What is an essay?
Writing essays is a fundamental part of Higher Education.
It is an opportunity for you to present your own, critically formed and evidence based arguments on a topic area.
Writing essays is about making an answer, not finding an answer.
While everyone in your class will write on a subject area, the content of each person's essay will be unique in its insight.
Students are not assessed on the right answer, rather on how they present their own, unique argument.
Summative Assessment
Essays are used primarily as a summative assessment tool for a module.
This means that they are used to assess your understanding of the module concepts.
When writing your essay it is important to consider the learning outcomes of your module and the ideas, concepts and theories discussed during your module teaching.
The essay that you are being asked to produce is not written in a vacuum.
The Writing Process
There are very distinct checkpoints in the development of an essay, from the preparation right through to the using feedback.
By using this step-by-step approach to the planning, development and writing of your essay, you will ensure that you have fulfilled the necessary steps for success. You can find detailed information on this approach on the Planning and Researching for Written Assessment guide.
Firstly, however you should consider how your essay might differ to writing you have produced before, and how to obtain marks.
Fundamentals of essay writing
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What is your marker looking for?
As a summative assessment tool, your marker is looking for your understanding and learning from the module. Your marker will be looking for evidence:
- That you have addressed any learning/knowledge outcomes from the assessment brief or module
- That you have taken a viewpoint and developed an argument to support it
- That you have evaluated the evidence by using up to date, relevant and credible sources.
- That you have shown a clear link between theory and practice.
- That you have followed academic conventions, such as style and formatting.
- That you have shown other skill sets in the presenting and the independent research of your work
Your assignment rubric will detail where marks will be awarded for evidence of these skills. Ensure that you understand where the potential marks lie.
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Structure of an essay
An essay typically has a four-part structure containing:
- The introduction should be a roadmap for the reader, explaining what you will discuss and how you will do so.
- Within the main body, the paragraphs are the building blocks of the essay, and should be used to help manage our thoughts into manageable chunks to engage our reader with our argument.
- The conclusion should reiterate what you have done within the scope of the essay and the position you have arrived at.
- The final part is the reference list, which should detail in a stylised format the evidence base of your argument.
- Each central area has an internal structure, with required elements.
Example of a Generic Essay Structure Section Function Introduction Says what you are going to do. It is a road map for the reader. Outline what you are going to discuss and the order in which you will do so. Introduce the topic in an interesting way to show why it is important. Identify the topic, purpose and structure of the report including an introduction to key concepts and definition of key terms. Main body Do what you said you were going to do. The body of the assignment is used to convince the reader of the strength of your argument. It gives the line of reasoning that connects various parts of your argument, and it will contain paragraphs which contain one idea and use transitional words. Start to explore the issue and develop your argument by making logical steps supported by sources. Each paragraph should consider one point and paragraphs should be logically linked. Conclusion Say what you have done. Bring everything together and clarify the position you have arrived at and why in relation to your question. Summarise your main points and try to think deeper, identifying different dimensions or distinctions. References Fully formatted list of references used in the essay, with corresponding in-text citations. -
Planning an essay
Good essays are well planned, clear, and cohesive pieces of reasoning, so the planning of an essay is just as important as the writing. Without a clear plan for your essay, you can feel overwhelmed, leave out important aspects of the essay or miss the point entirely.
When writing an essay, the focus should be on making an answer, rather than finding an answer. Skillful writing exhibits your understanding, but also should reflect your own thinking informed by the evidence. By exploring the literature available on a topic area, you are invited to communicate your considered exploration through your written assignment.
While you might be anxious to get started with your assignment, it is always worth planning. By planning your research you will save time, stay focused, embed your own ideas, and reduce your stress levels. The first step in planning is to get organised and interpret your assignment title and brief.
What is an academic essay?
A short video guide
This short video will explain what is required when writing academic essays, key features and common mistakes.
Understanding Essays
Self Paced Guide
Aims of the guide:
- Understand why we write essays and what constitutes a good essay.
- Understand the processes involved in successful planning for a good essay.
How to access the guide
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