Spring 2026
Building a Confident and Smooth Transition to APA-Style Writing
With Amy Nguyen, Department of Psychology, and Eva Chan, EOP Transfer Connect
Download Slides From The Workshop [pdf]
In our experiences of working with transfer students (i.e., in the classroom and at
advising sessions), we have observed that many transfer students within disciplines
that use APA-style writing feel pressure and unprepared when it comes to writing in
the APA format upon transferring to SJSU. One potential challenge is the transition
from using the MLA format and other writing formats for their prior coursework at
community colleges to using APA-style. This transition can be abrupt and confusing,
especially if transfer students were not exposed to APA-style writing at their prior
institutions. The goal of this research project was to help transfer students achieve
a smooth and confident transition to APA-style writing through engaging and interactive
writing exercises provided throughout the workshop series in addition to learning
from their coursework.
Our presentation will provide an overview of the four-part APA workshop series that was provided to transfer students (starting with the Fall 2025 cohort) in collaboration with the EOP Transfer Connect program at SJSU. We will also provide our findings from an amalgamation of pre-/post- workshop(s) surveys from students who attended the live sessions and post-workshop(s) feedback from students who utilized the recordings of their selected workshop(s).
