Will’s Student Resource Page

This is just a collection of links which folks might find helpful in navigating the challenges of university life.

Resources Will has written

• A Guide to Effective Presentation Design
  • What it says on the tin, some tips for making (and giving) a great presentation
• On Requests for Grade Changes and Exceptions
  • A guide for how to ask for grade changes the right way, and when you should and shouldn’t make the request
• Will’s Exam Tips and Policies
  • Tips for how to study and take an exam, along with my rules
• Personal Branding Tips
  • Some tips, originally prepared for CSS 209, which talk about the idea of a ‘personal brand’, and how to express that brand to others and build your professional image

Student Support Resources

• Mental Health Services (CAPS)
  • College is tough, and there is zero shame in getting help if you’re having a hard time. CAPS is a great place to go to find somebody to talk to, whether once, or in the longer term.
  • If you or somebody you know is in crisis or actively contemplating self harm, and you need more immediate help, then just dial or text 988 (The National Suicide Prevention Lifeline) for resources, counseling, and a compassionate voice.
• CAPS Self-Help Library
  • This site has a library of helpful resources for students struggling with mood, anxiety, trauma, sleep, relationships, stress, and academic life. Truly a wonderful resource.
• CARE at SARC
  • CARE at the Sexual Assault Resource Center is a wonderful, caring, and confidential group advising survivors of sexual violence, dating violence, domestic violence, stalking, and more. CARE does amazing work, and even if you don’t know that your situation is ‘in their domain’, they’ll be able to point you in the right direction.
  • If you need to speak to an advocate outside normal business hours, their 24-hour line is (858) 534-5793.
  • If you need help for a friend or family member without UCSD affiliation, call The National Domestic Violence Hotline (1-800-799-7233).
• The Office for Students with Disabilities
  • OSD works with students with disabilities to help find accommodations and resources which can help them during their time at UCSD.
• The Office for the Prevention of Harrassment and Discrimination
  • OPHD works to help the university community prevent, address, and investigate harassment and discrimination.
• Student Legal Services
  • Student Legal Services can help you with legal questions, whether related to landlord issues, criminal issues, or anything else, either directly or by providing a referral to a legal professional.
• Addiction and Substance use resouces from San Diego Up2SD
  • If you or a friend/family member is struggling with substance use having a negative effect on studies or life generally, this page has a huge number of resources which can help you get help you need.
• Short Term Loans
  • Basically, a payday loan offered through campus with low fees and less breaking of legs.
• 211
  • The 211 folks specialize in connecting people around the country with resources to help manage crises, to help with essential needs, to work with housing or food insecurity, and otherwise. It’s always free, it’s always confidential, and it’s always a good resource to check if you’re having trouble.
  • The local version in the greater San Diego area is 211 San Diego
• The Hub Basic Needs Center
  • This is a great on campus resource for helping members of the UCSD community with food security, housing stability, and financial wellness. They can even help provide Lyft rides.
• The Triton Food Pantry
  • Hungry? They can help.
  • Also look into applying for CalFresh, which can help offset some costs of food.

San Diego County Resources

Linked below is an incredible set of resources for support groups, emergency services, patient’s rights, public health, food and housing, employment, pest control, child care, reporting, and much more.

• County of San Diego ‘Quick Reference Guide to Services’ (and here’s a backup mirror current as of 8/15/23)

Your Dean of Student Affairs

One of your best options when coping with serious life circumstances, whether personal or familial medical issues, personal or familial trauma, legal issues, or other major issues which are impacting your life, is actually to contact your college’s Dean of Student Affairs for help.

Among other forms of support, they can get documentation from you to establish what’s going on, and then send an email to all of your professors which is very non-specific about the exact nature of what’s going on (which helps maintain your privacy), but details the relevant times and dates, and nature of the accommodations which could help you succeed.

As a professor, when I get one of these emails, it’s really easy because I know I don’t need to ‘validate’ anything or pry at all, and instead can just chat with the student and figure out the best accommodations to help them continue learning and participating in the class, and offer them the best chance to move forward effectively. I highly recommend you go through this process if you’re going through a tough situation, as it makes things easier for everybody involved.

To get in touch with your Dean of Student Affairs for your college, you’ll want to visit the campus page describing this process and email your Dean for your college, listed there, directly. Or, if you prefer, you can visit your college’s Student Affairs site at:

• Eighth: https://eighth.ucsd.edu/about/staff.html#Student-Affairs
• Eleanor Roosevelt: https://roosevelt.ucsd.edu/about/people.html#Student-Affairs-Staff
• Marshall: https://marshall.ucsd.edu/about-us/staff.html#Student-Affairs-and-Residential
• Muir: https://muir.ucsd.edu/studentlife/staff.html
• Revelle: https://revelle.ucsd.edu/student-life/staff/index.html
• Seventh: https://seventh.ucsd.edu/about/staff/index.html#Student-Affairs
• Sixth: https://sixth.ucsd.edu/student-life/staff/index.html
• Warren: https://warren.ucsd.edu/student-life/about/team.html
• Graduate Students: Please speak with your advisor or department chair, or reach out to me directly so we can find you the right resources.

Incomplete Grades and Withdrawal

Many students who are struggling to complete work consider the idea of requesting an “I” incomplete grade for the quarter. This is a good resource for some students, can easily help if you’re going through it and just need a bit more time.

To be considered for an incomplete in my classes…

• You must have documented good-cause reasons for being unable to complete coursework by the deadline
  • This could be medical, family, or otherwise. Talk to your Dean of Students (see above) to see if your situation qualifies.
• You must be doing passing-quality work in the class prior to the situation forcing the incomplete.
  • This is per Senate Regulation 500
  • This means that you won’t be able to take an incomplete if you’ve been struggling all quarter
• You must have completed the majority of the work for the class
  • Incompletes are for mopping up one or two missing assignments, not for taking most of the class, next quarter.
• You must specifically request an incomplete
  • This should generally happen before the last graded assignement of the quarter is due
• We will agree upon a plan together to complete the work
  • If you don’t take the time to work with me to set a plan, the incomplete will lapse to an F.
• All incomplete work must be completed by the end of Week 7 of the following quarter (not counting summer quarters)
  • So, if you took an “I” in Winter and you do not complete all work by that deadline, your “I” will lapse to an “F”
• Completing work for your incomplete and tracking the process is your responsibility
  • As much as I want to help, I generally don’t have the bandwidth to ‘chase’ students who’ve taken an incomplete, so if you don’t reach out with questions or assignments or book times for make-up exams, your grade will naturally lapse to F in the following quarter, without further notice.

Thus, an incomplete requires considerable work and effort on your part, and requires you to mind the deadlines and complete the work. It’s perfect for students who’ve been doing great, but have some major difficulty which prevents them from taking the final or submitting the project.

If you’re having a rough quarter with serious good-cause issues leaving you unable to perform as you’d like, and you’ve already missed the drop deadline, you should look into retroactive withdrawal with your academic advisors and Dean of Students.

Community Centers

UCSD hosts community centers which offer specialized services, support, and community for many different groups of students.

See this complete listing of Student Support Resources and Centers, as well as the Student Veterans Resource Center which is, oddly, not listed there.

Academic Resources

• The UCSD Linguistics Library Guide
  • Our librarian is great, and she’s spent a great deal of time working collecting great resources for linguists using the library. Also see the Help using the Library page.
• Writing Hub
  • If you need help with academic writing, the Writing Hub is a great place to go for peer counseling, grad students, and even faculty.
• Supplemental Instruction
  • Linguistics doesn’t tend to use SI, but it can be helpful in your other work.
• The UCSD Academic Calendar
  • Don’t show up to class on holidays! Learn the Academic Calendar.
• Kie Zuraw’s General tips for reading scholarly articles
  • This is an excellent guide for dealing with scholarly literature

Technical Resources

• VPN: Connecting to electronic library resources such as e-reserves and e-journals
  • Many resources, including campus server access and library materials, aren’t available from off-campus unless you’re connecting via a VPN. This is the guide to setting that up.
• Technical Help with accounts, network, and technical issues
  • The ITS Service Desk can help with your campus accounts and networking, along with software troubleshooting and virus cleanup.
• A Phonetician’s Software Toolkit
  • As you’re getting deeper into Linguistics, you’re going to want specialized software for specialized tasks. Here’s my list of (mostly free) software that I use to get my work done.

All content © Copyright 2011-2025 Will Styler unless otherwise licensed. Please contact for relicensing.