Academic writing is the writing you need to handle in your university studies. Instructions on what and how you will write an academic paper depends on your instructors. You can be required to write an essay, research paper, argumentative essay or paper, informative essay, analysis essay or paper, or a term paper.
You will have to realize that all the types mentioned above of academic writing assignments have the same goal and principles. This is the ideal article for you to significantly grow into the academic writing field as a beginner. We provide the best academic writing tips for you to achieve a well-written academic paper.
How to structure your writing
An excellent academic paper format should be structured in the sense that it has a beginning, middle, and end. The three main parts you need to consider as you prepare to organize an academic paper include;
- Introduction
A well-written paper should always have an introduction that gives the background to the topic. The same introduction should be able to outline the content of the paper. This means that the aim of the whole paper is well presented to the reader. You can include a solid, relevant quote and define critical terms.
- Main body
After a well-written introduction, this is the next vital part of your academic paper. The main body is where now you do the work. You are expected to argue, describe your research and provide evidence from your research.
You are required to expand on all topics hinted on your introduction. Present the information gathered from other sources. Make sure your arguments are developed in a logical structure.
- Conclusion
Your academic paper should feature a conclusion summarizing the significant points and drawing together the ideas that explain how the points connect and relate. The conclusion should show how you have answered the question. Here you can recommend further research, issue a concluding statement, and pose a further question.
Academic writing paper format
The prime step to ensure your tutor is impressed is meeting their expectations by delivering a presentable and appropriate format. For your academic paper to be acceptable, you have to meet the following requirements;
- Page Format
Ensure that the line spacing for the entire paper is 1.5. You can leave a space between paragraphs without necessarily indenting the first line. All headings that are written should be in bold. The title of the full content should be provided at the top of the first page in bold. Remember, the title should not be underlined but in 14pt text.
- Font
The whole paper should feature a 12pt font, and the standard fonts that are most acceptable are Times New Roman and MS. Ariel.
- Illustrations/ graphs/ tables
It can change that your paper includes figures such as tables and images. Ensure that the figures sit next to the text referring to them. It is also worth numbering the figure on the page if it turns out that you have multiple figures.
Organizing your academic paper
Writing an academic paper is quite different than the usual writing. A good example is that an email sent to work and a text to a friend is different, the same way a journal can be different too. As you prepare to organize your academic paper, here is how it should be;
- It should achieve an academic tone
Formal language is expected instead of slang. A third-person language is required instead of the first person, and all words should be entirely written using abbreviations.
- It should be simple and clear
Your sentences should be short over long hard-to-read sentences if you can be a chance to use short words over long ones. Your sentences will be easy to read if, for example, you use words like extra, hold, pay, or use instead of supernumerary, accommodate, incorporate, or remunerate, respectively.
- Be objective
Avoid applying personal language and talk about the evidence and validity of the topic instead of feelings about it. Words like I, me, your, your, us, and we should not be used.
- Employ tentative language
You should leave room for doubt, which is done by using the following words; possibly, probably, may, could, instead of words like definitely, indeed, must, and obviously.
Conclusion
This article proves nothing mysterious about writing good student academic papers. You will use the above guideline to tackle any academic writing assignment for better grades in college.
