What does it mean to write in an academic style? It doesn't mean using lots of long words and complicated sentences! The purpose of academic writing is to communicate complex ideas clearly and to present your argument to the reader. So it's important to avoid any ambiguity. That means that academic writing must be:
- formal, because informal writing is not always understood in the same way by every reader;
- structured, because complex ideas need to be controlled to produce an unambiguous statement;
- precise, so that your evidence is presented accurately and persuasively;
- appropriate, so that it communicates to its audience in the most effective way.
As different subject areas have their own conventions, do refer to programme handbooks for specialist guidance. You can also look at publications, such as research journals, in your area to see their writing style.
Correct use of grammar and punctuation is important. They show that you care about your work and have adopted a disciplined attitude to writing academically. They also help to make sure your meaning is understood. The most common mistakes by inexperienced writers include:
See the pages on Grammar and Punctuation in this guide for more on this.
Writing should be formal, but it does not need to be pompous. To maintain formality, there are various colloquialisms and shortened forms to avoid:
Avoid shortened forms:
Shouldn't, it's for it is
Avoid popular phrases or cliches such as:
at the end of the day; in a nutshell; when it comes to the crunch
Replace with: finally, in summary, in a crisis
Avoid casual everyday words such as:
really, okay, maybe.
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One recent poll of students at a US university found that an average student in the class would write 42 pages for class in a semester but the equivalent of more than 500 pages of content online. In our everyday lives we are used to communicating by writing texts and instant messages. These have their own conventions, such as using abbreviations, figures (4 rather than four) and not writing in sentences. When writing formal essays and reports we have to take extra care that our texting and emailing habits do not creep in by accident. |
Where abbreviations and acronyms are required to avoid repetition, ensure that, on first mention, the unabbreviated term appears together with the abbreviation or acronym; for example:
First mention: "An article in in the American Journal of Philology (AJPh) reported..."
Second mention: "Writing in the AJPh, Brown concluded that..."
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Important: In academic writing you are responsible for the writing you produce. If you are using research or ideas based on work by others (books, journals, websites) you must reference everything fully and in the correct way for your assignment (check your instructions for this). If you fail to do this, you are implying that the ideas etc. are your own and then you may be accused of plagiarism. |
Do not be tempted to use complex language or expressions that are not your own, just to make your writing appear "academic". Use straightforward language. Your reader needs to understand the information or ideas that you are conveying.
Communicate succinctly without losing vital information or meaning. It is often easier to write fluently and then to edit out unnecessary words and phrases.
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Three editing tips to reduce word-count: 1. Go through a paragraph that you have written and cross out any words, or phrases or even a sentence that may be unnecessary. (Or 'grey it out' – change the text colour of the words you might remove to light grey.) Read it again to see if you have lost anything essential to the information or meaning. If you have not, then delete it permanently. 2. Replace phrases with single words meaning the same: The researcher wanted to find out <-- replace with --> The researcher enquired 3. To cut down larger amounts of word count, try writing one sentence which sums up each paragraph. Then read through and rank in importance to your overall answer to the question. Take out the paragraphs that are least important. |
Some academic writing, such as scientific research methodology, needs to be especially precise. A reader may need to have all the information required to understand exact conditions of a scientific study and to replicate it. Using simple sentences can be helpful.
Avoid using non-quantifiable descriptions, such as:
The company's production rate was high <-- replace with --> The company produced 16,00 units per week.
The wind was strong <-- replace with --> The wind measured 6 on the Beaufort scale.
Structure is also important in academic writing - it helps to make your ideas clear, guides the reader's comprehension and can strengthen your arguments. Some academic writing, such as scientific reports, has a given structure. Just find out what is required under each heading and keep to it. Other writing (such as essays) requires the writer to select and organise the material they are writing and so develop a structure.
Usually in the introduction the writer sets out the structure so that the reader knows what to expect and the order in which it will be presented. The order in which information is presented should be logical so that the reader can follow the thinking, ideally with just one point or idea per paragraph. In addition the ideas should flow or be linked so that the reader is drawn through an explanation or argument, rather than stopping and starting at each new point. The conclusion to the piece should draw together all the points or ideas and come to a conclusion.
Academic writing has a purpose. It may provide background information, the results of other peoples' research, the critique of other peoples' research, your own research findings, your own ideas based on academic research conducted by others, etc. It may be a combination of a few of these.
For most subject areas the writing is expected to be objective. For this the first person (I, we, me, my) should be avoided.
So I analysed the data becomes The data was analysed
However, writing passively isn't always suitable. For instance, if you are asked to write a reflective piece, you will need to refer to your own actions and experiences. The important thing is to consider the purpose of your writing - that will help you to decide how to write it.