WRITING ASSIGNMENTS AT MASTER’S LEVEL:  TOP TIPS

1.     Be literate:

• There should be no spelling mistakes.

• You should write complete sentences.

• You should use punctuation appropriately which helps the reader make sense of the text. Common mistakes are a full stop when a comma is more appropriate and misusing the apostrophe.

• Don’t misuse words, terms or key concepts.

• Generally speaking, don’t use the first person in academic writing unless you have been asked to present a critical reflection. Don’t refer to yourself as “the author”.

• Don’t uses phrases that sound like speech e.g. Well, this bit is really fascinating.

• Be clear throughout. Say what you mean. Don’t use flowery language, metaphor and cliché. Don’t leave the reader to guess.

2.      Pay attention to presentation:

Presentation of assignments is important.  One sentence paragraphs are really annoying, as are paragraphs which span several pages.  Effective spacing and the clear separation of ideas and the points you are wanting to emphasise, is much easier on the eye.  Use double spacing for paragraphs. 

Check that you have included the author, year of publication and page numbers immediately after any quotations in the text. 

Pages should be numbered and you should provide a front sheet with at least your name, the module code, the title of the assignment and the word count.

You should generally avoid including bullet pointed lists, diagrams, charts and tables in your essays.  These do not support an analytical approach although you can include them as appendices when necessary.

Use the Harvard system consistently for the presentation of references, both for citations within the text and the reference list.  Remember that you are not required to present a bibliography; all of the references in the reference list should be cited within the text and vice versa.

3.     Address the assignment criteria:

Your assignment does not have to be set out in such a way that you try to address each of the assessment criteria in turn.  Meeting the criteria will be  demonstrated through the way the assignment is approached and presented, and evidence for them will come from how you write about the topic of the assignment. You should aim to demonstrate meeting the assessment criteria  through your discussion of the issues.

4.     Do what you’re asked to do:

Be clear from the outset about what the assignment is, what you need to write about and how you need to present your work.  Be focused.  Don’t have an assignment title and then proceed to write about something else. If you’re asked for a plan for something, produce a plan.  If you’re asked to identify the key drivers for something, identify the key drivers.

5.     Provide evidence:

for what you are saying and what you are presenting.  This might be reference to books, articles, research material you’ve read, or the evidence of your own experience.  For each point that you make in your essay, you need to support it with evidence.

You are expected to show evidence in your essays of having read widely but also critically.  But note that the cardinal sin in academia is plagiarism. And for students there are very serious penalties for this.  All sources of information should be cited in the text.

We expect to see links to theory wherever possible, but not just regurgitated for its own sake.  Use the theory to demonstrate your understanding of some of the key issues, to link with practice and to answer some questions.

If you really need to use the exact words of a source, you must put the quotation in inverted commas and cite the source.  Don’t use italics to indicate quotes.  Longer quotes need to be indented.  Avoid using too many quotations; it may give the impression that you have no ideas of your own, and that you accept too uncritically what other have said on a topic,  or that you are just using up the word count.

6.     Be critical:

This doesn’t mean pullling people and ideas to pieces.  It means don’t take ideas for granted.  Subject them to critical examination and analysis.

The key to academic writing is critical analysis of information – this is what lifts writing to postgraduate level.  It goes beyond the descriptive and the narrative by not accepting information at face value and evaluating the content before accepting it, or rejecting it with supporting evidence for doing so.

 Remark on the complexity or problematic nature of some of the issues and concepts.  Continuously ask “why” and “so what” and suggest some answers.

Some ways to get more critical analysis into your assignments:

Avoid unnecessary description – only include general background details and history when they add to your argument, e.g. to show a crucial cause and effect. Practice distinguishing between description (telling what happened) and analysis (judging why something happened).  Don’t just tell the story.

Interpret your evidence – explain how and why your evidence supports your point. Interpretation is an important part of critical analysis, and you should not just rely on the evidence "speaking for itself".

Be specific - avoid making sweeping generalisations or points that are difficult to support with specific evidence. It is better to be more measured and tie your argument to precise examples or case studies.

7.     Demonstrate knowledge of the context:

Know where you’re coming from.  Know the wider context for the issues.  Demonstrate your wide knowledge and understanding.  Show your understanding of the complexities of the issues.

8.     Pursue an argument:

This doesn’t mean you have to argue for or against something. It simply means there has to be a coherent thread running through your essay. Remember that part of the point of the assignments is to help you reflect on your practice in your day to day work. 

Take account of counter arguments and alternative positions.  Discuss why they’re not applicable or why you find them inappropriate or inadequate.

9.     Don’t try to say a lot about nothing:

You have to say something worthwhile within the word limit.  If you take the view that you just want to fill up a number of pages by restating what you’ve read or heard at learning events, then this is what your essay will read like.  Like the radio programme 'Just a Minute', your argument should contain no hesitation, no repetition and no deviation from the subject . 

Remember that it is perfectly acceptable to acknowledge that a point or issue requires exploration but that you’re not going to discuss it in your essay.  Just say so.

You are not expected to come up with some new body of knowledge or theory but you are expected to draw on all the knowledge and experience you have accumulated thus far and then doing something with it which is at least new for you.  Not doing this is going to mean that your assignments will be very boring – for you to write and for us to read.  And beyond writing the assignments, not doing anything differently will mean nothing will change for the users of your services.

10.  Edit and proofread

Once you have written your essay there will be a strong temptation to simply hand it in.  However, it’s worth taking some time to check it over.

Editing

 involves checking whether all your points are in the right order and that they are all relevant to the question.

Be ruthless at this stage – if the information isn't directly answering the question, cut it out. You will get many more marks for showing you can answer the question than you will for an unordered list of everything you know about a topic.

Put yourself in the reader's position – can they follow the points you are making clearly? You know what you are trying to say, but will your reader? Are there gaps in your reasoning to be explained or filled?  Is there repetition of some points?

Proofreading

Identifying your own mistakes and correcting them is an important part of academic writing. Ideally leave a day between finishing your essay and proofreading it. You won't be so close to your work, so you will see your errors more easily. Try reading your essay aloud, as this will slow you down, make you focus on each word, and show you when your sentences are too long.  It can help to have someone else read through your work.

Also check that all your references are complete and accurate

How to structure your paragraphs