Tackling Academic Writing

23 Oct 2024

Whichever year you find yourself in, the importance of solid academic writing skills is key to your scholarly success. Whether you are feeling uneasy about entering your academic writing journey or need a refresher after the summer break, the Skills Centre and Boole Library are here to help. 

There are many aspects to good academic writing to familiarise yourself with, and having great guidance can be crucial.

The Skills Centre is an excellent platform for enhancing your study skills, especially when it comes to academic writing. The Centre’s professional team holds Sessions & Workshops ranging from group workshops, 1-1 appointments, and drop-in sessions available to any student wanting to better their writing or get feedback on essays. Another wonderful resource is the Success Zone on Canvas, with a myriad of materials formulated for student literacy. You can also browse the online Academic Writing & Studying Resources for easy access to downloadable handouts offering guidance from the start of your assignment to the final submission or check out the podcast series Write Here, Write Now. 

The Boole Library is also running in person and online Workshops all throughout the semester on how to approach citing and referencing, finding academic resources appropriate for your assignments, navigating scholarly databases, and much more. I personally attended several of these during the 1st year of my BA and can confirm they are a great introduction into the field. In addition to the resources, here are some of the tips and habits concerning writing academic essays that I have picked up throughout my journey as a final year BA English and Art History student: 

Read the essay question/topic focus carefully. This is such a simple, obvious tip but often gets underestimated. It is not enough to read the question once and then forget it. You should always keep it in sight, while conducting research (as your critical focus can get lost in the wealth of material and perspectives encountered while reading) and writing process (again, to make sure that your argument is on track with the essay focus and you don’t end up with an abundance of irrelevant description) and, finally, when editing your essay. 

Reflect and plan out the rough structure before researching and writing. Initially, it is important to simply think about the question given and reflect on what you would like to explore in your essay. Before you start reading secondary material, look at your notes from lectures, try to brainstorm ideas for your argument, and then make a rough plan on how to approach the topic. When you start your research, that structure will often shift depending on the development of your understanding and perspective after reading secondary material. Only after you have this structure, you start writing. Not only does it save you time when panicking about how to express your argument, but it will make your writing more coherent for the reader and ultimately result in a better piece. 

Structure your research notes and mark citations. I cannot stress enough how much time and energy it saves you if you have a good system for taking notes from your research. Always note down the source of the material, including a title, author, and page numbers of the passage you want to mark. Personally, I like to add the relevant topic focus (or why I think this is relevant to my argument) in my own words. After the research is done, I colour code the various passages I wrote down depending on which paragraphs in my essay structure they belong to. This is effective and easy to navigate when I then need to access the information during the writing process. Moreover, especially when citing source material, you never want to have to omit an excellent quote because you don’t remember where you read it (or risk plagiarising someone else’s work). 

Be clear, concise, and to the point with your argument. Description should work in support of your argument, not drown it. Use topic sentences to introduce each paragraph and create a logical flow of the argument so that your essay is more readable. Try to use language strategically to showcase deeper understanding and engagement with the essay topic and to articulate your argument appropriately without redundant monologue. 

And finally, try to embrace the fact that developing academic writing skills is a process, and thus staying consistent and not giving up on your abilities is really important. We have all been at a beginning point and built ourselves up from there, so you can do it too! Be sure to check out the resources available to you through UCC, and don’t be afraid to ask for help. Good luck and happy writing!