Writing an A* Essay
Whether you’re 15 or 50, writing an academic essay can be pretty daunting. Hopefully our how-to guide might make the process a little bit easier.
Start off with your notes. Get key points down, quotes, useful resources and so on. Don’t worry about grammar and spelling; at this point, it’s all about getting your ideas together in one place. Ideally, you’ll want to start your research well before your deadline, so that you can add to your notes when you hear something relevant in a lecture, or come across something when you’re reading. Make sure you include where you’ve found the information, so that you can cite the source in your essay.
Try to identify any gaps in your notes. Do you need to fi nd proof to back up an argument, for example? It can help to write yourself a set of questions that you need to answer. You’ll then know exactly what you’re looking for when you’re researching.
Do use trusted sources as references. If you fi nd something useful in a newspaper, check the background source, as some publications do have a habit of twisting facts. The same goes for websites such as Wikipedia. Once you have your notes, copy and paste them into a new document, and then start moving them into some kind of structure. Most essays will follow the following structure: Introduction: (less than 10% of your total word count). This should give a brief overview of what you’re going to cover in the essay, and why. It should indicate that the essay is going to answer the set question, or expand on the title that you’ve chosen. Body of the essay: Here you’ll want to fully explain the points you mentioned in the introduction. You’ll likely include quotes and refer to key research material. While you might include opposing views, the main body of the essay should support the conclusion. You might need to subdivide this section with subheaders. Conclusion: (up to 15% of the total word count). Here you’ll summarise your main ideas and, if appropriate, answer the question set.
While the saying ‘begin at the beginning’ might be true for many things, it’s not always helpful for essays (or magazine articles for that matter). It’s often actually easier to leave writing the introduction until the end. That way you’ll know exactly what it is that you’re introducing.
You’ll want to make sure the essay fl ows well, with well-structured paragraphs, and no spelling or grammatical errors. Don’t rely on a computer spellchecker. It is diffi cult to proofread your own work, so ask a friend or family member to take a look at it for you if possible.
Good luck! 70
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