as follows: personal illness or injury, hospitalization of an immediate family member, or death in the family.

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In-Person Appointments and COVID-19

All students with in-person appointments must comply with Tyndale University's COVID-19 requirements, most notably that after having COVID, your symptoms must have improved for at least 24 hours (48 for gastrointestinal) and you must have no fever before ending your isolation. For questions about Tyndale's COVID-19 guidelines, please contact cit [at] tyndale [dot] ca.

Should you have an in-person appointment scheduled with our team but are unable to come to campus because you have symptoms, please contact us as soon as possible and we will do everything we can to reschedule your appointment to either an online appointment or to a later date. Likewise, should your scheduled Consultant have symptoms, we will contact you as early as possible to reschedule the appointment to an online appointment, to a different Consultant, or to a later date. For more information, please see "If We Need to Cancel" below. 

NOTE: Masks are no longer required to be worn during appointments with Writing and Tutoring Services! However, if you would feel more comfortable wearing a mask during your appointment, your Consultant will be happy to put one on as well. For questions about Writing and Tutoring Service's COVID-19 policies, please contact the Learning Specialist at bbonvanie [at] tyndale [dot] ca

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If We Need to Cancel

We strive to honour all scheduled appointments at Writing and Tutoring Services, but like you, there are times when your Consultant gets sick or has to unexpectedly cancel. If that happens, we will do our utmost to reschedule your appointment with another member of our team as close to your originally scheduled time as possible. On those rare occasions when we do have to cancel your appointment, we will notify you by phone and/or email. We will do our best to provide at least one hours' notice. You will also receive priority for a rescheduled appointment on another date.

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Preparation for Appointments

Academic Tutoring and Writing Consultation are joint efforts - just as our team members come prepared to give you their best, you will, in the same manner, arrive having done your best to prepare. You will take time before your session to write out specific questions you have about your writing or courses, do the assigned readings and homework for your courses, and attend your classes regularly. You understand that you will get out of the session what you put into it, and you realize that these sessions are not designed to replace your classes and coursework but are meant instead to complement them.

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Respect

At all times, you will show respect for Consultants and, in the case of a study group, your fellow classmates. Consultants have the right to immediately end a session when there is a concern with behaviour or if they observe disrespect in a session. This incident will be reported to the Learning Specialist. Writing and Tutoring Services is not required to reschedule a session that has been terminated early for those reasons. Repeated concerns with disrespect may result in forfeiture of your use of our services. 

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Follow-up

At all times, you will show respect for Consultants and, in the case of a study group, your fellow classmates. Consultants have the right to immediately end a session when there is a concern with behaviour or if they observe disrespect in a session. This incident will be reported to the Learning Specialist. Writing and Tutoring Services is not required to reschedule a session that has been terminated early for those reasons. Repeated concerns with disrespect may result in forfeiture of your use of our services.

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For more information on any of these policies, please contact the Learning Specialist.

Brent Bonvanie

Learning Specialist, Writing and Tutoring Services

Email: bbonvanie [at] tyndale [dot] ca
Phone: 416-226-6620 (ext. 2121)