The Purdue OWL APA Online Writing Lab is a free online service provided by the university’s School of Writing, Literature, and Journalism. The lab allows students to perform research and get feedback on their essays and dissertations in a variety of academic disciplines including business, English, history, political science, and psychology. Students can either register with the lab and use their university email account to log in or connect with Facebook to use their personal account.
Registering With the Purdue OWL APA
Students can register with the web-based service simply by providing an email address. After registering, they will receive a confirmation email with a link to set up a password for the service. Then, they can use the OWL to author their own essays and submit them for grading.
The lab provides students with a space to grow as writers. It offers:
- A collaborative environment where students can work with peers and receive feedback on their work.
- A digital library of primary sources spanning different historical periods.
- A community of professional writers and researchers in the field of study.
- A degree certifying them as competent English language users.
Additionally, the web-based service provides students with a level of autonomy and flexibility that is not available when working within a brick-and-mortar setting. They can work whenever and wherever they please, which allows them to continue working on their essays even when not in class.
Using the Purdue OWL APA
Once students have registered with the OWL, they will receive an email with a link to their workspace. From this point, they can log in to the service using their email address and password.
The workspace is where students can view all the files they have uploaded to the service and where they will find the commentaries, feedback, and documents that pertain to their work. Most importantly, the workspace provides a space for them to conduct their research, write their papers, and submit them for evaluation. The commentaries, feedback, and grading results are all contained within the workspaces.
The Benefits of Authoring With the Purdue OWL APA
While working within a traditional paper-based environment, students may find it difficult to pinpoint the exact benefits of the OWL APA platform. However, the amount of feedback received by the student is undoubtedly higher when compared to the traditional methods of submitting papers for evaluation. Additionally, the flexibility of the web-based environment provides a greater degree of autonomy and independence when compared to working within a traditional classroom setting. Many have noted the benefits of being able to work on their papers when and where they please and being able to take advantage of any unanticipated downtime. Overall, the advantages of using the Purdue OWL APA are many and provide students with a distinct advantage in today’s ever-evolving academic world.