Academic writing is the foundation for all writing in middle and elementary school, as well as research papers, books, manuals, and articles. From the definition, it is easy to understand that such a format is official and involves several requirements for writing. This causes difficulties in the initial stages of getting to know the style and sometimes even after several years of using it. In any case, the do’s and don’ts of academic writing will help simplify the task.
What Should Be Done in the Writing Process (Do’s)?
Experienced university teachers and professional authors can tell you about dozens of requirements, rules, and standards for writing academic works. All of them are valuable for writing, but among this number of guidelines, a few top tips can be highlighted.
Structure of Sentences
One of the main requirements for academic texts is readability. This characteristic demonstrates the ease of reading and the ease of understanding the thought conveyed by the author. Such results can be achieved thanks to the structuring of sentences. According to the Baymard Institute, their optimal length should be 50-75 characters. It is this size, according to researchers, that is easy to understand.
However, you should not focus your efforts exclusively on creating concise sentences. After all, in this way, you can achieve the opposite effect. Text with short syllables is difficult to understand and gives the impression of being rushed. In addition, the author will not be able to convey all the depth of thought through them. To avoid such consequences, it is worth maintaining a balance between the length and construction of sentences. Experienced experts offer the following recommendations:
- Do not insert sentence fragments into the text: This approach can be used in journalistic style, but it is not appropriate in formal writing.
- Divide long complex sentences into several parts: Too complex wording in the text is very difficult for the reader to perceive because the main idea is lost already in the middle.
- Combine short and long sentences: This helps maintain balance and simplifies the visual perception of information.
- Follow the requirements for the overall structure: It must contain an introduction, main body, and conclusions. The main part should be divided into subheadings and other sections with clearly defined titles. All points must have a logical connection with each other.
It is worth considering the requirements for paragraphs separately. According to the rules, each of them begins when a new idea is revealed. It is imperative to follow the rules of spelling and grammar.
Thorough Proofreading
When planning the process of writing an academic piece, you should take the time to check and proofread the text. Even if you are completely sure of the correctness of the writing, you need to allocate at least a few minutes to review the results. Specialists who provide essay writing services confirm the importance of this action. Over the years of work, they have seen dozens of cases when, after checking, customers were surprised by the number of mistakes made.
To avoid such situations, it is worth setting aside about an hour in your plan (for large works – several hours) to check compliance with the requirements. This significantly increases the probability of receiving a positive assessment of the text from a teacher or other responsible person.
Using the Right Sources
Authors of academic works have wide opportunities in the field of using sources. This is due to the creation of a large number of studies, manuals, and books in electronic format. Most of them are open-access, so it is easy to find the right sources to cite in academic work. However, in the search process, it is necessary to take into account the fact that not all presented documents are appropriate and reliable.
This means that some of them may have unconfirmed information or data that cannot be verified. Such sources are not suitable for academic writing, because they have no value. To find a reliable and relevant source, you should pay attention to the following resources:
- Publications about current events and news from accredited mass media and authoritative publications
- Electronic versions of books (including historical sources and encyclopedias)
- Reports presented by government organizations and research companies
- Scientific materials of well-known researchers or organizations
Each of these sources contains reliable information that can be verified, so they can be used in the work.
An Unbiased View of the Subject
The official style of writing is aimed at unbiased coverage of information. This means that the author should only present an analysis of existing factors and disclose them. A personal view of these events is not allowed in academic writing. If any claim or assertion is made, it must be supported by evidence from the source used.
In academic works, the author’s research may be submitted. However, they must have a clearly defined methodology and be based on known facts. In the case of comparing the results with the research of other scientists, judgments should not be biased. Only real facts should be used as a basis for statements.
An additional requirement is the consistent disclosure of such research in academic work. The author should first present the research, then the result, and only after that give a reasoned analysis. If the text makes a comparison, then you can present your version, and then demonstrate the vision of another researcher with a reference to the document.
Using the Active Voice
Experienced experts also advise against using too many passive constructions in academic writing. There are 2 reasons for this: the text becomes more difficult to understand, and the sentences are too complex. This automatically reduces the quality, which can later affect the effort rating. To prevent this from happening, you should give preference to direct sentences in which the thought is presented. You can create them thanks to the use of verbs in active cases.
What Can Not Be Done in Academic Writing (Don’ts)?
If you want to make your academic writing perfect, then you should not only learn about what you can do but also consider certain limiting requirements. Here are some examples.
Avoiding Personal Language
Using personal pronouns that show personal views of facts is one of the common mistakes of beginners. In academic writing, this is not allowed, as the priority in this area is given to research and analysis. These aspects have nothing to do with personal vision and the use of relevant words. To avoid using personal pronouns, it is worth replacing them with actual data.
The only exception to the rule can be the introductory part, in which the author can describe his own experience, the reason for writing the work, or a personal incentive for research. The body and conclusions should be objective, in other words, based on facts and proven research. In these parts, in no case can you use an appeal to the reader. This will turn an academic text into a non-fiction article.
Lack of Emotional Coloring
The requirement is logical for texts that reveal information important from the point of view of science. These are research data, materials from authoritative scientists, various scientific facts, and other official data. If they are framed using emotional expressions, calls for reflection, and other techniques, then the reader will not take them seriously.
This effect is provided by all adjectives that mean exaggeration. An example of their use would be the sentence: “This hurricane has become the worst in the state.” In this case, the subjective vision of the author is presented, so the statement contains no value. To bring this sentence in line with the norms of academic writing, it is worth finding facts that describe the effects of the element.
Avoiding Colloquial or Informal Expressions
These categories include phrases and words that are created against established norms. Among them, you can highlight qualifiers, clichés, and slang. In addition, colloquial language may include established phrases that have a figurative meaning. All this has no place in academic writing because the style is used for official purposes. Slang, cliches, and other similar expressions will only worsen the situation and deprive the text of its meaning.
Keeping the Balance of Introductory Words
To reveal the content of an academic text as precisely and clearly as possible, you need to use words filled with content. Thanks to this, completeness and informative usefulness are ensured – other important criteria of this style. Insertion words that provide a logical transition and connection between words should be used only when necessary. Otherwise, they “blur” the main idea, so the work becomes uninteresting.
Adherence to Vocabulary Limits
Each academic field has its terminology that helps to best describe individual topics. To write a really valuable and relevant text, you need to review it in advance and learn those words that were unknown before. In this way, you can replenish your vocabulary and better reveal the content of the work. Experts also advise not to go beyond the terminology of the chosen field. The presence of words specific to other areas can confuse the reader and lead to the loss of the main line of the academic work.
Conclusions
The formal writing style used in teaching and research can seem a bit complicated. This is due to the presence of certain requirements and rules that must be followed in the process of creating texts. However, they can be easily learned. For this, it is enough to review the do’s and don’ts of academic writing. The listed tips will help you understand the essence of academic writing and get a guideline for creating really valuable and relevant work.
