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Essay and dissertation writing skills

Planning your essay

Writing your introduction

Structuring your essay

Writing essays in science subjects
Brief video guides to support essay planning and writing
Writing extended essays and dissertations
Planning your dissertation writing time

Structuring your dissertation

Top tips for writing longer pieces of work

Advice on planning and writing essays and dissertations

University essays differ from school essays in that they are less concerned with what you know and more concerned with how you construct an argument to answer the question. This means that the starting point for writing a strong essay is to first unpick the question and to then use this to plan your essay before you start putting pen to paper (or finger to keyboard).

A really good starting point for you are these short, downloadable Tips for Successful Essay Writing and Answering the Question resources. Both resources will help you to plan your essay, as well as giving you guidance on how to distinguish between different sorts of essay questions.

You may find it helpful to watch this seven-minute video on six tips for essay writing which outlines how to interpret essay questions, as well as giving advice on planning and structuring your writing:

Different disciplines will have different expectations for essay structure and you should always refer to your Faculty or Department student handbook or course Canvas site for more specific guidance.

However, broadly speaking, all essays share the following features:

Essays need an introduction to establish and focus the parameters of the discussion that will follow. You may find it helpful to divide the introduction into areas to demonstrate your breadth and engagement with the essay question. You might define specific terms in the introduction to show your engagement with the essay question; for example, ‘This is a large topic which has been variously discussed by many scientists and commentators. The principal tension is between the views of X and Y who define the main issues as…’ Breadth might be demonstrated by showing the range of viewpoints from which the essay question could be considered; for example, ‘A variety of factors including economic, social and political, influence A and B. This essay will focus on the social and economic aspects, with particular emphasis on…..’

Watch this two-minute video to learn more about how to plan and structure an introduction:

The main body of the essay should elaborate on the issues raised in the introduction and develop an argument(s) that answers the question. It should consist of a number of self-contained paragraphs each of which makes a specific point and provides some form of evidence to support the argument being made. Remember that a clear argument requires that each paragraph explicitly relates back to the essay question or the developing argument.

Conclusion: An essay should end with a conclusion that reiterates the argument in light of the evidence you have provided; you shouldn’t use the conclusion to introduce new information.
References: You need to include references to the materials you’ve used to write your essay. These might be in the form of footnotes, in-text citations, or a bibliography at the end. Different systems exist for citing references and different disciplines will use various approaches to citation. Ask your tutor which method(s) you should be using for your essay and also consult your Department or Faculty webpages for specific guidance in your discipline.

Essay writing in science subjects

If you are writing an essay for a science subject you may need to consider additional areas, such as how to present data or diagrams. This five-minute video gives you some advice on how to approach your reading list, planning which information to include in your answer and how to write for your scientific audience – the video is available here:

A PDF providing further guidance on writing science essays for tutorials is available to download.

Short videos to support your essay writing skills

There are many other resources at Oxford that can help support your essay writing skills and if you are short on time, the Oxford Study Skills Centre has produced a number of short (2-minute) videos covering different aspects of essay writing, including:

Approaching different types of essay questions
Structuring your essay
Writing an introduction
Making use of evidence in your essay writing
Writing your conclusion

Extended essays and dissertations

Longer pieces of writing like extended essays and dissertations may seem like quite a challenge from your regular essay writing. The important point is to start with a plan and to focus on what the question is asking. A PDF providing further guidance on planning Humanities and Social Science dissertations is available to download.

Planning your time effectively

Try not to leave the writing until close to your deadline, instead start as soon as you have some ideas to put down onto paper. Your early drafts may never end up in the final work, but the work of committing your ideas to paper helps to formulate not only your ideas, but the method of structuring your writing to read well and conclude firmly.

Although many students and tutors will say that the introduction is often written last, it is a good idea to begin to think about what will go into it early on. For example, the first draft of your introduction should set out your argument, the information you have, and your methods, and it should give a structure to the chapters and sections you will write. Your introduction will probably change as time goes on but it will stand as a guide to your entire extended essay or dissertation and it will help you to keep focused.

The structure of extended essays or dissertations will vary depending on the question and discipline, but may include some or all of the following:

The background information to - and context for - your research. This often takes the form of a literature review.
Explanation of the focus of your work.
Explanation of the value of this work to scholarship on the topic.
List of the aims and objectives of the work and also the issues which will not be covered because they are outside its scope.

The main body of your extended essay or dissertation will probably include your methodology, the results of research, and your argument(s) based on your findings.

The conclusion is to summarise the value your research has added to the topic, and any further lines of research you would undertake given more time or resources.

Tips on writing longer pieces of work

Approaching each chapter of a dissertation as a shorter essay can make the task of writing a dissertation seem less overwhelming. Each chapter will have an introduction, a main body where the argument is developed and substantiated with evidence, and a conclusion to tie things together. Unlike in a regular essay, chapter conclusions may also introduce the chapter that will follow, indicating how the chapters are connected to one another and how the argument will develop through your dissertation.

For further guidance, watch this two-minute video on writing longer pieces of work .

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Subject Guides

Academic writing: a practical guide

Academic writing
The writing process
Academic writing style
Structure & cohesion
Criticality in academic writing
Working with evidence
Referencing
Assessment & feedback
Dissertations
Reflective writing
Examination writing
Academic posters
Feedback on Structure and Organisation
Feedback on Argument, Analysis, and Critical Thinking
Feedback on Writing Style and Clarity
Feedback on Referencing and Research
Feedback on Presentation and Proofreading

Showing your understanding of a topic and the critical arguments that relate to it.

What are essays?

Most degree programmes include essays. They are the most common form of written assignment and so for most students, being good at essays is essential to gaining good marks, which lead to good grades, which lead to the degree classification desired. Essays are both a particular method of writing and a collection of sub-skills that students need to master during degree studies.

Find out more:

Essays: a Conceptual and Practical Guide [interactive tutorial] | Essays: a Conceptual and Practical Guide [Google Doc]

General essay writing

You have an essay to write... what next .

Read the assessment brief carefully to find out what the essay is about, what you are required to do specifically. What instructions are you given (discuss, explain, explore)? What choices do you need to make?
Work through the practical guide to essays above. This will help you to think about what an essay is and what is required of you.
Look at the assignment writing process . How will you produce your essay?
Make a plan for when, where, and how you will research, think, draft, and write your essay.
Execute your plan .
Finish early. Leave a couple of spare days at the end to edit and proofread .
Hand it in and move on to the next challenge!

Features of essay writing

Essays vary lots between disciplines and specific tasks, but they share several features that are important to bear in mind.

They are an argument towards a conclusion. The conclusion can be for or against a position, or just a narrative conclusion. All your writing and argumentation should lead to this conclusion.
They have a reader. It is essential that you show the logic of your argument and the information it is based on to your reader.
They are based on evidence . You must show this using both your referencing and also through interacting with the ideas and thinking found within the sources you use.
They have a structure. You need to ensure your structure is logical and that it matches the expectations of your department. You should also ensure that the structure enables the reader to follow your argument easily.
They have a word limit. 1000 words means 'be concise and make decisions about exactly what is important to include' whereas 3500 words means 'write in more depth, and show the reader a more complex and broad range of critical understanding'.
They are part of a discipline/subject area, each of which has conventions . For example, Chemistry requires third person impersonal writing, whereas Women's Studies requires the voice (meaning experiential viewpoint) of the author in the writing.

Types of essay

Each essay task is different and consequently the information below is not designed to be a substitute for checking the information for your specific essay task. It is essential that you check the assessment brief, module handbook and programme handbook, as well as attend any lectures, seminars and webinars devoted to the essay you are working on.

Essays in each subject area belong to a faculty (science, social sciences, arts and Humanities). Essays within the same faculty tend to share some features of style, structure, language choice, and scholarly practices. Please click through to the section relevant to your faculty area and if you want to be curious, the other ones too!

Arts & Humanities essays

Arts and Humanities is a faculty that includes a huge range of subject areas, from Music to Philosophy. Study in the arts and humanities typically focuses on products of the human mind, like music, artistic endeavour, philosophical ideas, and literary productions. This means that essays in the arts and humanities are typically exploring ideas, or interpreting the products of thinking (such as music, art, literature).

There are a range of essay writing styles in arts and humanities, and each subject area has its own conventions and expectations, which are explained and built into modules within each degree programme. Typically, each essay explores an idea, using critical engagement with source material, to produce an argument.

There is typically more reliance on the interpretation of ideas and evidence by the student than in the sciences and social sciences. For the student, the challenge is to understand and control the ideas in each essay, producing a coherent and logical argument that fulfils the essay brief. As with all essays, careful structure, word choices, and language use are essential to succeeding.

Department-specific advice for essays in Arts and Humanities

Some departments provide web-based advice:

English and Related Literature essay writing advice pages
Philosophy essay writing advice pages
Music Department 'House Style' guidance for essay writing
Language and Linguistic Science style guide

If your department does not appear above, do ask your supervisor or other academic staff what specific guidance is available.

Key Features of Arts and Humanities essays

They are based on evidence . It is important that ideas used in essays are derived from credible and usable sources to root your essay in the scholarly materials of the subject that you are writing about.
There is usually a thesis statement. This appears towards the end of your introductory paragraph, concisely outlining the purpose and the main argument of the essay. It is short (once sentence), concise, and precise. Though the essay may have multiple sub-arguments, all must tie into the thesis statement. This means it is important to know, state and stick to the primary focus set out in your thesis statement.
They require you to interpret evidence. It is unlikely that you will find a source that directly answers the essay question set. You will typically be required to interpret primary and secondary evidence. Primary evidence includes the manuscript of a novel, or a letter describing an historical event. Secondary evidence includes academic books and peer reviewed articles.
They require you to apply ideas. Many essays will ask you to apply an abstract idea to a scenario, or interpretation of something. For example, you could be asked to apply a Marxist ideology upon Emily Brontë's Wuthering Heights or Post-Colonialist theories upon Shakespeare's The Tempest.
Essays vary greatly in terms of length, required depth of thinking and purpose. You must carefully read the assessment brief and any supporting materials provided to you. It is also important to complete formative tasks that prepare you for an essay, as these will help you to become use to the requirements of the summative essay.
They must show criticality. When interpreting evidence, or applying ideas in your essay you must be aware that there is more than one possible understanding. Through exploring multiple sources and showing the limits and interconnectedness of ideas you show criticality. More information on criticality can be found on the Criticality page of this guide .

Example extract of an arts and humanities essay

Essay Title: Liturgical expression and national identity during the reign of Æthelred the Unready

This essay is from English studies and shows typical features of an arts and humanities essay. It is examining two ideas, namely 'national identity' and 'liturgical expression' and applying them both to a period of history. The essay does this by analysing linguistic choices, using interpretation from the literature base to create an argument that addresses the essay title.

It also has the feature of the student using sources of evidence to offer an interpretation that may disagree with some published sources. This use of evidence to create an argument that is novel to the student and requires interpretation of ideas is typical of arts and humanities writing. '"engla God", these liturgical verses themselves both signify and enact a ritualised unity with God.' is an example from the essay extract that shows the careful language choices used to create a concise and precise argument that clearly conveys complex thought to the reader from the author.

One way of thinking about a good arts and humanities essay is that it is like you are producing a garment from threads. The overall piece has a shape that people can recognise and understand, and each word, like each stitch, builds the whole piece slowly, whilst some key threads, like core ideas in your argument, run through the whole to hold it all together. It is the threading together of the strands of argument that determines the quality of the final essay, just as the threading of strands in a garment determine the quality of the final piece.

Good arts and humanities essay writing is...

Based on evidence sources,
built on the interpretation and application of ideas, evidence and theories,
a clearly expressed, logical argument that addresses the essay question,
carefully constructed to guide the reader in a logical path from the introduction to the conclusion,
filled with carefully chosen language to precisely and accurately convey ideas and interpretations to the reader,
built on rigorous, careful and close analysis of ideas,
constructed using careful evaluation of the significance of each idea and concept used,
readable, meaning it is clear and logical, using clearly understandable English,
rewarded with high marks.

Common mistakes in arts and humanities essay writing

Not answering the question posed. It is very easy to answer the question you wished had been asked, or drift away from the question during your writing. Keep checking back to the question to ensure you are still focussed and make a clear plan before writing.
Moving beyond the evidence. You are required to interpret ideas and evidence that exist, this requires some application and novelty, but should not be making up new ideas/knowledge to make your argument work; your writing must be rooted in evidence.
Using complex and long words where simpler word choices would convey meaning more clearly. Think of the reader.
Leaving the reader to draw their own conclusion s, or requiring the reader to make assumptions. They must be able to see your thinking clearly on the page.
Using lots of direct quotes . There are times when using quotes is important to detail lines from a novel for example, but you need to use them carefully and judiciously, so that most of your writing is based on your use of sources, for which you gain credit.

Social Science essays

Social Sciences, as the name suggests, can be thought of as an attempt to use a 'scientific method' to investigate social phenomena. There is a recognition that applying the strict rules of the level of proof required in science subjects is not appropriate when studying complex social phenomena. But, there is an expectation of as much rigour as is possible to achieve in each investigation.

Consequently, there is a huge variation in the types of essays that can be found within the social sciences. An essay based on the carbon dating of human remains within Archaeology is clearly very different from an essay based on the application of an ethical framework in Human Resources Management. The former is likely to be much more like a science essay, whilst the latter may edge towards a Philosophy essay, which is part of arts and humanities.

Key features of social science essays

They are evidence-based. It is crucial to use the evidence in a way that shows you understand how significant the evidence used is.
They require interpretation of evidence . By its nature, evidence in social sciences may be less definite than in sciences, and so interpretation is required. When you interpret evidence, this too must be based on evidence, rather than personal opinion or personal observation.
They often require the application of abstract theories to real-world scenarios . The theories are 'clean and clear' and the real world is 'messy and unclear'; the skill of the student is to make plausible judgements. For example,
The level of detail and breadth of knowledge that must be displayed varies greatly, depending on the length of the essay. 1000 word essays need concise wording and for the student to limit the breadth of knowledge displayed in order to achieve the depth needed for a high mark. Conversely, 5000 word essays require both breadth and depth of knowledge.
They should show criticality. This means you need to show uncertainty in the theories and ideas used, and how ideas and theories interact with others. You should present counter-facts and counter-arguments and use the information in the literature base to reach supported conclusions and judgements.

Example extract of a social science essay

Essay Title: Who Gets What in Education and is that Fair?

Education in the western world has historically favoured men in the regard that women were essentially denied access to it for no other reason than their gender (Trueman,2016) and even though it would seem there is certainly “equality on paper” (Penny, 2010,p1.) when looking at statistics for achievement and gender, the reality is that the struggles facing anyone who does not identify as male require a little more effort to recognise. An excellent example of this can be found in the 2014 OECD report. In the UK women significantly outnumbered men in their application for university places- 376,860 women to 282,170 men (ICEF,2014)- but when observed closer men are applying for places at higher ranking universities and often studying in fields that will eventually allow them to earn better salaries. The same report praised women for the ability to combine their studies with family life and having higher aspirations than boys and therefore likely as being more determined to obtain degrees (ICEF, 2014), yet in reality women have very little choice about coping with the stressful burdens placed on them. The concepts of double burden and triple shift where women are expected to deal with housework and earning an income, or housework, raising children and earning an income (Einhorn, 1993) could in this case relate to the pressure for women to work hard at school to allow them to be able to provide for their families in future. Even women who do not necessarily have their own families or children to care for must face the double burden and triple shift phenomenon in the workplace, as women who work in the higher education sector almost always have the duty of a more pastoral and caring role of their students than male counterparts (Morley,1994).

Education is a social science subject. Some studies within it follow a scientific method of quantitative data collection, whilst others are more qualitative, and others still are more theoretical. In the case of this extract it is about gendered effects in university applications. This is an inevitably complex area to write about, intersecting as it does with social class, economic status, social norms, cultural history, political policy... To name but a few.

The essay is clearly based on evidence, which in places in numerical and in places is derived from previously written papers, such as 'triple shift where women are expected to deal with housework and earning an income, or housework, raising children and earning an income (Einhorn, 1993)', where the concept of triple shift is derived from the named paper. It is this interleaving of numerical and concrete facts with theoretical ideas that have been created and/or observed that is a typical feature in social sciences. In this case, the author has clearly shown the reader where the information is from and has 'controlled' the ideas to form a narrative that is plausible and evidence-based.

When compared to science writing, it can appear to be more wordy and this is largely due to the greater degree of interpretation that is required to use and synthesise complex ideas and concepts that have meanings that are more fluid and necessarily less precise than many scientific concepts.

Good social science essay writing is...

filled with clearly articulated thinking from the mind of the author,
well structured to guide the reader through the argument or narrative being created,
focussed on answering the question or addressing the task presented,
filled with carefully chosen evaluative language to tell the reader what is more and less significant,
readable - sounds simple, but is difficult to achieve whilst remaining precise,

Common mistakes in social science essay writing

Speculating beyond the limits of the evidence presented . It is important to limit your interpretation to that which is supported by existing evidence. This can be frustrating, but is essential.
Using complex words where simpler ones will do. It is tempting to try to appear 'clever' by using 'big words', but in most cases, the simplest form of writing something is clearer. Your aim is to clearly communicate with the reader.
Giving your personal opinion - this is rarely asked for or required.
Not answering the question or fulfilling the task . This is possibly the most common error and largely comes from letting one's own ideas infect the essay writing process.
Not being critical. You need to show the limits of the ideas used, how they interact, counter-arguments and include evaluation and analysis of the ideas involved. If you find yourself being descriptive, ask why.
Using lots of direct quotes, particularly in first year writing . Quotes should be rare and used carefully because they are basically photocopying. Use your words to show you have understood the concepts involved.

Science essays

Science essays are precise, logical and strictly evidence-based pieces of writing. They employ cautious language to accurately convey the level of certainty within the scientific understanding that is being discussed and are strictly objective. This means that the author has to make the effort to really understand the meaning and significance of the science being discussed.

In a science essay, your aim is to summarise and critically evaluate existing knowledge in the field. If you're doing your own research and data collection, that will be written up in a report instead.

The skill of the student is to thread together the ideas and facts they have read in a logical order that addresses the task set. When judgements are made they must be justified against the strength and significance of the theories, findings, and ideas being used. Generally, the student should not be undertaking their own interpretation of the results and facts, but instead be using those of others to create a justifiable narrative.

Example extract of a science essay

Essay title: To what extent has Ungerleider and Mishkin’s notion of separate ‘what’ and ‘where’ pathways been vindicated by neuropsychological research?

Van Polanen & Davare (2015) showed that the dorsal stream and ventral streams are not strictly independent, but do interact with each other. Interactions between dorsal and ventral streams are important for controlling complex object-oriented hand movements, especially skilled grasp. Anatomical studies have reported the existence of direct connections between dorsal and ventral stream areas. These physiological interconnections appear to gradually more active as the precision demands of the grasp become higher.

However, cognition is a dynamic process, and a flexible interactive system is required to coordinate and modulate activity across cortical networks to enable the adaptation of processing to meet variable task demands. The clear division of the dorsal and ventral processing streams is artificial, resulting from experimental situations, which do not reflect processing within the natural environment (Weiller et al., 2011). Most successful execution of visual behaviours require the complex collaboration and seamless integration of processing between the two systems.

Cloutman (2013) had stated that dorsal and ventral streams can be functionally connected in three regards: (1) the independent processing account – where they remain separate but terminate on the same brain area, (2) the feedback account – where feedback loops from locations downstream on one pathway is constantly providing input to the other and (3) the continuous cross-talk account – where information is transferred to and from the system constantly when processing.

Indeed, the authors found that there were numerous anatomical cross-connections between the two pathways, most notably between inferior parietal and inferior temporal areas. For example, ventral regions TE and TEO have been found to have extensive connectivity with dorsal stream areas, demonstrating direct projections with areas including V3A, MT, MST, FST and LIP (Baizer et al., 1991; Disler et al., 1993).

The first obvious comment is that it is not going to win a prize for literary entertainment! The writing is what one might call 'dry'. This is because it is good scientific writing. It is clearly evidence-based, and is explaining complex interrelationships in a way that is clear, leaves little for the reader to assume and that uses carefully graded language to show the significance of each fact.

The language choices are carefully aligned with the strength of the evidence that is used. For example, 'have been found to have extensive interconnectivity' is graded to convey that many connections have been detailed in the evidence presented. Similarly, 'Most successful execution of visual behaviours require the complex collaboration' is graded carefully to convey meaning to the reader, derived from the evidence used. The sample displays many examples of controlled word choices that leave the reader in no doubt regarding the meaning they are to take from reading the piece. This concise, controlled, evidence-based and carefully considered writing is typical of that found in the science essays.

Good science essay writing is...

evidence-based,
cohesive due to language choices,
well-structured to help the reader follow the ideas,
carefully planned,
filled with carefully chosen evaluative and analytical language,
rewarded with high grades.

Common mistakes in science essay writing

The most common mistake is a lack of accuracy in the language used to convey meaning. This can be due to inadequate reading or a lack of understanding of the subject matter, or alternatively, due to not giving sufficient care to word choice. 'Increased greatly' is different to 'increased', which is different again to 'increased significantly'; it is very important that you understand what you are writing about in enough detail that you can accurately convey an understanding of it accurately to the reader.
Trying to put 'you' into the essay. It is highly unlikely that you will be required to refer to your own viewpoints, opinions or lived experience within scientific essay writing. Science is impersonal, it deals in fact, and so you are a third person, impersonal author who is interpreting and curating facts and knowledge into an essay that makes sense to the reader.
Going beyond the facts. It is rare that you will be asked to speculate in a science essay. When you are, you will be asked to extrapolate from known understanding in the relevant literature. Stick to the facts and to their meaning and significance.
Not placing understanding in context . Each scientific idea sits within a bigger discipline and interacts with other ideas. When you write about ideas, you need to acknowledge this, unless you are specifically told to only focus on one idea. An example would be genomics of viral pathogens, which is currently a much discussed area of activity. This sits within public health, virology, and genomics disciplines, to name a few. Depending on how it is to be written about, you may need to acknowledge one or more of these larger areas.

Using evidence in essays

Sources of evidence are at the heart of essay writing. You need sources that are both usable and credible, in the specific context of your essay.

A good starting point is often the materials used in the module your essay is attached to. You can then work outwards into the wider field of study as you develop your thinking, and seek to show critical analysis, critical evaluation and critical thought in your essay.

Discover more about using evidence in your assignments:

Structuring an essay

Clear structure is a key element of an effective essay. This requires careful thought and you to make choices about the order the reader needs the information to be in.

These resources contain advice and guides to help you structure your work:

You can use these templates to help develop the structure of your essay.

Go to File > Make a copy... to create your own version of the template that you can edit.

Structuring essay introductions

Play this tutorial in full screen

Explain the different functions that can be fulfilled by an introduction.
Provide examples of introductions from the Faculties of Social Sciences, Sciences, and Arts and Humanities.
Evaluating your own introductions.
Matching elements of an introduction to a description of their purpose.
Highlighting where evidence is used to support elements of the introduction.
Highlighting how introductions can make clear links to the essay question.

• • • • • • • • • • • •

In this section, you will learn about the functions and key components of an essay introduction.

An introduction can fulfill the functions below. These often move from a broad overview of the topic in context to a narrow focus on the scope of the discussion, key terms and organisational structure.

Click on each function to reveal more.

It can establish the overall topic and explain the relevance and significance of the essay question to that topic
What is the topic?
Why is the essay question worth exploring? Why is the essay worth reading?
How is it relevant to wider / important / current debates in the field?
It can briefly explain the background and context and define the scope of the discussion
Is it helpful to mention some background, historical or broader factors to give the reader some context?
Is the discussion set in a particular context (geographical; political; economic; social; historical; legal)?
Does the essay question set a particular scope or are you going to narrow the scope of the discussion?
It can highlight key concepts or ideas
Are the key concepts or ideas contentious or open to interpretation?
Will the key concepts need to be defined and explained?
It can signpost the broad organisational structure of the essay
Indicate what you will cover and a brief overview of the structure of your essay
points made should be supported by evidence
clear links should be made to the question

Note: Introductions may not cover all of these elements, and they may not be covered in this order.

Useful Link: See the University of Manchester’s Academic Phrasebank for useful key phrases to introduce work.

• • • • • • • • • • • •

In this activity, you will review and evaluate introductions you have written, identifying areas for improvement.

Find some examples of introductions you have written for essays.

Which of the features do they use?
Are any elements missing?
How might you improve them?

For the following tasks, you will be using an example introduction from one of the following three faculties. Select a faculty to use an introduction from a corresponding subject.

In this activity, you will look at examples of introductions, identifying key features and their purpose.

Here is an example question:

Sociology: Examine some of the factors that influence procrastination in individuals, exploring and evaluating their impact. Identify an area(s) for future research, justifying your choice.

And here is a sample introduction written for this question:

Procrastination is a complex concept which manifests itself in different types of behaviour yet is experienced by individuals universally. A useful definition of procrastination is ‘the voluntary delay of important, necessary, and intended action despite knowing there will be negative consequences for this delay’ (Ferrari and Tice, 2000, Sirois and Pychyl, 2013 cited in Sirois and Giguère, 2018). The influences on procrastination are multi-faceted, which makes their study incredibly challenging. Researchers are now producing a body of work dedicated to procrastination; including meta-analyses such as those by Varvaricheva (2010) and Smith (2015). Influences on procrastination can be considered in two categories, factors with external, environmental, sources and factors with internal sources due to individual differences. However, these external and environmental categories are not completely independent of one another and this essay will seek to explore the complexities of this interdependence. This essay will discuss how different factors influence individual procrastination, by first examining how gender, age and personality affect the procrastination trait under internal factors, before discussing the external factors; how task aversiveness, deadlines and the internet affect procrastination behavioural outcomes. This will be followed by a brief exploration of how the two interact. Finally there a number of gaps in the literature, which suggest avenues for future research.

Click on the Next arrow to match each section of this introduction with a description of its purpose.

Procrastination is a complex concept which manifests itself in different types of behaviour yet is experienced by individuals universally.

Signposts the broad organisational structure of the essay

Narrows the topic and explains its relevance or significance to current debates

Defines the scope of the discussion

Establishes the topic and explains its broad significance

Defines key concepts

That's not the right answer

Have another go.

Yes, that's the right answer!

A useful definition of procrastination is ‘the voluntary delay of important, necessary, and intended action despite knowing there will be negative consequences for this delay’ (Ferrari and Tice, 2000, Sirois and Pychyl, 2013 cited in Sirois and Giguère, 2018).

The influences on procrastination are multi-faceted, which makes their study incredibly challenging. Researchers are now producing a body of work dedicated to procrastination; including meta-analyses such as those by Varvaricheva (2010) and Smith (2015).

Influences on procrastination can be considered in two categories, factors with external, environmental, sources and factors with internal sources due to individual differences. However, these external and environmental categories are not completely independent of one another and this essay will seek to explore the complexities of this interdependence.

This essay will discuss how different factors influence individual procrastination, by first examining how gender, age and personality affect the procrastination trait under internal factors, before discussing the external factors; how task aversiveness, deadlines and the internet affect procrastination behavioural outcomes. This will be followed by a brief exploration of how the two interact. Finally there a number of gaps in the literature, which suggest avenues for future research.

In this activity, you will identify how introductions make links to the question.

Here is the question again:

Click to highlight the places where the introduction below links closely to the question.

Have another go. You can remove the highlighting on sections by clicking on them again.

Those are the parts of the introduction that link closely to the question.

In this activity, you will consider how introductions make use of supporting evidence.

Define key concepts
Establish the topic and explain its relevance or significance

Click to highlight the places where the introduction below supports points with evidence .

Those are the parts of the introduction that use evidence to support points.

Congratulations! You've made it through the introduction!

Click on the icon at the bottom to restart the tutorial.

• • • • • • • • • • • •

Nursing: Drawing on your own experiences and understanding gained from the module readings, discuss and evaluate the values, attributes and behaviours of a good nurse.

The Nursing and Midwifery Council’s (NMC) (2015) Code states that a nurse must always put the care of patients first, be open and honest, and be empathic towards patients and their families. Student nurses are expected to demonstrate an understanding of the need for these key skills even at the interview stage and then gain the experiences to develop certain fundamental attributes, values and behaviours in order to advance through the stages of nursing. This assignment will highlight a variety of values, attributes and behaviours a good nurse should have, focusing on courage in particular. Views of courage from political, professional, and social perspectives will be considered, alongside a comparison between the attribute courage and a student nurse’s abilities. This will be demonstrated using observations from practice, appropriate theorists such as Sellman (2011), Lachman (2010) and philosophers including Aristotle and Ross (2011).

The Nursing and Midwifery Council’s (NMC) (2015) Code states that a nurse must always put the care of patients first, be open and honest, and be empathic towards patients and their families.

Explains the context to the discussion, with reference to the workplace

Defines the scope of the discussion by narrowing it

Defines relevant key concepts or ideas

Student nurses are expected to demonstrate an understanding of the need for these key skills even at the interview stage and then gain the experiences to develop certain fundamental attributes, values and behaviours in order to advance through the stages of nursing.

This assignment will highlight a variety of values, attributes and behaviours a good nurse should have, focusing on courage in particular.

Views of courage from political, professional, and social perspectives will be considered, alongside a comparison between the attribute courage and a student nurse’s abilities. This will be demonstrated using observations from practice, appropriate theorists such as Sellman (2011), Lachman (2010) and philosophers including Aristotle and Ross (2011).

Define relevant key concepts or ideas
Signpost the broad organisational structure of the essay, making a clear link to the question

Archaeology: Explain some of the ways in which Star Carr has been re-interpreted since the initial discovery in the 1940s. Briefly evaluate how the results of recent excavations further dramatically affect our understanding of this site.

Star Carr has become the ‘best known’ Mesolithic site in Britain (Conneller, 2007, 3), in part because of its high levels of artefact preservation due to waterlogging, as the site was once on the Eastern edge of the ancient Lake Flixton, close to a small peninsula (Taylor, 2007). First excavated by Grahame Clark in 1949-51, there was a further invasive investigation in 1985 and 1989, again in 2006-8, and 2010. An impressive haul of artefacts have been excavated over the years, including bone and antler tools, barbed points, flint tools and microliths, and enigmatic red deer frontlets (Milner et al., 2016). Since Clark’s first published report in 1954 there have been numerous re-examinations of the subject, including by Clark himself in 1974. Resulting interpretations of the site have been much debated; it has been classified as ‘in situ settlement, a refuse dump, and the result of culturally prescribed acts of deposition’ (Taylor et al., 2017). This discussion will explore the ways in which the site has been variously re-interpreted during this time period, and consider how more recent study of the site has prompted new perspectives.

Explains the background to the discussion and its significance

Establishes the topic

Explains the scope of the topic and highlights key interpretations

First excavated by Grahame Clark in 1949-51, there was a further invasive investigation in 1985 and 1989, again in 2006-8, and 2010. An impressive haul of artefacts have been excavated over the years, including bone and antler tools, barbed points, flint tools and microliths, and enigmatic red deer frontlets (Milner et al., 2016).

Since Clark’s first published report in 1954 there have been numerous re-examinations of the subject, including by Clark himself in 1974. Resulting interpretations of the site have been much debated; it has been classified as ‘in situ settlement, a refuse dump, and the result of culturally prescribed acts of deposition’ (Taylor et al., 2017).

This discussion will explore the ways in which the site has been variously re-interpreted during this time period, and consider how more recent study of the site has prompted new perspectives.

Establish the topic, explains the background and significance
Explains the significance of the topic
Highlights key interpretations

Structuring essay conclusions

In this section you will consider the different functions a conclusion can fulfil, look at examples of conclusions, and identify key features and their purpose.

• • • • • • • • •

A conclusion can fulfil the functions below. These often move from a narrow focus on the outcomes of the discussion to a broad view of the topic's relevance to the wider context.

Summary of the main points in relation to the question

This might involve restating the scope of the discussion and clarifying if there any limitations of your discussion or of the evidence provided
This may include synthesising the key arguments and weighing up the evidence

Arrive at a judgement or conclusion

Having weighed up the evidence, come to a judgement about the strength of the arguments

Restate the relevance or significance of the topic to the wider context

Make it clear why your conclusions - which are based on your discussion through the essay - are important or significant in relation to wider/current debates in the field

Make recommendations or indicate the direction for further study, if applicable

Recommendations may be for further research or for practice/policy
What further research/investigation would be necessary to overcome the limitations above?
What are the implications of your findings for policy/practice?

Note: Conclusions may not cover all of these elements, and they may not be covered in this order.

Clear links should be made to the question
Do not make new points in the conclusion

Useful Link: See the University of Manchester’s Academic Phrasebank for useful key phrases to conclude work.

• • • • • • • • •

In this activity, you will look at an example conclusion, identifying key features and their purpose.

In this task, you will be using an example conclusion from one of the following three faculties. Select a faculty to use a conclusion from a corresponding subject.

And here is a sample conclusion written for the question:

In conclusion procrastination is a complex psychological phenomenon that is influenced by a number of factors, both internal and external. However it has a hugely multifaceted nature and the factors that influence it are not truly independent of one another. Character traits and the environmental impact on behaviour are interrelated; for example similar procrastination outcomes may arise from a highly conscientious individual in a distracting environment and an individual low in conscientiousness in a non-distracting setting. This means that future studies need to be very considered in their approach to separating, or controlling for, these factors. These further studies are important and urgently needed as the impact of procrastination on society is far-reaching. For instance: individuals delay contributing to a pension, meaning that old age may bring poverty for many; couples put off entering into formal contracts with each other, potentially increasing disputes over child custody and inheritance; and indeed women delay starting a family and increasing age leads to decreased fertility, thus leading to higher societal costs of providing assisted fertilisation. Furthermore one could expand the scope to include the effects on children of being born to older parents (such as risks of inherited genetic defects). These are themselves wide fields of study and are mentioned merely to illustrate the importance of further research. Until the nature of influences on procrastination is fully understood, our development of approaches to reduce procrastination is likely to be hindered.

Click on the Next arrow to match each section of the conclusion with a description of its purpose.

In conclusion procrastination is a complex psychological phenomenon that is influenced by a number of factors, both internal and external.

Synthesises the key arguments and weighs up the evidence

Indicates limitations

Restates the scope of the discussion

Indicates the direction and significance for further study

Summary of the main point in relation to the question

However it has a hugely multifaceted nature and the factors that influence it are not truly independent of one another.

Character traits and the environmental impact on behaviour are interrelated; for example similar procrastination outcomes may arise from a highly conscientious individual in a distracting environment and an individual low in conscientiousness in a non-distracting setting.

This means that future studies need to be very considered in their approach to separating, or controlling for, these factors. These further studies are important and urgently needed as the impact of procrastination on society is far-reaching. For instance: individuals delay contributing to a pension, meaning that old age may bring poverty for many; couples put off entering into formal contracts with each other, potentially increasing disputes over child custody and inheritance; and indeed women delay starting a family and increasing age leads to decreased fertility, thus leading to higher societal costs of providing assisted fertilisation. Furthermore one could expand the scope to include the effects on children of being born to older parents (such as risks of inherited genetic defects). These are themselves wide fields of study and are mentioned merely to illustrate the importance of further research.

Until the nature of influences on procrastination is fully understood, our development of approaches to reduce procrastination is likely to be hindered.

Opportunities for nurses to display courage occur every day, although it is at the nurse’s discretion whether they act courageously or not. As discussed in this assignment, courage is likewise an important attribute for a good nurse to possess and could be the difference between good and bad practice. It is significantly important that nurses speak up about bad practice to minimize potential harm to patients. However nurses do not need to raise concerns in order to be courageous, as nurses must act courageously every day. Professional bodies such as the RCN and NMC recognise that courage is important by highlighting this attribute in the RCN principles. The guidelines for raising concerns unite the attribute courage with the RCN’s principles of nursing practice by improving nurses’ awareness of how to raise concerns. Lachman’s (2010) CODE is an accessible model that modern nurses could use as a strategy to help them when raising concerns. Although students find it difficult to challenge more senior nursing professionals, they could also benefit from learning the acronym to help them as they progress through their career. For nursing students, courage could be seen as a learning development of the ability to confront their fear of personal emotional consequences from participating in what they believe to be the right action. On the whole a range of values, attributes and behaviours are needed in order to be a good nurse, including being caring, honest, compassionate, reliable and professional. These qualities are all important, but courage is an attribute that is widely overlooked for nurses to possess but vitally fundamental.

Arrives at an overall judgement or conclusion

Make recommendations for practice

Professional bodies such as the RCN and NMC recognise that courage is important by highlighting this attribute in the RCN principles. The guidelines for raising concerns unite the attribute courage with the RCN’s principles of nursing practice by improving nurses’ awareness of how to raise concerns. Lachman’s (2010) CODE is an accessible model that modern nurses could use as a strategy to help them when raising concerns.

Although students find it difficult to challenge more senior nursing professionals, they could also benefit from learning the acronym to help them as they progress through their career. For nursing students, courage could be seen as a learning development of the ability to confront their fear of personal emotional consequences from participating in what they believe to be the right action.

On the whole a range of values, attributes and behaviours are needed in order to be a good nurse, including being caring, honest, compassionate, reliable and professional. These qualities are all important, but courage is an attribute that is widely overlooked for nurses to possess but vitally fundamental.

Star Carr is one of the most fascinating and informative Mesolithic sites in the world. What was once considered to be the occasional winter settlement of a group of hunter-gatherer families, now appears to be a site of year-round settlement occupied over centuries. Since its initial discovery and excavation in the late 1940s and early 1950s, a great deal of further data has been collected, altering interpretations made by the primary excavators who pioneered analysis of the site. What once was considered a typical textbook Mesolithic hunting encampment is now theorized to be a site of ritual importance. The site has produced unique findings such as a multitude of barbed points, twenty one antlered headdresses and the earliest known example of a permanent living structure in Britain. These factors will combine to immortalise the site, even when its potential for further research is thoroughly decayed, which tragically could be very soon (Taylor et al. 2010).

Star Carr is one of the most fascinating and informative Mesolithic sites in the world.

Synthesise the main points

Limitations and implications for future research

Restate the significance of the topic to the wider context

What was once considered to be the occasional winter settlement of a group of hunter-gatherer families, now appears to be a site of year-round settlement occupied over centuries. Since its initial discovery and excavation in the late 1940s and early 1950s, a great deal of further data has been collected, altering interpretations made by the primary excavators who pioneered analysis of the site. What once was considered a typical textbook Mesolithic hunting encampment is now theorized to be a site of ritual importance. The site has produced unique findings such as a multitude of barbed points, twenty one antlered headdresses and the earliest known example of a permanent living structure in Britain.

These factors will combine to immortalise the site, even when its potential for further research is thoroughly decayed, which tragically could be very soon (Taylor et al. 2010).

Congratulations! You've made it through the conclusion!

Click on the icon below to restart the tutorial.

• • • • • • • • •

Other support for essay writing

Online resources.

The general writing pages of this site offer guidance that can be applied to all types of writing, including essays. Also check your department guidance and VLE sites for tailored resources.

Other useful resources for essay writing:

Appointments and workshops

There is lots of support and advice for essay writing. This is likely to be in your department, and particularly from your academic supervisor and module tutors, but there is also central support, which you can access using the links below.

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United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland summary

Learn about the history of the united kingdom of great britain and northern ireland, the reign of elizabeth i, and u.k. entry in ww i and ww ii.

United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland , or United Kingdom or Great Britain , Island country, western Europe, North Atlantic Ocean. It comprises Great Britain ( England , Scotland , and Wales ) and Northern Ireland . Area: 93,629 sq mi (242,500 sq km). Population: (2024 est.) 68,278,000. Capital: London . The population is composed of English (major ethnic group), Scots, Irish, and Welsh and immigrants and their descendants from India, the West Indies, Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Africa. Languages: English (official); also Welsh, Scottish Gaelic. Religions: Christianity (Protestant [Church of England—established; Church of Scotland—national], Roman Catholic, other Christians); also Islam, Hinduism, Sikhism, Judaism. Currency: pound sterling. The country has hill, lowland, upland, highland, and mountain regions. Tin and iron ore deposits, once central to the economy, have become exhausted or uneconomical, and the coal industry, long a staple of the economy, began a steady decline in the 1950s that worsened with pit closures in the 1980s. Offshore petroleum and natural gas reserves are significant. Chief crops are barley, wheat, sugar beets, and potatoes. Major manufactures include motor vehicles, aerospace equipment, electronic data-processing and telecommunication equipment, and petrochemicals. Fishing and publishing also are important economic activities. The U.K. is a constitutional monarchy with two legislative houses; its head of state is the sovereign, and the head of government is the prime minister.

The early pre-Roman inhabitants of Britain ( see Stonehenge ) were Celtic-speaking peoples, including the Brythonic people of Wales, the Picts of Scotland, and the Britons of Britain. Celts also settled in Ireland c. 500 bce . Julius Caesar invaded and took control of the area in 55–54 bce . The Roman province of Britannia endured until the 5th century ce and included present-day England and Wales. Germanic tribes, including Angles, Saxons, and Jutes, invaded Britain in the 5th century. The invasions had little effect on the Celtic peoples of Wales and Scotland. Christianity began to flourish in the 6th century. During the 8th and 9th centuries, Vikings, particularly Danes, raided the coasts of Britain. In the late 9th century Alfred the Great repelled a Danish invasion, which helped bring about the unification of England under Athelstan. The Scots attained dominance in Scotland, which was finally unified under Malcolm II (1005–34). William of Normandy ( see William I ) took England in 1066. The Norman kings established a strong central government and feudal state. The French language of the Norman rulers eventually merged with the Anglo-Saxon of the common people to form the English language. From the 11th century, Scotland came under the influence of the English throne. Henry II conquered Ireland in the late 12th century. His sons Richard I and John had conflicts with the clergy and nobles, and eventually John was forced to grant the nobles concessions in the Magna Carta (1215). The concept of community of the realm developed during the 13th century, providing the foundation for parliamentary government. During the reign of Edward I (1272–1307), statute law developed to supplement English common law , and the first Parliament was convened. In 1314 Robert the Bruce ( see Robert I ) won independence for Scotland. The house of Tudor became the ruling family of England following the Wars of the Roses (1455–85). Henry VIII (1509–47) established the Church of England and incorporated Wales as part of England.

The reign of Elizabeth I (1558–1603) began a period of colonial expansion; in 1588 British forces defeated the “invincible” Spanish Armada . In 1603 James VI of Scotland ascended the English throne, becoming James I , and established a personal union of the two kingdoms. The English Civil Wars erupted in 1642 between Royalists and Parliamentarians, ending in the execution of Charles I (1649). After 11 years of Puritan rule under Oliver Cromwell and his son (1649–60), the monarchy was restored with Charles II . In 1689, following the Glorious Revolution , Parliament proclaimed the joint sovereigns William III and Mary II, who accepted the British Bill of Rights. In 1707 England and Scotland assented to the Act of Union, forming the kingdom of Great Britain. The Hanoverians ascended the English throne in 1714, when George Louis, elector of Hanover, became George I of Great Britain. During the reign of George III , Great Britain’s North American colonies won independence (1783). This was followed by a period of war (1789–1815) with Revolutionary France and later with the empire of Napoleon . In 1801 legislation united Great Britain with Ireland to create the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland. Britain was the birthplace of the Industrial Revolution in the late 18th century, and it remained the world’s foremost economic power until the late 19th century. During the reign of Queen Victoria (1837–1901), Britain’s colonial expansion reached its zenith, though the older dominions, including Canada and Australia, were granted independence (1867 and 1901, respectively).

The U.K. entered World War I allied with France and Russia in 1914. Following the war, revolutionary disorder erupted in Ireland, and in 1921 the Irish Free State ( see Ireland ) was granted dominion status. Six counties of Ulster, however, remained in the U.K. as Northern Ireland. The U.K. entered World War II in 1939. Following the war, the Irish Free State became the Irish republic and left the Commonwealth . India also gained independence from the U.K. Throughout the postwar period and into the 1970s, the U.K. continued to grant independence to its overseas colonies and dependencies. With UN forces, it participated in the Korean War (1950–53). In 1956 it intervened militarily in Egypt during the Suez Crisis. It joined the European Economic Community, a forerunner of the European Union , in 1973. In 1982 it defeated Argentina in the Falkland Islands War . As a result of continuing social strife in Northern Ireland, it joined with Ireland in several peace initiatives, which eventually resulted in an agreement to establish an assembly in Northern Ireland. In 1997 referenda approved in Scotland and Wales devolved power to both countries, though both remained part of the U.K. In 1991 the U.K. joined an international coalition to reverse Iraq’s conquest of Kuwait ( see Persian Gulf War ). In 2003 the U.K. and the U.S. attacked Iraq and overthrew the government of Ṣaddām Ḥussein ( see Iraq War ). Terrorist bombings in London in July 2005 killed more than 50 people.

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Study in UK /

Why Do You Want to Study in UK Essay: Samples, Do’s and Don’t’s

Updated on
Dec 14, 2023

If you want to know how you can write a great essay on why one should study in the United Kingdom , then you have landed on the right blog. We will give you examples of why do you want to study in UK essay. Maybe you want to write this essay for your college assignments, or you are preparing for a speech, or maybe you want to submit this essay to a competition. It doesn’t matter what’s your aim here, we will help you in writing your essay by offering you samples and do’s and don’t’s. You will practically learn here how to write your essay. So, let’s begin!

This Blog Includes:

Sample 1 (100 words), sample 2 (150 words), sample 3 (300 words), do’s and don’t’s.

The UK has always been my dream study destination. What makes the UK attractive to me is its world-class education and extensive job opportunities. Pursuing your education at a university in the UK gets you recognised by employers and academics across the world. The country is not just known for its academic excellence but also its rich and diverse culture.

The UK boasts about 679,970 international students, demonstrating how welcoming it is to foreigners. The universities here are known to encourage students to be more creative, innovative, and expressive of their innovative thinking.

These are the reasons why I want to study in the UK. This is all I wanted to say in my why do you want to study in UK essay.

Abhishek Kumar Jha

Abhishek Kumar Jha is a professional content writer and marketer, having extensive experience in delivering content in journalism and marketing. He has written news content related to education for prominent media outlets, garnering expansive knowledge of the Indian education landscape throughout his experience. Moreover, he is a skilled content marketer, with experience in writing SEO-friendly blogs. His educational background includes a Postgraduate Diploma in English Journalism from the prestigious Indian Institute of Mass Communication (IIMC), Dhenkanal. By receiving an education from a top journalism school and working in the corporate world with complete devotion, he has honed the essential skills needed to excel in content writing.

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Essay writing: Introductions

Introductions
Conclusions
Analysing questions
Planning & drafting
Revising & editing
Proofreading
Essay writing videos

Jump to content on this page:

“A relevant and coherent beginning is perhaps your best single guarantee that the essay as a whole will achieve its object.” Gordon Taylor, A Student's Writing Guide

Your introduction is the first thing your marker will read and should be approximately 10% of your word count. Within the first minute they should know if your essay is going to be a good one or not. An introduction has several components but the most important of these are the last two we give here. You need to show the reader what your position is and how you are going to argue the case to get there so that the essay becomes your answer to the question rather than just an answer.

What an introduction should include:

A little basic background about the key subject area (just enough to put your essay into context, no more or you'll bore the reader).
Explanation of how you are defining any key terms . Confusion on this could be your undoing.
A road-map of how your essay will answer the question. What is your overall argument and how will you develop it?
A confirmation of your position .

Background information

It is good to start with a statement that fixes your essay topic and focus in a wider context so that the reader is sure of where they are within the field. This is a very small part of the introduction though - do not fall into the trap of writing a whole paragraph that is nothing but background information.

Beware though, this only has to be a little bit wider, not completely universal. That is, do not start with something like "In the whole field of nursing...." or "Since man could write, he has always...". Instead, simply situate the area that you are writing about within a slightly bigger area. For example, you could start with a general statement about a topic, outlining some key issues but explain that your essay will focus on only one. Here is an example:

The ability to communicate effectively and compassionately is a key skill within nursing. Communication is about more than being able to speak confidently and clearly, it is about effective listening (Singh, 2019), the use of gesture, body language and tone (Adebe et al., 2016) and the ability to tailor language and messaging to particular situations (Smith & Jones, 2015). This essay will explore the importance of non-verbal communication ...

The example introduction at the bottom of this page also starts with similar, short background information.

Prehistoric man with the caption "Since the dawn of man..."

Defining key terms

This does not mean quoting dictionary definitions - we all have access to dictionary.com with a click or two. There are many words we use in academic work that can have multiple or nuanced definitions. You have to write about how you are defining any potentially ambiguous terms in relation to your essay topic. This is really important for your reader, as it will inform them how you are using such words in the context of your essay and prevent confusion or misunderstanding.

Student deciding if 'superpower' relates to the USA and China or Superman and Spider-man

Stating your case (road mapping)

The main thing an introduction will do is...introduce your essay! That means you need to tell the reader what your conclusion is and how you will get there.

There is no need to worry about *SPOILER ALERTS* - this is not a detective novel you can give away the ending! Sorry, but building up suspense is just going to irritate the reader rather than eventually satisfy. Simply outline how your main arguments (give them in order) lead to your conclusion. In American essay guides you will see something described as the ‘thesis statement’ - although we don't use this terminology in the UK, it is still necessary to state in your introduction what the over-arching argument of your essay will be. Think of it as the mega-argument , to distinguish it from the mini-arguments you make in each paragraph. Look at the example introduction at the bottom of this page which includes both of these elements.

Car on a road to a place called 'Conclusion'

Confirming your position

To some extent, this is covered in your roadmap (above), but it is so important, it deserves some additional attention here. Setting out your position is an essential component of all essays. Brick et al. (2016:143) even suggest

"The purpose of an essay is to present a clear position and defend it"

It is, however, very difficult to defend a position if you have not made it clear in the first place. This is where your introduction comes in. In stating your position, you are ultimately outlining the answer to the question. You can then make the rest of your essay about providing the evidence that supports your answer. As such, if you make your position clear, you will find all subsequent paragraphs in your essay easier to write and join together. As you have already told your reader where the essay is going, you can be explicit in how each paragraph contributes to your mega-argument.

In establishing your position and defending it, you are ultimately engaging in scholarly debate. This is because your positions are supported by academic evidence and analysis. It is in your analysis of the academic evidence that should lead your reader to understand your position. Once again - this is only possible if your introduction has explained your position in the first place.

student standing on a cross holding a sign saying "my position"

An example introduction

(Essay title = Evaluate the role of stories as pedagogical tools in higher education)

Stories have been an essential communication technique for thousands of years and although teachers and parents still think they are important for educating younger children, they have been restricted to the role of entertainment for most of us since our teenage years. This essay will claim that stories make ideal pedagogical tools, whatever the age of the student, due to their unique position in cultural and cognitive development. To argue this, it will consider three main areas: firstly, the prevalence of stories across time and cultures and how the similarity of story structure suggests an inherent understanding of their form which could be of use to academics teaching multicultural cohorts when organising lecture material; secondly, the power of stories to enable listeners to personally relate to the content and how this increases the likelihood of changing thoughts, behaviours and decisions - a concept that has not gone unnoticed in some fields, both professional and academic; and finally, the way that different areas of the brain are activated when reading, listening to or watching a story unfold, which suggests that both understanding and ease of recall, two key components of learning, are both likely to be increased . Each of these alone could make a reasoned argument for including more stories within higher education teaching – taken together, this argument is even more compelling.

Key: Background information (scene setting) Stating the case (r oad map) Confirming a position (in two places). Note in this introduction there was no need to define key terms.

Brick, J., Herke, M., and Wong, D., (2016) Academic Culture, A students guide to studying at university, 3rd edition. Victoria, Australia: Palgrave Macmillan.

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Academic writing skills
Academic writing

How to structure and plan an essay

This page will help you to organise and plan an academic essay by outlining clear initial stages to follow, and will introduce you to a model for organising a typical academic essay.

What is an essay?

An essay is a focused, academic discussion of a particular question, problem or issue.

Many of you have been writing essays for years, and are probably good at it. That's great, and everything you look at here will build on and develop those skills.

But it's worth asking: are there different things expected of a university essay from those for school, college, or other contexts?

The obvious answer is yes, and it takes time and effort to learn the range of writing skills needed to produce university essays effectively.

There are all sorts of reasons why essays are common forms of assessment. They allow you to explore a problem in-depth, express yourself concisely and precisely, and debate other people's published opinions on a topic.

They're also a good warm-up for traditional forms of academic publication, such as a journal article.

Academic essays usually follow an established organisational structure that helps the writer to express their ideas clearly and the reader to follow the thread of their argument.

An essay's structure is guided by its content and argument so every essay question will pose unique structural challenges.

Planning stages

Essay writing is a process with many stages, from topic selection, planning and reading around, through to drafting, revising and proofreading.

Breaking the task down and creating a clear plan with milestones and intermediate deadlines will allow you to focus attention more fully on the writing process itself when you put your plan into action either as part of an assignment or an exam.

1. Understand the question

Is the question open-ended or closed? If it is open-ended you will need to narrow it down. Explain how and why you have decided to limit it in the introduction to your essay, so the reader knows you appreciate the wider issues, but that you can also be selective.
If it is a closed question, your answer must refer to and stay within the limits of the question (ie specific dates, texts, or countries).
What can you infer from the title about the structure of the essay?

2. Brainstorm for ideas

What you know about the topic – from lectures, reading etc
What you don't know about the topic, but need to find out to answer the question
Possible responses or answers to the question – any ideas about your conclusion.
Consider using a mind map to organise your thoughts…

3. Make a plan

Planning your essay makes it more likely that you have a coherent argument
It enables you to work out a logical structure and an endpoint for your argument before you start writing
It means you don't have to do this type of complex thinking at the same time as trying to find the right words to express your ideas
It helps you to commit yourself to sticking to the point!

Have a look at this Glossary of Essay Instruction Words (PDF, 100KB) , or watch this short Study Skills Hacks video on identifying the tasks in a question to help you identify what is required.

The Hourglass essay

If you're stuck on an overall structure for your essay, try this simple model for organising a typical academic essay. An hourglass essay introduces a broad area, before narrowing the focus towards the specific question that you are answering. It finishes by placing that narrow area back into a wider context.

Introduction: the funnel of the hourglass

Set the scene and lead your reader into your essay by introducing the broad area of interest and then narrowing towards your specific focus:

Start broad with a hook to catch the reader's attention
Provide some context for the hook. What does your project add to it?
Focus on the narrow area of your essay: can you summarise it in a single sentence mission statement?

Body: the stem of the hourglass

The body of your essay should be as narrow and focused as possible. Body paragraphs will take one sub-topic at a time and provide a logical flow of ideas for your reader:

Start each paragraph with a topic sentence to tell your reader what it will cover
Fill your paragraph with a range of supporting evidence and examples
Finish your paragraph with a final wrapping-up sentence to summarise and/or link ahead

Conclusion: the base of the hourglass

Your chance to reinforce your key messages and go out with a bang:

Revisit your mission statement: how have you addressed it?
Summarise the main points of your argument or findings
Finish with a broader scope, explaining how your topic might inform future research or practice, or where gaps remain

Have a go at using this template (google doc) to plan a structure for your essay, paying particular attention to the ways in which you have broken down the topic into sub-themes for your body paragraphs.

Come along to an Essay Structure and Planning workshop, which will outline how to analyse your essay question, discuss approaches logically structure all your ideas, help you make your introductions and conclusions more effective, and teach how to link your ideas and ensure all essay content flows logically from the introduction.

Book an Essay Structure and Planning Workshop place here

Book workshop on writing Writing Persuasive Introductions, Conclusions and Discussions and Writing Effective Thesis Statements and Topic Sentences which explore both features and linguistic structures.

More information

Start planning early, leave your plan for a couple of days, and then come back to it. This may give you a fresh perspective.
It is often easiest to write the introduction last, but when you are planning your essay structure make sure you have your mission statement.
A good plan will make it much easier to write a good essay. Invest the time in making a plan that works.
Check what your tutor wants, but it is often best to focus on one element in great detail, rather than discuss several aspects superficially.
Make sure you allow time to proofread your work before submission!
How to structure a paragraph
How to paraphrase and quote
How to write in an academic style

Use your mySkills portfolio to discover your skillset, reflect on your development, and record your progress.

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How to Write Dazzlingly Brilliant Essays: Sharp Advice for Ambitious Students

Rachel McCombie, a graduate of St John’s College, Oxford, shares actionable tips on taking your essays from “Good” to “Outstanding.”

For ambitious students, essays are a chance to showcase academic flair, demonstrate original thinking and impress with advanced written English skills.

The best students relish the challenge of writing essays because they’re a chance to exercise academic research skills and construct interesting arguments. Essays allow you to demonstrate your knowledge, understanding and intelligence in a creative and relatively unrestricted way – provided you keep within the word count! But when lots of other people are answering the same essay question as you, how do you make yours stand out from the crowd? In this article, we’re going to show you the secret of writing a truly brilliant essay.

What are essays actually for?

Before we get into the nitty gritty of how to write an outstanding essay, we need to go right back to basics and think about what essays are actually designed to test. Only by understanding the purpose of an essay can you really begin to understand what it is that tutors are looking for when they read your work. No matter what the academic level of the student is, essays are designed to test many things: – Knowledge – fundamentally, essays test and help consolidate what you’ve read and learned, making them an important part of the learning process, particularly for humanities subjects. – Comprehension – they test your ability to make sense of and clearly explain complex concepts and issues. – They test your ability to understand the question and produce a considered response to it. – They evaluate your ability to absorb and condense information from a variety of sources , which will probably mean covering a lot of material in a short space of time; this necessitates appraisal of which bits of material are relevant and which are not. – They test your ability to write a balanced and coherent argument that considers a number of points of view. – They showcase your level of written English skills. – They even put your time management to the test – essays are a part of your workload that must be planned, prioritised and delivered to a high standard, to deadline.

Characteristics of the perfect essay

Now that we know why we’re asked to write essays, what are the characteristics that define the essays that impress? The tutors marking your essays may have their own preferences and things they look for in outstanding essays, but let’s take a look at a few of the irrefutable traits of the best.

Original thinking

The hallmark of the truly brilliant essay is original thinking. That doesn’t have to mean coming up with an entirely new theory; most of, if not all, the topics you’ll be studying at GCSE , A-level or even undergraduate level have been thought about in so much depth and by so many people that virtually every possible angle will have been thought of already. But what it does mean is that the essay stands out from those of other students in that it goes beyond the obvious and takes an original approach – perhaps approaching the topic from a different angle, coming up with a different hypothesis from what you’ve been discussing in class, or introducing new evidence and intelligent insights from material not included on the reading list.

Solid, in-depth knowledge and understanding

It goes without saying that the brilliant essay should demonstrate a strong knowledge of the facts, and not just knowledge but sound comprehension of the concepts or issues being discussed and why they matter. The perfect essay demonstrates an ability to deploy relevant facts and use them to form the basis of an argument or hypothesis. It covers a wide range of material and considers every point of view, confidently making use of and quoting from a variety of sources.

Clear structure with intelligent debate

The perfect essay provides a coherent discussion of both sides of the story, developing a balanced argument throughout, and with a conclusion that weighs up the evidence you’ve covered and perhaps provides your own intelligent opinion on how the topic should be interpreted based on the evidence covered.

No superfluous information

Everything written in the perfect essay serves a purpose – to inform and persuade. There’s no rambling or going off at tangents – it sticks to the point and doesn’t waste the reader’s time. This goes back to our earlier point about sorting the relevant facts from the irrelevant material; including material that isn’t relevant shows that you’ve not quite grasped the real heart of the matter.

Exceptional English

The words in the perfect essay flow effortlessly, and the reader feels in safe hands. Sentences need never be read more than once to be understood, and each follows logically on from the next, with no random jumping about from topic to topic from one paragraph to the next. Spelling and grammar are flawless, with no careless typos. So how do you go about writing this mythical Perfect Essay? Read on to find out!

Put in extra background work

Committed students always read beyond what the reading list tells them to read. Guaranteed to impress, wide reading gives you deeper knowledge than your peers and gives you the extra knowledge and insights you need to make your essay stand out. If you’re studying English, for example, don’t just read the set text! Here are some ideas to widen your reading and give you a good range of impressive quotes to include in your essay: – Other works by the same author – how do they compare with your set text? – Works by contemporary authors – does your set text fit into a wider movement, or is it very different from what was being written at the time? – Works by the author’s predecessors – what works inspired the author of your set text? How do you see them shining through in the text you’re studying, and how have they been developed? – Literary criticism – gauge the range of opinions about your set text by reading what the literary critics have to say. Whose opinion do you most agree with, and why? – Background history – so that you can appreciate and refer to the context in which the author was writing (we’ll come back to this last point a little later). It sounds like a lot of extra work, but you don’t necessarily have to read everything in full. It’s fine to dip into these other resources providing you don’t inadvertently take points out of context.

Know what you want to say before you start writing

You’re probably sick of hearing this particular piece of advice, but it’s important to start out with a clear idea in your mind of what you want to say in your essay and how you will structure your arguments. The easiest way to do this is to write an essay plan. This needn’t be a big deal, or time-consuming; all you need to do is to open a new document on your computer, type out the ideas you want to cover and drag and drop them into a logical order. From there, you simply start typing your essay directly into the plan itself. Your essay should include an introduction, a series of paragraphs that develop an argument rather than just jumping from topic to topic, and a conclusion that weighs up the evidence.

Answer the question you’ve been set, not the question you want to answer

A common problem with students’ responses to essays is that rather than answering the question they’ve been set , they try to mould the question to what they’d prefer to write about, because that’s what they feel most comfortable with. Be very careful not to do this! You could end up writing a brilliant essay, but if didn’t actually answer the question then it’s not going to be well received by the person marking it.

Give a balanced argument…

Good essays give both sides of an argument, presenting information impartially and considering multiple points of view. One-sided arguments won’t impress, as you need to show that you’ve thought about the evidence comprehensively.

…but your opinion and interpretation matter too

Show that you’ve made your own mind up based on your weighing up of the evidence. This shows that you’re not just hiding behind what other people say about the topic, but that you’ve had the independence of mind to form your own intelligent opinion about it.

Quote liberally

Use quotations from academic works and sources to back up points you want to make. Doing so strengthens your argument by providing evidence for your statements, as well as demonstrating that you’ve read widely around your subject. However, don’t go too far and write an essay that’s essentially just a list of what other people say about the subject. Quoting too much suggests that you don’t have the confidence or knowledge to explain things in your own words, so have to hide behind those of other people. Make your own mind up about what you’re writing about – as already mentioned, it’s fine to state your own opinion if you’ve considered the arguments and presented the evidence.

Context matters

As we’ve already touched on, if you can demonstrate knowledge of the context of the subject you’re writing about, this will show that you’ve considered possible historical influences that may have shaped a work or issue. This shows that you haven’t simply taken the essay question at face value and demonstrates your ability to think beyond the obvious. An ability to look at the wider picture marks you out as an exceptional student, as many people can’t see the wood for the trees and have a very narrow focus when it comes to writing essays. If you’re an English student, for instance, an author’s work should be considered not in isolation but in the context of the historical events and thinking that helped define the period in which the author was writing. You can’t write about Blake’s poetry without some knowledge and discussion of background events such as the Industrial Revolution, and the development of the Romantic movement as a whole.

Include images and diagrams

You know what they say – a picture speaks a thousand words. What matters in an essay is effective and persuasive communication, and if a picture or diagram will help support a point you’re making, include it. As well as helping to communicate, visuals also make your essay more enjoyable to read for the person marking it – and if they enjoy reading it, the chances are you’ll get better marks! Don’t forget to ensure that you include credits for any images and diagrams you include.

Use full academic citations and a bibliography

Show you mean business by including a full set of academic citations, with a bibliography at the end, even if you haven’t been told to. The great thing about this is that it not only makes you look organised and scholarly, but it also gives you the opportunity to show off just how many extra texts you’ve studied to produce your masterpiece of an essay! Make use of the footnote feature in your word processor and include citations at the bottom of each page, with a main bibliography at the end of the essay. There are different accepted forms for citing an academic reference, but the main thing to remember is to pick one format and be consistent. Typically the citation will include the title and author of the work, the date of publication and the page number(s) of the point or quotation you’re referring to. Here’s an example: 1. Curta, F. (2007) – “Some remarks on ethnicity in medieval archaeology” in Early Medieval Europe 15 (2), pp. 159-185

Before you ask, no, a spell check isn’t good enough! How many times have you typed “form” instead of “from”? That’s just one of a huge number of errors that spell check would simply miss. Your English should be impeccable if you want to be taken seriously, and that means clear and intelligent sentence structures, no misplaced apostrophes, no typos and no grammar crimes. Include your name at the top of each page of your essay, and number the pages. Also, make sure you use a font that’s easy to read, such as Times New Roman or Arial. The person marking your essay won’t appreciate having to struggle through reading a fancy Gothic font, even if it does happen to match the Gothic literature you’re studying!

Meet the deadline

You don’t need us to tell you that, but for the sake of being comprehensive, we’re including it anyway. You could write the best essay ever, but if you deliver it late, it won’t be looked upon favourably! Don’t leave writing your essay until the last minute – start writing with plenty of time to spare, and ideally leave time to sleep on it before you submit it. Allowing time for it to sink in may result in you having a sudden brilliant revelation that you want to include. So there we have it – everything you need to know in order to write an essay to impress. If you want to get ahead, you might also want to think about attending an English summer school .

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Essay on United Kingdom | UK Article , Paragraph , Notes

Essay on united kingdom | essay on england.

Locality of United Kingdom

United Kingdom , heart of Europe, consists of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, is one of the biggest countries, territories of the world. The history of this great kingdom is very old beginning by about 30,000 years ago. It was ruled by many emperors and thus periodically converted into civilized nations. The emperors of United Kingdom also rules over many other countries thus making many colonies of Great Britain in several regions of the world, for example, North America and Sub-continent were also the colony of Great Britain. It is difficult to remember the deep history of United Kingdom because it is very old and complex. But overall, United Kingdom has enjoyed very good time in the history.

Read Also : Biography of Sir Isaac newton

History of United Kingdom

The government of United Kingdom consisted of a Queen and a Parliament with two houses like, the House of Lords and the House of Commons which are further divided in to bishops, hereditary peers, and popularly elected members. It is existed as a unified territory since 10 th century and now it is one of the super powers of the world. United Kingdom is actually the combination of two large Islands: Great Britain and Ireland. England, Scotland and Wales are the countries which are the reason of United Kingdom. The queen and above mentioned Parliament is same while these countries are handled by separate governors.

Culture of United Kingdom

The major religion in United Kingdom is Christianity while many other big religions are also followed in UK, like, Islam, Hinduism , Judaism, Buddhism etc. According to a survey in 2011, the population of United Kingdom is 62,698,362 and it is the 3 rd largest region of the world according to population. The population census takes place in every ten years.

Educational Opportunities in United Kingdom

If we talk about United Kingdom then how can we forget about the Educational Opportunities in United Kingdom ? The educational and job opportunities are a big attraction for the people around the world. Therefore, many people from other regions of the world try to get citizenship of United Kingdom to secure their future. World’s famous and high ranked university, Oxford University is the heritage of United Kingdom. This is a very short introduction of United Kingdom but in reality, United Kingdom is a whole new world of innovations and discoveries.

Essay on UK, Short Paragraph on UK,Essay on United Kingdom , Paragraph on United Kingdom , Article on United Kingdom , Speech on United Kingdom , United Kingdom , Great Britain Essay . Essay on United Kingdom , Essay On England , Essay on United Kingdom

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How to write an academic essay

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We have helped 10,000s of undergraduate, Masters and PhD students to maximise their grades in essays, dissertations, model-exam answers, applications and other materials. If you would like a free chat about your project with one of our UK staff, then please just reach out on one of the methods below.

Every student, of every discipline, in every institution, will at some point write an essay. Those who major in English will likely write more than a hundred of them throughout their undergraduate degree, alone.

Here's what we'll go over in this guide to writing academic essays:

What is an essay?

How is an essay structured, before you start writing.

Using the internet for your research
Reading your research

What to do with your research

Building your argument

Perfecting your introduction

The main body of your essay

Using Academic English in your essay

Since the 16th century, we have been borrowing the word essay from French, where it meant ‘to test, trial, or weigh’, which is a very useful insight. I have written thousands of essays in my life, and assessed tens of thousands more as an educator – and whilst only a handful of those look much like any other, they are all united by that idea of trialling ideas. Essays are missions of exploration.

The American novelist and essayist, Flannery O’Connor, once remarked: "I write to discover what I know".

Conceiving of them as a process like this, more than a product , is the easiest way to demystify essays.

That said, through tradition (more than definition), the essay has come to represent something quite specific and measurable. In an academic essay, our product is the presentation of extensive, logical and well-researched arguments about our given topic. The process, however, remains the same, five hundred years later: exploring ideas on the page.

You may present a robust, apparently authoritative piece as your final draft, but you will get there by investigating your knowledge and trialling your arguments.

All essays will look different (depending on the purpose and your subject), but most essays contain the following five key parts:

1. An introduction: an overview of the essay’s purpose and key contents. 2. A (fully referenced) review of the key topic of the essay: its history and debates. 3. A discussion of the development of the topic and its debates to a resolution. 4. A conclusion, if necessary. 5. A reference list.

The first stage of any academic endeavour is understanding. Most essays prescribed to you will come with a title, often in the form of a question. Your first and most important task is to understand what it is asking of you.

Do not fall at the first hurdle; spend some time dissecting the question and extracting its essence. Find the question within the question,

A useful approach to take to your title is what I call the STOP method.

Essay briefs usually specify these four things, directly or indirectly, and if you STOP to identify them, it will help you to focus your research.

The system is as follows: SOURCES. Where should the knowledge come from? Is a primary source given? Is a reading list provided?

TOPIC. What is the focus of the essay? Is it general or specific? Is it already well-known or brand new?

ORIENTATION. What angle should be taken? Should it be one-sided? Should one remain detached?

PURPOSE. Is this an argument? Should it persuade? Is it evaluative or just declarative?

Here is an example of the STOP approach in action, for an example academic essay in Linguistics:

Question: Using your knowledge of psycholinguistics, account for the non-standard English evident in the transcript: Annabelle (2½ years) playing with her toys.

The STOP approach: Sources: own knowledge of psycholinguistics (secondary), provided transcript (primary) Topic: non-standard English in children’s language acquisition Orientation: focus on non-standard utterances only Purpose: analyse, theorise, explain

And there you have it: the question within the question. Now you have direction.

BUT, if any of the features of STOP are omitted from the question, then try the following:

Try to see whether any of it is implied but not stated directly. For example, a question is likely to have links to a certain module.

Peruse any attached material. You may find a reading list or a mark scheme.

ASK someone. Starting is very difficult without knowing exactly what is asked of you, so do not hesitate to seek clarification from the person or organisation who set the question.

Now you are clear about what the question is asking of you, you may be ready to write your academic essay. If the essay requires nothing more than your own existing knowledge (usually the case in exams), then you’re good to go – or at least to plan!

However, in the vast majority of cases, you will be expected to research your topic heavily before beginning the composition process. In fact, most university-level essays will not even be marked if they are not brimming with evident research.

When I first look at an undergraduate essay, indeed, the first thing I read is the references list at the end. It might sound dismissive, but I can predict the quality of an essay with about 99% accuracy by doing this.

If you are lucky, you will be provided with primary sources (texts) and direction for secondary sources (reading lists). If you are less lucky, then you’ll need to get stuck into some background research of your own.

Can I use the Internet to research my academic essay?

I hate to say it, because it is an amazing resource, but if you quote from Wikipedia, or reference it in your bibliography, you’ll be laughed out of the building.

Mostly because academics are snobs, but also for some more legitimate reasons, secondary sources exist in a hierarchy of prestige. In other words, some sources are considered more worthy and ‘serious’ than others.

The hierarchy looks like this:

Most prestigious: Peer-reviewed, published journal articles.

Generally acceptable: Books and chapters from books (especially those with multiple authors and at least one editor).

Occasionally permissible: Academic video content, personal communications, newspapers, and lecture notes.

Usually unacceptable: Blog posts, public-access websites (like Wikipedia), and unpublished material like conversation.

Did you spot the pattern? There are two things that make a source more prestigious: the academic status of the writer, and the number of academics involved in the writing.

Peer-reviewed, published journal articles come from very academic sources and are severely and repeatedly scrutinised by multiple academics before they can get published. Blog posts, at the other end of the spectrum, can be written and spread by anyone, and face no greater scrutiny than the fire in a comments section!

However (and it’s a big ‘however’), whilst the hierarchy undeniably applies to your references, there is nothing to say that you cannot read those lower down on the hierarchy. Indeed, online encyclopedia entries are incredibly useful for orienting you and providing background for your chosen area.

It is from these pages that you can identify the ‘big names’ in the area – a job that prestigious journal searches won’t do for you.

For example, if you are a student of Literature and you type ‘Literary Theory’ into Wikipedia, the resultant page points you towards names like Leavis, Derrida, Foucault and Fish – some of the most significant names in the area. On the other hand, if you started your search on Google Scholar, you’d be pointed towards Carroll, Ronen, Barry and Scholes – all relatively new and less influential contributors to the field.

So don’t knock Wikipedia. Just acknowledge what it is, and don’t cite it directly! It is a general overview that can serve as a springboard to other reading. (TOP TIP: use the reference list at the bottom of the Wikipedia page to find more prestigious sources.)

How do I read my research?

This is a common concern. Most beginner essayists are stunned when faced with the apparently impossible: a thirty-item reading list and a two-week deadline for three thousand words. Obviously, writing three thousand words in two weeks doesn’t seem beyond the realms of possibility – it’s the insane task of reading thirty books and papers in that time as well that stumps people.

Fortunately, there is an unwritten rule about reading lists that I’m going to make a written rule:

You don't have to read it all.

That may sound like blasphemy, but it is a truth universally acknowledged by academics.

Read the primary material in its entirety, of course – twice, even. But the secondary material, think about being more picky.

The way I see it, there are three different types of secondary source with different approaches to take to reading them:

"Fortunately, there is an unwritten rule about reading lists that I’m going to make a written rule:

You don't have to read it all. "

Overview texts- Read the whole entry (they’re never extensive, by definition), making note of recurring or salient names and ideas.
Journal articles- Read the abstract first, to see if it’s worth your time; then, read the conclusion, for the gist of it; then, if it seems like gold, then read some more from the middle, to get some quotable material.
Books- Like with journals, read the contents first, to find a chapter heading that sounds relevant to you; read the first page of that chapter, to confirm that it’s relevant; then read the last paragraph for an executive summary; finally, if it seems worth it, then sift through the chapter for soundbites.

This way, you can get ten times more reference material than if you’d been comprehensive. It may sound dismissive, but when the deadline is tight, then efficiency is everything.

I learnt this during my undergraduate degree at the University of Oxford when I was tasked with writing about seven thousand words a week in academic essays.

Don’t sacrifice sleep for the sake of a more thorough read.

This question, that logically follows from the question of how to read, is simple to answer… as simple as ABC:

For each text you read, you want to be able to lift out an abstract (a bullet-point summary of the gist, including controversies), several bites (direct quotations lifted from the text, with page numbers), and a citation (the full reference for the text you’re reading).

If you don’t keep a record of all three of those as you go, then your reading was for nothing. Do not make the rookie mistake of ‘doing references at the end’. It always takes longer than it should, probably pushing you past the deadline – and you will almost certainly lose one of your best references forever. It happens every time. (I will return to referencing later.)

At this point, it is worth remembering: you have a question to answer. It is easy to get dragged away on tangents and down rabbit holes – especially when the topic is complex and fascinating – but you have a job to do. Every record you make of the texts you are reading needs to feed into an answer to your question.

If I’m compiling my notes on the computer, I embolden the bits that are most relevant to my argument; if I’m note-taking by hand, I use a highlighter. I also draw lines between evidently linked ideas.

The final stage of planning: building your argument

The preliminary stages of writing an academic essay are extensive, I know. You’re nearly ready to write, though. There’s just one final stage of planning necessary: building an argument.

From your primary and secondary material, you should now be forming an argument. Usually, the argument emerges naturally as a result of the good quality practices explained above. Occasionally, though, you need to disentangle your box of snakes and extract a coherent argument.

A useful approach to discursive essays is what I call the Narrative Approach. This approach ends up looking like a diary of all your preliminary work. As I said at the start, an essay is a trial of ideas, and it is here that you trial them. The Narrative Approach lays out the essay’s main body as follows:

The origin of the issue and any controversy inherent to it.
The prominent ideas and people involved in the controversy.
The debates and development of the issue over time and the nuances involved.
The current state of the issue in present context.
The position that you take on the issue.

The Narrative Approach not only allows you to find a logical order for all of your content (your academic essay structure), but also ensures that you take a critical perspective at all times – a higher order thinking skill that is fundamental to success in essays according to all major academic institutions.

If you can organise your ideas into this logical structure, you should be able to answer the question posed to you.

Now, to ensure that your argument is logical, an extremely useful thing to do is to explain it aloud to somebody else. This process is always enlightening, and allows for any holes in the argument to become glaringly obvious; open engagement with challenges to the content; and you to practice having your ideas exposed to scrutiny.

All of this takes place in a safe space and allows for revisions to be made before the essay is ever seen by anyone else.

There’s also something incredibly powerful about verbal discussion that helps to crystallise ideas and make them stick.

It’s finally time to start writing your academic essay. But, irritatingly enough, the first thing that appears on a page is the most difficult part to get right: the introduction.

Unpopular opinion: if your essay is less than a thousand words long, then you don’t need an introduction; you need to answer the question!

Stating that you are going to answer the question above, using the words from the question above, whilst ensuring that you are going to make many points that refer to the question above, and then conclude something about the question above, is an exercise in futility.

All you’re saying is that you’re going to write an essay.

It’s the equivalent to starting a phone call with, “I’m calling you on the phone because I’d like to speak to you and we both have phones.”

The same goes for conclusions in short essays.

Introductions and conclusions for longer essays, on the other hand, are fundamentally important. Instead of generic statements of purpose, these paragraphs should instead function as condensed forms of your overall argument.

Bookending the main body, these sections ensure that the argument is clear. If they don’t sound good, the problem isn’t with the introduction format – it’s with the argument itself. If it sounds flimsy here, it won’t sound much better in the main body. That makes it a useful litmus test.

That said, it is always worth redrafting the introduction last, once everything else is clear in your mind.

The main body of your academic essay

The meat and potatoes of your academic essay comes next. You already have all of your content and you have it all arranged as an argument. Most would call this next part the writing, but it would be just as accurate to call it the formatting. You are adding nothing new, just making it all sound good. That’s why we spend so long on the preliminary stages!

Now, let’s address paragraph structure.

A good paragraph in an academic essay should, of course, contain a coherent point which is soundly evidenced and evaluated .

Additionally, though, it is good to include:

A topic sentence- A sentence which establishes the point, at the start of the paragraph.
Signpost language- Adverbs like “similarly” and “conversely” to orient the reader to your purpose and direction.
Deixis- Repeated reference to the key idea from the topic sentence, often simplified: “this theme” replaces the earlier “The theme of perpetual upgrade culture in Apple products”.
Progress- The paragraph should move through an argument and its final sentence should pave the way for the next paragraph.

But there’s more to academic writing than content and structure. Style is the missing part of this equation.

English for Academic Purposes (EAP) is a discipline that exists for the sole purpose of achieving that style.

For many students, it is like learning a foreign language; for others, it is like unearthing a treasure chest that lay at their feet all their lives. Whatever the case, it is not like the language we use every day.

"Academic English is something that you refine throughout an academic career, as you read more academic pieces, receive more feedback, and get more practice."

Academic English is a vast, irreducible field, which cannot be given due consideration here. However, the following five areas are a useful starting point as they are all things you can do straight away:

1. Technical vocabulary. You are writing as an expert in your field, for other experts in that field. Use the specific jargon of that field. Students of nutrition should refer to “macronutrients” not ‘food groups’, for example.

2. Nominalisation of forms. For whatever reason, we don’t use many verbs in academic prose. So we refer to a “debate” instead of ‘debating’; we speak of an “analysis” rather than ‘analysing’; and instead of ‘challenging’ things, we pose “challenges”.

3. Formality and detachedness. Formal English is characterised by the professional tone, which means that colloquialisms like ‘isn’t’, ‘stuff’ and ‘crappy’ are replaced by “is not”, “features” and “ineffective”, respectively. The grammar is also more complex, with longer sentences and embedded clauses being common.

4. Hedges and tentativeness. You are not yet a world-renowned academic. Sorry. Until that day comes, your language should include regular ‘hedges’ – showing that you don’t think your points are undeniable and immutable truth. Use phrases like “seem to suggest” and “might be perceived” in place of the declarative ‘is’.

5. Clarity and accuracy. Academic writing should avoid flouting Standard English expression. Proofreading will be crucial, in all cases. Equally, attempts to sound too clever inevitably end up sounding convoluted and confusing; “using clear English” is clearer than ‘eschewing grandiose phraseology in the interest of comprehension’. Right?

Academic English is something that you refine throughout an academic career, as you read more academic pieces, receive more feedback, and get more practice.

Do not expect to hit the nail on the head on your first try; just do your best to emulate the academic discourse you read in your subject area. One day, it’ll be second nature to you!

How to reference correctly in your essay

Referencing. The word still jars with me, even after all these years. I don’t quite break out in a cold sweat, but there’s certainly a bit of repressed trauma in there.

It sounds daunting, but can be made simple. Most elegantly put, referencing refers to the synthesis of other voices in your work. All the theorists whose ideas you’ve engaged with; every critical voice you’ve quoted; each book you’ve paraphrased: these constitute your references.

But in their current form, they are not references. In their current form, they are just ideas that you have stolen and put across as your own ideas. The process of referencing is one of acknowledgement.

In the real world, where, if you steal something, you are branded a criminal. In the world of academia, you can steal ideas and are encouraged to do so – as long as you acknowledge where it came from.

It’s like stealing Sarah’s car and then pleading innocence in court because you told everybody it belonged to Sarah. That would pass in the court of academia. If you failed to acknowledge Sarah’s ownership, you’d be found guilty… of plagiarism.

Plagiarism (the failure to acknowledge the source of ideas in an academic setting) is a serious charge, one whose maximum sentence includes blanket disqualification from all examination boards and academic institutions, for life.

So, let’s avoid that.

To ensure you don’t fall foul of accidental plagiarism, use my method to EQUIP yourself:

Breaking them down, we EQUIP ourselves as follows:

ENDNOTE. EndNote is a piece of software that tracks your academic essay’s references and is amazing, but when I say endnote more generally, I’m referring to the references list at the end of your piece. Writing them out in full, as per the academic conventions of your institution and faculty, is crucial, and should be done during your note-taking process.

A reference in a final references list, formatted to the common APA standard, might look like this: Voss, J. F., & Wiley, J. (1997). Developing understanding while writing essays in history. International Journal of Educational Research, 27(3), 255-265.

It includes, as standard for most referencing formats, the authors’ names, the date of publication, the title of the article, the name of the journal it’s from, the issue and number of that journal, and the page range. Other referencing styles differ slightly, so check which one you’re expected to use before you start.

QUOTE. If you wish to use specific language from a source, then you need to put it in “quotation marks” and provide an in-text citation (see below: In-text), including the page or paragraph number. These quotations should be embedded into your paragraphs.

E.g. Critics James Voss and Jennifer Wiley claim that referencing is a “fundamental aspect of essay success” (Voss & Wiley, 1997, p. 264).

EXCEPTION: if your quotation exceeds four lines, it gets granted its own isolated paragraph and doesn’t usually need quotation marks.

UNCHANGED LANGUAGE. Unchanged language is crucial. If you are quoting from the source directly, it must of course remain unchanged, or it’s no longer a quotation (with the exception being anything within [square brackets] inside a quotation).

Do not fall into the trap of just changing a few words from the original source so that it becomes ‘your own work’ – this will be spotted by sophisticated plagiarism-detection software (like Turnitin) and be perceived as deliberate attempts to plagiarise the work of others. If you aren’t quoting directly, then you need to paraphrase (see below), rather than just emending slightly.

IN-TEXT. Your in-text citation is how you signal to your reader that the specific thing you’re writing at this time comes from an extraneous source. Harvard referencing would require a bracketed in-text reference after the quoted or paraphrased section, such as “(Voss & Wiley, 1997)” and a relevant page number; whereas the Chicago referencing style would call for a footnote: a superscript number above your quoted or paraphrased section that corresponds with a reference at the foot of your page.

Always check the referencing guidelines of your given piece, as mentioned above. All academic institutions and faculties have dedicated guidelines for referencing that are almost always provided online. As maddening as it can be, some examiners are obsessed with ‘correct referencing’ and will deduct marks for inappropriate referencing procedures – so play by the rules as closely as possible.

It might not be a plagiarism issue, but it’s still a pain!

PARAPHRASE. If you wish to refer to the whole argument of a text, or a section too long for quoting, or just think that you can express the argument more coherently and concisely than the original, then paraphrasing is useful. Once you have put the idea into your own words, ensure you bookend it with an allusion to the author (at the start) and an in-text reference (at the end, sometimes including a page number) for what you’ve referred to.

For example: Critics James Voss and Jennifer Wiley insist on correct referencing procedures (Voss & Wiley, 1997, p. 264).

If you can do all of the above, then you have protected yourself against accidental plagiarism.

Still, nobody likes to be caught out, it’s worth running your entire essay through an online plagiarism checker – for your own peace of mind.

When it comes to plagiarism, my philosophy is the same as my old Maths teacher’s: “Show your working”. As brilliant as you may be, as a young academic who’s brimming with ideas, you should not be reluctant to reference. Nine times out of ten, how erudite and well-referenced an essay is predicts how good it is.

Oh, and as a final note on plagiarism, please be aware that it is possible to self-plagiarise… so don’t recycle content from old essays that were submitted for grading!

Is that everything?

So, we’ve covered how to STOP and EQUIP ourselves for planning and referencing, respectively; we’ve learned the ABCs of note-taking and the Narrative Approach to academic essay structure ; and much more. Is that everything there is to know about writing an excellent academic essay?

Not quite, but it’s a good place to start.

Academic essay-writing is an artform, pure and simple. Just like any other artform, it is refined through diligence and practice until it is excellent.

But, even an excellent essayist can fail to impress a moderator, and that’s because there’s no such thing as a perfect essay . Redrafting will almost always be necessary, because we are subject to both the whims and tastes of our moderators, and the specific success criteria of our institutions and faculties.

To that end, my final piece of advice to you, essay writers, is to play the game.

At school, you have teachers. At university, it’s tutors. At postgraduate level, supervisors. Even when you’re a professor publishing your own research, you’ve got peer-reviewers. At every step of the way, you are playing to the tastes and demands of different individuals and criteria, so play their game. Tick their boxes. Figure out how to modulate.

Listen to feedback. Amend your style. Take the advice, even if it seems wrong. Do not be disheartened, because all of this game-playing constitutes growth. The more you do it, appealing to different individuals and different criteria, the better an essayist you become.

Because, at the end of the day, a good essayist is a versatile essayist.

Essay exams: how to answer ‘To what extent…’

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Home — Essay Samples — Geography & Travel — Europe — United Kingdom

Essays on United Kingdom

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How to write an essay

Essay writing is an inevitable part of the student experience. To achieve top grades on these assignments, discover how to compose a well-written essay

You might think you know how to write a good essay from your time at school but writing an essay at undergraduate level is a whole new ball game. Taking the time to properly plan your work can lead to higher marks, with lecturers welcoming a logical structure that clearly demonstrates your understanding of the subject.

However, knowing where to begin and how to go about completing the assignment is not always easy - especially if you're still adjusting to university life and you haven't written at undergraduate level before.

'There is an art (and a bit of a science) to every type of writing,' says Dr Rushana Khusainova, lecturer in marketing at the University of Bristol. 'By mastering the art of academic essay writing, you'll also be mastering the skill for writing general and business emails, reports, etc. Overall, it's a vital skill to have.'

Katherine Cox, professor and head of department for humanities and law at Bournemouth University agrees. 'Getting feedback on your development is a key part of developing as a student. Essay writing is an excellent opportunity for formal feedback on your progress, and like any skill it needs practice and polish.'

Here we'll cover the seven main points of planning and executing a well-written essay:

understanding the question
researching and gathering helpful resources
putting together an essay plan
writing the essay
tackling the introduction and conclusion
reviewing what you’ve written.

Mastering how to write an essay early on will also help you prepare for writing your dissertation in your final year.

Understand the question

The first step in tackling an essay is to make sure that you understand what is being asked of you.

'I recommend that you read and re-read the essay question,' advises Dr Khusainova. 'With each time, the question will feel clearer.' Break it down into its component parts and pay particular attention to instruction words, for example, 'explain', 'discuss', 'outline' - what do these mean in practice? What are you being asked to do? Be aware that essays take several different forms and a 'compare and contrast' essay requires a different approach to an analytical ('analyse') or argumentative ('critically examine') essay.

For example, the question, 'Compare and contrast the representation of masculinity in two James Bond films from the 1960s and 2000s', can be classified like this:

instruction (i.e. compare and contrast)
topic (i.e. the representation of masculinity)
focus (i.e. in two James Bond films)
further information (i.e. from the 1960s and 2000s).

'Take coloured pens and highlight each sub-question or sub-task within the essay brief,' explains Dr Khusainova. 'Write bullet points for all sub-questions of the essay. I would recommend using pen and paper. Research suggests that when we use pen and paper to write down our thoughts, our brain structures information in a more efficient way.'

Ask yourself:

What is significant about the question and its topic?
What existing knowledge do you have that will help you answer this question?
What do you need to find out?
How are you going to successfully address this question?
What logical sequence will your ideas appear in?

If you still don't understand the question or the complexity of the response expected from you, don't be afraid to ask for clarification from your lecturer or tutor if you need it. If you have questions, speak up when the essay is set rather than leaving it too late.

Gather resources

With so much information available, it's vital that you only look for directly relevant material when researching. Decide where the gaps in your knowledge and understanding are, and identify the areas where you need more supporting evidence. Make a list of keywords that describe the topic and use them to search with.

Useful resources include:

course material
lecture notes
library books
journal articles

Engage in active reading and keep organised with effective note-taking. Once you've done your research, create a mind map. Carefully note the key theories, information and quotes that will help you to answer all components of the question. Consider grouping these into three or four main themes, including only the most significant points. You must be ruthless and exclude ideas that don't fit in seamlessly with your essay's focus.

Create an essay plan

'You can write an essay without planning, but I'm not sure you can write a good essay without planning,' says Katherine.

When you have an idea of the points you're going to address in your essay, and a rough idea of the order in which these will appear, you're ready to start planning. There are two main ways to do this:

Linear plans - useful for essays requiring a rigid structure. They provide a chronological breakdown of the key points you're going to address.
Tabular plans - best for comparative assignments. You'll be able to better visualise how the points you're contrasting differ across several aspects.

Scrutinise the notes you've already made - including those from your evaluation of relevant materials from your literature search - and ensure they're placed into a logical order.

There are different approaches to planning an essay. Some students might prefer a step-by-step, structured approach, while others might find it helpful to begin in a more fluid way - jotting down keywords and ideas that they later develop into a more structured working plan. Essay planning can take several forms, 'for example, you might try a mind map, a collage, or use headings. You might prefer to plan in written form or online. You'll also turn ideas over in your head - just remember to jot down these insights,' adds Katherine.

'In my experience most students find it helpful to start by writing an essay skeleton - a bullet pointed structure of the essay,' says Dr Khusainova.

'I also advise taking an inverted pyramid approach to the storyline. This is where you start broad and slowly narrow down your focus to the specific essay question.'

Write clearly and concisely

Most university essays are set with a word count and deadline in place. It's therefore important that you don't waste time or words on waffle. You need to write clearly and concisely and ensure that every sentence and paragraph works towards answering the essay question.

Aim to write a first draft where you cover everything in your plan. You can then refine and edit this in your second draft.

'A successful essay is one that answers all parts of the essay question,' explains Dr Khusainova. 'Also consider elements such as the level of critical thinking and whether it's written in a suitable style.

'One of the most important (and coincidentally, the most challenging) elements of essay writing is ensuring your assignment has a logical storyline. Make sure no idea is coming out of the blue and that the discussion flows logically.'

Also consider your method of referencing. Some institutions specify a preferred citation style such as The Harvard System. Whatever referencing system you're using ensure that you're doing so correctly to avoid plagiarism. It should go without saying that your writing needs to be your own.

If you need help Katherine points out 'you can turn to your tutors and your peers. Perhaps you can you organise a study group and discuss one another's ideas? It's tempting with new and emerging artificial intelligence technology to turn to these resources but they are in their infancy and not particularly reliable. A number of universities advise you to avoid these resources altogether.'

Carefully consider the introduction and conclusion

Starting an essay and writing an impactful conclusion are often the trickiest parts.

It can be useful to outline your introduction during the early stages of writing your essay. You can then use this as a frame of reference for your writing. If you adopt this approach be aware that your ideas will likely develop or change as you write, so remember to revisit and review your introduction in later stages to ensure it reflects the content of your final essay.

While the conclusion may not be the first thing you write, it's still helpful to consider the end point of your essay early on, so that you develop a clear and consistent argument. The conclusion needs to do justice to your essay, as it will leave the greatest impression on your reader.

On the other hand, if you're unsure what shape your argument may take, it's best to leave both your introduction and conclusion until last.

Evaluate what you've written

Once you've written and edited your essay, leave it alone for a couple of days if possible. Return to it with fresh eyes and give it a final check.

'Reading an essay out loud works well for some students,' says Dr Khusainova. 'Swapping drafts with a classmate could also work on some modules.'

Don't skip this step, final checks are important. This is when you can pick up on formatting and spelling errors and correct any referencing mistakes.

Check that your introduction provides a clear purpose for your essay.
Ensure that the conclusion provides a clear response to the essay question, summarising your key findings/argument.
Check the structure of your paragraphs for clear topic and link sentences. Are the paragraphs in a logical order with a clear and consistent line of argument that a reader can follow?
Read your essay slowly and carefully. Writing has a rhythm - does your writing flow and is it correctly punctuated?
Remove unnecessary repetition.
Review the examples and evidence you've used. Is there enough to support your argument?

'Receiving feedback can be an emotional experience - so be honest with yourself,' advises Katherine. 'What is the feedback telling you - what are your strengths? What areas could you improve?'

Find out more

Struggling with your workload? Here are 5 ways to manage student stress .
Discover how to revise for exams .
Take a look at 7 time management tips for students .

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