An essay is the answer to a question made up of answers to several

smaller questions.
Made up of several viewpoints,, but the conclusion will be mine
The essay should trace my thinking leading to that conclusion, supported
with evidence
An essay should include your experience and individual argument (but not
a personal statement)
It should be about what I think, and why, not about me in any other sense
Dont use a chatty style
Start by giving the answer! Write at the beginning what the answer is and
how im going to do it and talk about it, how Ive interpretted it
The rest of the essay is how I came to this and each element Ive used
Reiterate at the end what I thought
1) Recall - Knowing Things
2) Comprehension
3) Application - dont stick with given material - apply it else where, break
down, convince Understanding, Dierent Ideas, What I think, Dierent
Perspectives, Dierent Theories
Req for Degree Level:
4) Analysis - Pulling things apart, own interpretation
5) Synthesis - Compare and Contrast and come up with new ideas
6) Evaluation - Most convincing and opinions, my interpretation and why
Do not use I- This essay like at the not I looked at the/In this essay I
would
Do not write sentences with few than 10 words
Do not use bullet points
Do not use sexist language
Do not use:
- At the end of the day
- The bottom line
- Elephant in the room
- Fit for purpose
- Issues
- Joined up thinking
- Level playing field

- Learning curve
- Rocket science
- Wake-up call
- Well
- Anyway
- OK
- Like
Dierent ways of saying very:
- Really unusual
- Massively unusual
- great
- terrific
- amazing
Alternatives to and:
- Firstly, Furthermore, Finally
- One, Two, Three
- Firstly, Secondly, Thirdly
- Above all
- First and more important(ly)
- also
- again
- Furthermore
- Further
- Moreover
- Then
- In addition
- Besides
- Above all
- Too
- As well (as)
- Now
- With Reference/Respect/regard to
- Regarding
- In Conclusion
- To Conclude
- To sum up briefly
- In brief
- To summarise

Watch out for Racist Language

Watch out for Disability Language
Keep to the rhythms of natural speech
Each Paragraph:
- Topic Sentence
- Word Allocation
- Evidence for each paragraph
- Should be 6-8 sentences in length
- Should be a discrete section of my argument
- State my point (topic sentence)
- Explain and evaluate (include dierent perspectives)
- Illustrate and support with evidence (from my observations, reflection &
my reading)
- Before embarking on an approach to analyse the business model there
is a need to explore the meaning of the business model .vs. Before
analysing the business model, there is a need to explore its meaning.
- Links between each section
Banned Words:
- a lot of
- big
- feel
- famous
- measure
- tone

Correct Referencing Throughout text

Correct Reference List
Using connectives
Words not to use (i.e wasnt)
Is there an introductory sentence to each paragraph
Is there a concluding paragraph
Is there an abstract
Font: Veranda, Size 12, Double Spaced
Indent each paragraph

Reference: Harvard
Submit to Writing and Learning Centre for review
Foreign Language Accents
Foreign words always in italics
Never ever use bold
Try not to underline
Sightations, book titles, piece titles, foreign text - Italics only
Page Numbers
Student Number in Header no name
Footnotes - use for additional information (not references)
Footnotes do not count towards word count
Labelling:
Musical examples - Ex1, Ex2, etc
Tables: Table 1, Table 2
Illustrations (including maps) - Figure 1, Fig.1, Fig.2
Include captions for each in full - Beethoven Symphony no.5 bars 1-5.
Abbreviations: No full stops
Contractions - if 1st and last letter no dot, if 1st and 2nd use dot
Parentheses ()
Square Brackets []
Commas - Watch out! (Fred, the soloist has just arrived OR Fred, the
soloist, has just arrived)
Ellipsis ...
<> used for email addresses and web pages
Turn of Live Links
Never use double quote marks, only used for dialog
Dont use contractions (dont use the word dont - use do not
Colon : - used to explain or amplify what proceeds it
Semicolon ; - used in complex lists and to overuse conjunctions (and,but)
Dates and Numbers (Twentieth Century - not 20th)
Write an Abstract: should be slightly more indented and smaller font.
Write about methodology and how you went about it
Harvard Referencing:
Ex. As Nicolas Cook says, quote. (Cook, 1994:88)
List: Cook, N: (1994) article. In title of book, ed .R. Aiello, Oxford: Oxford
University Press/ P64-95.

Analysing:
- Have a systematic and organised approach
- Breaking something down into its components
- Internal analysis: the detail
- External analysis: the bigger picture
- Explain it to someone else
- Track you thinking
- Objective process
- Ask questions and find answers
- Agreeing
- Rejecting
- Conceding
- Proposing
- Reconciling
- Synthesising
Analyse .vs. Criticise:
Analysis: read, understand, what is it about, context, who wrote it,
meaning, Intended Audience, Why is it written, How old when?
Critical: Views, Why?, Do I agree, What aects does this have?, Values
Note Taking:
- Record what you learn AND What you think
- Write notes about my notes
- Map out learning as I go along
Conclusion:
- Summarise the main points
- Pick up the theme of the introduction
- Provide my evaluation/conclusions
- Suggest wider implications
- Predict future trends
Critical Evaluation:
- Weighing up, judging, justifying
- Presenting your interpretation
- Looking at something from multiple perspectives
- Bringing ideas together (for comparison and contrast, or to create a new

idea - synthesis)
- We are assessing value, rather than trying to understand what
something is and how it works
Questions:
- What am I expecting to find?
- What are the other possible viewpoints?
- What is not being said here?
- How does this relate to what I already know?
- How am I going to use this?
- How relevant is this to my essay?
- How did I arrive at this idea/conclusion?
- What am I reading this?
- Why am I here?
Introductions:
- Interpret the question
- Show I have grasped the implications
- Provide a structure for my answer
Always:
- Recall
- Comprehension
- Application
- Analysis
- Synthesis
- Evaluation
Plan:
- Read, Annotate, and Note
- Outline Essay Plan (1st and last paragraphs around 200 words, with
around 5-6 major paragraphs, based on 2000 word essay)
- Outline 1st (Order Headings of paragraphs to produce a natural flow)
- Notes and Listen to Piece
- Essay Outline: Abstract, 1: Intro (political), 2: Information about subject
area/biography of composer), 3: analytical, 4: Discussion and Thoughts,
5: Conclusion - final summing up
-Ensure you tell a story and flow logically
- Produce 1st draft: work backwards dont start at the beginning DELETE WORDS IN EACH SENTENCE
- Produce 2nd Draft: Include examples, opinions, check grammar, add

references
- Produce 3rd Draft: Check grammar, references, write abstract
- Produce Proof Read: Print, Final Check
- Final: Ensure all editing and comments are removed and have one last
read
- Writing and Learning Centre
- Show Lecturer for final check
- Submit