From high school through to college and university our lives are filled with writing reports and essays.

Essays are a way for teachers to assess our understanding and knowledge on a particular topic.

Essays help us:

• Optimise research techniques.
• Filter out unreliable sources and therefore all us to practice discernment.
• Form opinions based on a critical review of a topic.
• Practice persuasion through writing.
• Practice delivering an argument based on ratified facts.

This blog post is predominantly aimed at writing essays under coursework or homework conditions, i.e. not under time limited exam conditions, although the same structure can be followed.

This post will help students from ages 12 upwards in high school through to college, but can also help adult brush up on their forgotten memory of essay writing techniques.

Here are the 10 steps on how to write an essay:

1. Identify key words in the Question. 

Carefully review and think about the question. Hone in on exactly what is being asked. Highlight the key words.

The key words are typically a combination of descriptive words and what I call the “question” word such as Why? How? Explain. Assess. Analyse and so on.

This is fundamental to starting an essay as the last thing you want to do is misinterpret the question and answer something that wasn’t even asked!

If you are unsure ask your peers or teacher/lecturer. If in exam conditions it is also worth asking the invigilator as you may not be the only one struggling and if more than one person asks the same question they could call the lecturer in to explain.

2. Brainstorm. 

Not enough can be said for brainstorming. This is where you can draw a map of your thoughts in a structured way that informs the structure of your written argument or position.

In exam conditions, sometimes showing that you have brainstormed with your key points summarised can demonstrate to the assessor that you understood the question.

Although some people may advise that showing the brainstorm helps in case you do not finish the essay in exam conditions, it is always better to complete the essay on time! We’ll do a post on time management soon.

3. Support Material.

Gather books, articles, study notes, but be discerning!

Choose what you reference strategically. Choose material that can be taken seriously, i.e. not Wikipedia!

Note that Wikipedia can be a good source for more appropriately sourced information at the bottom of the page under the ‘References’ and ‘External Links’ sections.

Again, be selective with all websites. At least a few published papers are a must to include in your Bibliography/ Reference List.

4. Plan the Essay. 

List the paragraphs you will write with a word or two to describe what the paragraph is about, e.g. Introduction, Central Idea, Topic 1, Topic 2, Topic 3, Topic X, Conclusion.

Each topic contains a small conclusion, but an overall conclusion will form the final stance on the central idea.

5. Central Theme statement. 

Write out a statement that goes into the introduction and/or conclusion depending where you want to present your overall analysis, i.e. up-front, or after having demonstrated the critical analysis. This mostly just depends on your writing style.

6. Main Body Topics. 

Use facts, analytic, and descriptive writing to summarise one point at a time. Each point constitutes one paragraph.

7. Write the Introduction.

An opening statement to introduce the reader to your essay is essential to ensure they understand the context.

This usually makes a direct reference to the question and may break down the question into the different specific parts which requiring answering.

8. Write the Conclusion. 

Conclude! There is no use in writing an entire body of text if at the end you have not concluded the piece.

What opinion have you formed based on your research and analysis of the information also taking into account the validity and strength of the references you have read.

9. Edit the Essay. 

This step is essential to remove ‘fluff’ from the essay. If you have made a point in two sentences, but write four sentences to say exactly the same thing, delete the two extra lines.

I for one always over-write what can simply be stated in one sentence. Blogging is helping me become more ruthless in my over descriptiveness… can you tell? 😀

10. Proof-read & References/ Bibliography. 

Use Microsoft Word’s inbuilt grammar and spelling checker, or an app like Grammarly to complete a grammar and spell check.

Proof-read the essay to ensure it makes sense and flows well. Lastly, complete a list of References to external publications, websites, and articles which you have referred to in your essay.

* Extra Tip 101 for Essay Writing:

Make sure you take regular breaks away from your desk. Sit for a maximum of 30 minutes. Get up to stretch, deep breathe, do jumping jacks, have a snack, do a circuit around the apartment/ library/ wherever you are writing your essay.

You can even try proven techniques like the Pomodoro Technique. Punch out volume in 25 minute stints. Take break. And set the timer again for another 25 minutes. Repeat until each sub-goal you set yourself is complete.

This will make your essay 100% better.

Did you find these tips useful? Would you have any others to add from your own experience? Please share in the comments section below.

& Don’t forget to Like, Comment & Subscribe to The World of Engineering! The forum where you can share your ideas, tips and knowledge about engineering with the world!

#Student #University #College #Advice #Essays #Engineering