What is Academic writing



Academic writing isn’t just a way of assessing students’ knowledge. It also helps to develop a range of useful skills and abilities essential for a graduate student. This guide tells you a little bit more about the features of academic writing and how to develop these in your writing.

Other useful guides: Answering the question, Getting started.

What is the point of academic writing?

Academic writing can sometimes feel like a chore, something to get through to get the best grade you can or maybe even just scrape a pass. However, the writing you undertake as part of your course can also help;

• Develop your general writing skills.

• Strengthen your ability to write as a professional in your chosen field.

Academic writing also gives you the opportunity to really engage with the subject and express your knowledge and interest in the field. The more academic writing you produce the more your confidence will develop and this will show in the quality of the work that you produce. So if you want to enjoy your assignments instead of dreading them then read this information sheet to develop and enhance your academic writing.

What are the main features of academic writing?

So hopefully now you understand a little bit more about why academic writing is an important part of your studies, but what is ‘academic writing’? Well essentially it is all the different types of writing that take place in specific academic discipline or field.

Academic writing may therefore include a number of different styles and genres but it tends to have a number of consistent features;

• Clear formal language (no slang)

• Evidence from other experts in the field (references)

• Answers or debates a specific question or field (focused)

• Clear organisation and layout (logical structure).

It might sometimes feel like academic writing is an alien language. This may be because it includes words that you don’t use in everyday conversation.

|Academic language probably; | |

| |This may be because, |

| | |

|includes subject specific terms |It is being read by subject experts who know what these words mean. |

| | |

|is written in the third person (not ‘I then found’) |This removes bias and can allow the reader to see the evidence of the|

| |piece and not simply the authors’ voice. |

| | |

| |This is to help keep a consistent structure so that it’s easy for the|

|adheres to specific rules (referencing) |reader to follow. This is particularly important when referencing. |

| | |

|seems formal and conservative |Academic writing may be read by scholars all over the world and a |

|(does not include slang or local dialect words) |chatty conversational tone or slang words may not be understood by |

| |those outside of your geographical area. |

Now practice identifying and using academic writing features by using the ‘What is academic writing worksheet’.

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The NTU Guide: What is Academic Writing?

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