While the opportunity to study in the UK is exciting, many international students sometimes find themselves unprepared for the academic challenges they face. When you come to study in the UK, you’ll encounter numerous assignments and coursework throughout the semester, all carefully designed to assess your learning outcomes. These tasks can be daunting, especially if you’re unfamiliar with them.
To help you navigate these challenges and achieve academic excellence, we’ve prepared a series of blogs offering essential study tips for different types of assignments. In this blog, we’ll focus on essay writing, one of the most common assignments when you study in UK universities. By the end of this article, you’ll understand what an essay is, the process and the skills needed for crafting a grade-A essay.
What is Essay?
An essay is a fundamental form of academic writing where you present an argument supported by evidence in response to a specific question or topic. The core element of an essay is your argument, which must be clearly articulated and backed by relevant evidence. Typically, essay assignments come with a list of questions that cover the main topics studied throughout the semester, giving you the flexibility to choose a topic you feel most confident about.
Essays are the most prevalent form of assessment at universities. If you study in the UK, you'll find that most degree programmes include essay writing as a key component. Social science degrees, such as sociology, are particularly essay-intensive, while technical subjects like engineering may require less writing. However, mastering essay writing is crucial, as many students will need to complete a dissertation in their final year. This makes essay writing a fundamental skill for achieving academic success when you study in the UK.
Research for Your Essays
Research is an important skill to acquire for essay writing when you study in the UK. Research should precede writing, as it prepares you for the essay. Imagine human anatomy: if the structure of your essay is the skeleton and your writing is the flesh and blood, then your research is the soul. Thorough research helps you understand the topic deeply and lends credibility and weight to your argument. Without it, your essay will lack depth, and your marker will undoubtedly notice.
When you research for your essays, you are most likely to engage in secondary research, which involves collecting data from existing literature. Your reading lists are an excellent starting point, as they align with your module content. However, you will often need to extend your research beyond these lists. Explore the reference lists of your assigned readings and research the keywords of your topic in your university’s online library. There are also many reputable online journals, such as JSTOR, ScienceDirect, and SAGE, free to use for student who study in the UK, where you can find credible sources. While tools like Wikipedia and random online articles can be useful for initial understanding, they should not be your primary sources.
Additionally, to construct a well-rounded argumentative essay, ensure you research all sides of the argument. This might involve citing counterarguments and acknowledging any weaknesses in your own position. Taking comprehensive notes while researching is essential. Check out our recommendations on the best note-taking apps to help you organise your research effectively.
Structuring Your Essay
Things without structure will fall apart. In your essay, a well-defined structure helps you convey your points clearly and assists the reader in navigating through your arguments. It provides logic and order. While a title isn't always necessary, your essay must include three distinct parts: introduction, body, and conclusion.
The introduction is the first impression you give the reader. It needn't be long—usually 10-20% of the text—but it should start strong. Begin with a hook, a sentence that immediately captures the reader’s interest, and introduce the topic. This can be done by providing background information, giving an overview of the academic debate, defining key terms, or explaining complex concepts, depending on your topic. Most importantly, conclude your introduction with a clear thesis statement, which is the main argument you are making for your essay.
The body is the most substantial part of your essay, where you present all your sub-arguments supporting your main argument, as well as counter-arguments. Each point should be contained in its own paragraph. Start each paragraph with a topic sentence that introduces the sub-argument, followed by supporting evidence, which can include examples, statistics, studies, and quotes. Conclude each paragraph with a summarising sentence before moving on to the next point.
By the time you finish your body paragraphs, your readers will have a general understanding of your arguments, but they may not remember all the points you’ve made. Therefore, end your essay with a conclusion that summarises your major points, providing the reader with a recap and bringing your argument to its logical end.
Academic Writing
Now, finally, the writing part! Academic writing is fundamental to achieving academic excellence when you study in the UK. Yet, many students, especially international students, find academic writing challenging. It may seem difficult when you first start writing essays, but with lots of reading and writing practice, you will gradually become more comfortable and natural with academic writing. Here are a few golden rules to follow.
First and foremost, academic writing is unbiased and formal. You need to convey your arguments and information impartially and represent the work of other authors fairly and accurately. Writing formally means avoiding colloquial language, including idioms, slang, and conversational phrases. Students new to academic writing are often advised not to use the first-person pronoun ‘I’ when expressing their ideas. This helps avoid injecting personal, subjective feelings and emotions into your writing.
Academic writing is also clear and precise. You don’t need fancy, flowery words; instead, ensure your reader knows exactly what you mean. Be specific and avoid vague language. For example, instead of saying ‘for some time,’ specify the period: is it one week or ten years?
Your academic vocabulary will build up over time through extensive reading. To begin, try not to use the same word repeatedly; use synonyms instead (e.g., instead of saying ‘argue’ all the time, try ‘maintain’ or ‘claim’). Additionally, use signposting language to improve your essay’s structure and internal logic. With these guidelines, academic writing will become a more manageable and rewarding task, helping you succeed as you study in the UK.
Referencing
Referencing is an unfamiliar concept for students who newly come to study in the UK. Essentially, it involves acknowledging the sources of the information you use in your essay. Referencing is crucial in academia for several reasons. First, it protects your integrity as a writer by giving other authors credit for their work. Without proper referencing, your work may be deemed plagiaristic. It also helps distinguish your own ideas from those of others, showing the reader how your argument is developed from or interacts with existing scholarship. Additionally, correct references enable your reader to locate the original sources.
When you first enter university, you will be taught how to reference properly. To give a brief introduction, referencing usually involves two steps: in-text citations and a reference list. In-text citations include the surname of the author(s) and the year of publication (and the page number when you use direct quotes) and are placed in the body of the text, immediately after the paraphrased (or quoted) material. The reference list is a comprehensive list of all the sources cited, containing all the necessary information about each original source, and is placed at the end of your essay.
There are several referencing styles. When you study in UK universities, you are likely to use Harvard or APA 7th. Whichever style you are required to use, remember to stick to it consistently throughout your writing. This consistency is key to maintaining the clarity and professionalism of your work.
Use Resources to Improve Your Essay Writing
It’s understandable to feel overwhelmed when you first learn academic writing. Therefore, it's important to utilize the resources available to you. Fortunately, as a student who study in the UK, you have easy access to your university’s writing centre. These centres offer free online resources about academic writing and run workshops and seminars throughout the year. You can also book one-on-one tutorials with a professional writing coach, who can provide personalised guidance and feedback on your writing.
Don’t neglect the people around you when you study in the UK. Often, you can book appointments with your tutors or simply drop in during their office hours. Tutors are ideal for discussing your essay ideas and providing targeted advice. Additionally, gathering feedback from your peers can be incredibly valuable. Inviting a classmate to do a peer review can provide you with a fresh perspective on your work. The key is to get a fresh pair of eyes on your writing to improve clarity and coherence.
As international students who study in the UK, mastering the art of essay writing will be crucial to your academic success. This guide has equipped you with essential insights into what constitutes a strong essay: from understanding the structure and conducting thorough research to honing your academic writing style and mastering referencing. Remember, while the path to becoming a proficient essay writer may seem challenging at first, perseverance and utilising available resources will undoubtedly enhance your skills over time. As you navigate through your assignments, don't hesitate to seek support from your university's writing centre, tutors, or peers.UAPP is also here to guide you every step of your journey. Follow UAPP for more study in the uk blogs!
