Writing and Punctuation / Organising your writing / Steps to writing an academic essay

S teps to writing an academic essay

1. Read and understand the question

2. Be aware of marking criteria and guidelines (e.g. font size, line spacing, specific requirements etc.)

3. Know which referencing system to use

4. Do your research – make notes as you go and keep a record of resources used and relevant page numbers / sections for quotes.

5. Develop a thesis statement – this will guide your essay.

6. Make an outline / plan of what you want to write.

7. Make sure that your thesis statement and plan answer the assignment question and show a logical development of your ideas / arguments.

8. Write your first draft.

9. Reread and make changes as necessary. Check for spelling & grammatical errors; logical transitions from one paragraph to the next; clear topic sentences in paragraphs and clear development of ideas.

10. Make sure in-text referencing is correct.

11. Write your reference page.

12. Prepare a cover sheet including your name & student I.D number; course name; lecturer / tutor name; name of assignment; number of words.