Writing an academic paper can be tough on all students, even if you consider yourself to be excellent at prose. Read on to get some quick tips.
Trust your supervisor
It’s likely you’ll have a trusted and helpful academic supervisor willing to help you every step of the way. Ensure that you follow their expert opinion, even if you don’t always agree with it.
Your first draft won’t last
Rather than making every sentence perfect from the get-go, just write what comes into your head and worry about making it all perfect later.
Don’t plagiarise
It’s totally okay to mention the work and theories of thinkers within your field, but do remember to give them credit for this by referencing correctly. Your school will likely have a preferred method of this whether it’s Chicago, Harvard or something else. You can discuss the ideas of others and use them to support you in your own work, but don’t forget to name them!
Make your work unique
Just because you’re writing in an academic context, doesn’t mean you have to be boring. Feel free to inject some of your own personality in your report writing and make the words come alive.
Work steadily
It’s a good idea to pace yourself, don’t leave everything to the last minute, but you also don’t have to get everything done so far in advance either. If you work a little every week and set yourself achievable targets, then you’re sure to get everything done on time without feeling too overwhelmed.
For more helpful student information, regarding all areas of life in education, keep your eyes for weekly posts on the TSoM blog page.
