Feature from the Newsletter Club

Can you describe your role in the club?

I am one of the faculty members here at UIC Tutorium, and my role in our Newsletter Club is to facilitate the students' stories. I help facilitate discussions. I help facilitate their brainstorming sessions that they have. I pretty much help them. I'm also a mentor. I mentor them in terms of, like, I help them develop their news stories. I take them through the process of brainstorming all the way to publishing. So, I'm kind of like a guide. I kind of guide them through what it is to, how journalism works, and they get to get a small taste of what journalism feels like from coming up with the story idea to publishing the story idea. So, I'm a guide in the process. I call it the journalism journey. So, I take them from start to finish. So, we start with brainstorming stories, and then we talk about helping them develop ideas for their story. And then once they get the ideas, they go out and do their interviews if they need to, and they put all their ideas on paper, and then I help them through the editing and revising process. And then it's published. So, I'm kind of like a mentor, a guide, and a facilitator.

What was your favorite part of being in the club?

My favorite part about being part of the club was seeing all the students come up with their own stories. So, I really liked how the students showed a lot of leadership, and they took initiative, or they showed initiative by... Really, a lot of their news stories were their ideas, and that was really cool because I learned a lot about my students. I learned that they can do hard things. I just really like being a part of something where students can use their skills, and they can be themselves, and they get to grow in their journalism skills, but also grow in their language skills as well. So, that was really fun.

About the author: My name is Adja Sokhna Ndiaye Barr. I am studying English here at the Tutorium with the hopes of one day pursuing a degree in business. 

The Tutorium office will have winter break hours. However, we are still here to help! 

See you in the New Year!

January 12 - April 30, 2026

Classes meet four days a week: Monday through Thursday.

Reading/Writing courses + morning Advanced Professional Skills (Level 5)

Listening/Speaking courses (Levels 1-4)

Afternoon Advanced Professional Skills (Level 5)

No classes: 

Spring Tuition Intensive English Program Fees

Don’t forget to register for the Spring Semester!

Are you planning to continue to study English here at the Tutorium? We sure hope so! Remember to register for classes for the Spring semester. Register by December 2, 2025, for a 5% discount! You should have received an email about how to register. Search for it in your UIC email. If you try to register and you receive a HOLD message, be sure to contact tutorium@uic.edu. (*Not available to Shorelight UIC Global students.)

On Thursday, the last day of class, we will celebrate the end of another successful semester. Your teachers will bring you to the celebration in the Student Center East bowling alley!

We’ll have Tutorium fun and time together to celebrate all your hard work! Check out videos of our past End of Session celebrations.

Are you planning to stay in Chicago during winter break? If so, there's good news! There are a lots of fun things to do in the city especially during the holidays. Here are some fun ideas to help the winter blues stay far away from you.

The following section of the newsletter is written by Vit Vanicek, one of our teachers here at the Tutorium. With Vit's advice, you're sure to succeed in the classroom and beyond.

Can you believe that in less than a week it will be the end of another great semester? Although you might not feel like you've improved or done your very best this semester, you can still trust the process of language learning.

If you've done the hard work, you'll reap good results. As you prepare for your final projects and exams, here are a few things to keep in mind. . . read more>>. 

The following section of the newsletter is written by one of our advisors here at the Tutorium. Our advisors are here to help answer questions and steer you toward the right path for you.

When people choose the focus of their education, the goal is to set a strong foundation for their life. We usually choose our fields for two reasons: to find a job (occupation) that has decent pay and to work at something we are interested in. Unfortunately, we are often choosing without knowing all of the possible choices! We usually only know the kinds of jobs that our parents, relatives, and friends have.  

To increase your knowledge of types of jobs, look at this website for occupations in the USA. Home : Occupational Outlook Handbook 
Occupations = jobs or types of jobs. Outlook = predictions about those jobs.

Look at how you can search and sort and look at jobs!

It’s the last week of classes, which means that it’s time for final exams. Your teachers will give you more information about the format of exams this week. Study hard and do your best! 

Grades are officially available December 17, 2025, in the UIC system. However, your instructor(s) will send you an email to tell you when your grades are available in Blackboard, which is usually much earlier.

Every semester, the Tutorium conducts research to improve our program. We get information from teachers and students. To collect this information from students, we use online surveys near the end of the semester. 

This week, you will complete a Tutorium Course evaluation. Your teacher will tell you when. This evaluation is online, and you can complete it on your computer or your phone.

This evaluation will ask you about your learning experience. Because these evaluations are online, you can change your answers only before you click the "Done" button. You can also write comments, and we encourage you to do so. 

After the semester ends and we have sent you your grades, our director and your teachers will look at the evaluations, and the Curriculum Committee will also study the information for the whole program. Thank you for your help.

No problem! To learn how to download the app, watch this short video. You can check your grades, course assignments, and everything Blackboard right from your phone!  

Two-three weeks after you receive your final grades, you can request a formal transcript from UIC using: https://registrar.uic.edu/student-records/transcripts/.

Spring and Summer 2026 Schedule

Spring and Summer 2026 Tuition 

Email questions to tutorium@uic.edu.
Or contact us to schedule a virtual or in-person meeting.