Essay Writing
How do I write a good introduction?
Most of the types of texts/assignments you write for university need to have an introduction, to
show the reader clearly what the topic or purpose of the whole paper is. As a rough guide, an
introduction might be between 10% and 20% of the length of the whole paper.
An introduction is usually one paragraph with 3 main stages:

It begins with the most general information, like background and/or definitions.

The middle is the core of the introduction, where you show the overall topic, purpose, your
point of view, hypotheses and/or research questions (depending on what kind of paper it is).

Finally, the introduction ends with the most specific information: a guide to the scope and
structure of your paper. This is often a list (e.g. “The issue will be considered in terms of
economics, politics and culture”), or a plural (e.g. “This issue will be discussed with reference to
three important economic causes.”).
Note: If the main body of your paper follows a predictable template, like the Method, Results and
Discussion stages of a report in the sciences, you often do not need to include a guide to the
structure in the introduction.
It is sensible to write your introduction after you know both your overall point of view (if it is a
persuasive paper) and the whole structure of your paper. Alternatively, you should revise the
introduction when you have completed the main body.
How do I write a good conclusion?
The conclusion is closely related to the introduction: it is often described as a ‘mirror-image’ of the
introduction. That is, where the introduction begins with general information and ends with specific
information, the conclusion moves in the opposite direction.

It often begins by summarising (briefly) the main structure or scope of the paper. (This is not
necessary if the paper follows a very predictable structure, such as the Methods, Results,
Discussion structure of a scientific report.)

The conclusion then confirms the topic which was given in the introduction. Depending on what
type of paper you are writing, this may take the form of the aims of the paper, a thesis
statement (point of view) or a research question/hypothesis and its answer/outcome.

The conclusion usually ends with a more general statement about how this topic relates to its
context. This may take the form of an evaluation of the importance of the topic, implications for
future research or a recommendation about theory or practice.
What does the lecturer expect me to write?
Lecturers have expectations about what students should write in assignments, which are partly
explicit in the assignment instructions, and partly implicit. (That is, you need extra information to
work them out: information such as the aims of the course, the norms of that particular discipline,
standard academic style, etc.) In order to know what the lecturer expects, you have the following
main sources of information:
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
the unit of study outline;

the written assignment instructions (e.g. evaluate, analyse, compare, critique);

grade descriptors, rubrics or marking guides (i.e. a list of the parts of the assignment, how
many marks each part is worth, and/or a list of the qualities in the report which will achieve a
pass mark, a credit, a distinction, etc.);

lecturers’ and/or tutors’ instructions and advice in class;

generic guides such as the format for the relevant referencing convention (e.g. Harvard);

discussion with other students;

consultation hours or further questions for your lecturer or Head of Department.
You need skills for analysing assignment questions – e.g. to identify what content you need to
cover, and also to identify whether you need to simply report information, or also to analyse,
persuade or critique. Also, you may need to actively find out more to understand the implicit
expectations:

Ask other students, lecturers, or the Head of department (Keep trying if you don't find out the
first time);

Look for examples of this type of assignment. (Ask your lecturer and/or the Head of
Department whether anyone keeps copies of previous students’ good work on this type of
assignment.)
I want help with writing essays
All essays have the same 3 basic parts: Introduction, Main Body and Conclusion. However, the
Main Body may be structured in many different ways, depending on the type of essay you are
writing, the discipline in which you are studying and the way you organise the content.
In order to write a good essay, you need many different kinds of knowledge and skill. For example,
you need to know what type of essay the lecturer is expecting you to write – e.g. analytical,
persuasive or critical.

For analytical, persuasive and critical essays you need to relate data to an analytical
framework and/or find a new way of organising and relating data or ideas.

For persuasive and critical essays, you also need to be able to take a position or point of view,
break it into individual claims and provide the right kind of evidence for those claims.

For a critical essay you also need to be able to take a position or point of view on someone
else’s work or on an existing debate, by finding problems or alternatives.
As well as knowing which type of essay to write, you also need other skills for:

planning a good Main Body structure and clear paragraph structure;

appropriate referencing;

and academic language.
Here are some strategies for building up your essay writing skills:

Ask your lecturer or tutor for feedback on your draft so you can improve it before handing in
your essay (Some markers will give feedback on a draft, some won’t);
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
Ask your lecturer for more feedback on your marked essay;

Try and find examples of good essays to see what you are aiming for. Some departments,
schools or lecturers keep examples of good essays which you can look at. You could ask them
about this;

Discuss your essay ideas, markers’ feedback and your writing process with other students;

Attend a Learning Centre workshop (see links on the right);

Ask the Academic staff if you can do a short writing test for a ‘diagnosis’ of your writing.
Alternatively, ask for an appointment to show the Academic Support officer one of your essays,
preferably with your marker’s feedback (Note: we cannot help you proofread or edit a draft
essay);

Search online and/or in the library: there are a lot of different resources on essay writing.
I want help with writing reports
Like most of the texts you write at university, reports generally have the basic structure of
Introduction, Main Body, Conclusion. However, the main body structure can vary widely, since the
term ‘report’ is used for many different types of texts with different purposes in different
disciplines. It is wise to find out as much as possible about what type of report is expected. Your
main sources of information are:

Written instructions for the assignment;

Grade descriptors, rubrics or marking guides (i.e. a list of the parts of the report, how many
marks each part is worth, and/or a list of the qualities which will achieve a pass mark, a credit,
a distinction, etc.);

Instructions given in class by the lecturer;

Further questions you ask the tutor or lecturer, e.g. in their consultation hours;

Discussion with other students;

Model report assignments (i.e. some lecturers or departments keep copies of good
assignments done by previous students, as models of the right style and structure: Ask about
this);

General guidelines produced by departments;

Online resources, particularly files in Moodle under academic support.
I need some help with writing a critical review
A critical review is a type of essay which has the purpose of evaluating all, or part of, a research
article, an artwork or some other type of work. It requires you to:

accurately summarise all or part of the work;

have an opinion about it. Appropriate types of opinion could include pointing out some
problems with the work, proposing an alternative approach which would be better, and/or
defending the work against the critiques of others;
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
provide evidence for your point of view. Depending on the specific assignment and the
discipline, different types of evidence may be appropriate, such as logical reasoning, reference
to authoritative sources and/or research data.
To write a critical review you need the same skills and knowledge as for persuasive essay writing,
plus you need critical thinking & writing skills. In brief, you need to:

identify some important choices made in the work (e.g. the main interpretations, the
assumptions, the methodology);

think of some alternatives to those choices (e.g. a different interpretation, different
methodology);

take a position on the alternatives (i.e. which is better and why); and

provide appropriate evidence for your position.
I need help with writing a specific type of assignment
While there are some types of assignment, such as essays, which are common in many different
faculties across the university, there are also some types of assignment which only belong to a
particular discipline. Also, some common types of assignment, (e.g. case studies), have different
styles, structure and purpose in different disciplines. Sometimes even in the same discipline area,
different lecturers will have different expectations about a particular type of assignment. For these
reasons, if you are not sure about how to write a specific type of assignment, you need to get more
information.
The key sources of information are:

Written assignment instructions;

Grade descriptors, rubrics or marking guides – (i.e. a list of the parts of the assignment, how
many marks each part is worth, and/or a list of the qualities in the assignment which will
achieve a pass mark, a credit, a distinction, etc.);

The lecturer’s or tutor’s advice in class;

The unit of study outline;

Discussion with other students;

General assignment guidelines prepared by some schools, departments or faculties (e.g. the
Faculty of Health Sciences Guidelines for the Preparation of Assignments);

Further questions for your lecturer or tutor – e.g. in their consultation hours;

Model assignments (i.e. some lecturers or departments keep copies of good assignments done
by previous students, as models of the right style and structure: Ask about this).
I want help with planning assignments
The first step in planning assignments is to know what the lecturer is expecting.(‘What does the
lecturer expect me to write?’).
The second step is to identify all the different tasks you need to do, in order to achieve that
outcome. For example:

library database search and catalogue search to find relevant journal articles or books;

reading and note-taking;
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
brainstorming;

analysing data;

planning the structure of your assignment;

drafting;

discussion;

editing and proofreading.
Next, you need to know something about the way you work, so that you can accurately estimate
the amount of time you need for each task. For example, some people need to spend a longer time
reading, analysing and planning, to create a detailed plan before they begin writing. They may then
write only one draft, so they need much less time for writing. Other people need to begin writing
much earlier. These are people who don’t spend as much time on planning beforehand, but who
instead write several drafts before the final structure is settled.
If you are having difficulties with the process of planning the structure of your assignment, consider
trying some different planning methods. Many writers (including experienced ones!) use 2 or 3 or
more stages of planning. For example:

taking notes from sources;

brainstorming through mind-maps or flowcharts;

analysing ideas, sources and/or data into categories through colour-coding;

making tables;

physically putting notes into piles;

cutting and pasting notes in a document;

then choosing, changing and cutting categories to create topics for paragraphs;

and finally creating a plan for the structure of the assignment.
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