Assignment pre-reading service , Ratonga pānui taumahi

Get feedback on your assignment's structure, focus, style, use of sources and referencing before you submit it for marking.

Academic writing can be hard – especially if you haven't done it before. If you want to make sure you're on the right track, you can send us a draft assignment to review. We can give you feedback and advice about how to improve your writing.

What we do

Send us a draft assignment, and we will:

  • give you feedback and advice about any problems we find
  • comment on one or more of the following: structure, focus, style, presentation, use of sources and referencing
  • answer your questions about your work.

What we can’t do

We can’t proof-read your assignment for you, or comment on course content.

We won’t:

  • find every mistake in your draft
  • predict what grade your assignment will get
  • give you feedback on work that’s already been submitted for marking
  • give you feedback on course content – if you need to discuss your ideas, ask your course coordinator for help.

How to submit an assignment

You can send us assignments in the Academic Writing and Learning Support course in Stream (login needed)

Open the Academic Writing and Learning Support Course in Stream

We only accept certain formats, which are outlined on the Stream page. We don't accept PDFs or documents in the .pages format.

If you are having trouble submitting your assignment in Stream, you can email us at pre-reading@massey.ac.nz.

Who can send us assignments

We limit the number of assignments you can send us each semester so we can help as many students as possible.

We also limit the number of words that can be submitted to 3,000 per submission. However, you can use multiple submissions if you have an assignment that is more than 3,000 words.

Find out who can send us work and how many assignments you can submit this semester in Stream

Additional pre-reading submissions are available for some core courses (where the link is embedded in your course Stream site). These are in addition to the general submissions and do not count against your general submissions.

Getting your work back

We’ll get your draft back to you in three working days. The service is closed on public holidays and tertiary institution holidays (Easter Tuesday, the last working day before Christmas Day, and the first three working days after Boxing day).

Check the dates of New Zealand's public holidays

How you’ll get your work back

We’ll send you an automated email when we’ve finished our review of your work. You'll find your feedback in the Academic Writing and Learning Support course in Stream.

Our automated emails sometimes end up in junk or spam folders, so make sure you check yours. Adding the noreply@massey.ac.nz email address to your safe senders list may stop our emails being identified as junk by your email provider.

You’ll receive:

  • your assignment, marked with comments and suggestions (remember that you might need to turn on Comments to see our notes)
  • a Word document summarising our feedback
  • any extra material we think will help you address the issues we’ve identified in in your assignment.

These files will only be stored on Stream until the end of the semester, so make sure you save them to your computer – you should find our feedback helps you plan how to approach your next assignment.

How to use our feedback

  • We suggest you read the summary document first ­– that way, you’ll know what you need to prioritise when you’re revising your assignment for submission.
  • Next, go through each comment on your draft, and decide whether to accept or reject our suggestions.
  • Remember that we won’t find every error in your draft – we’ll only comment on each mistake once or twice. You’ll need find and correct any similar mistakes.

Email us if you have questions about our feedback.

Email: pre-reading@massey.ac.nz.

Remember that getting feedback on a piece of written work isn't always easy – but it is the best way to learn. Visit OWLL for more detailed advice about what to expect and how to use our feedback.

Learn more about using our feedback on OWLL

Contact us

Contact us about the assignment pre-reading service.

Centre for Learner Success – assignment pre-reading service

Phone

+64 695 165 47