Strong Academic Writing
Although every writer has preferred ways of working through the writing process, some aspects of good academic writing remain constant. The basics taught in most level one composition courses are still the best standards for effective writing, even at the graduate level. These basics include:
- An engaging and relevant introduction.
- A specific focus which may be a thesis statement, a hypothesis, a research question, an argumentative claim, or other term.
- Clear main points that develop and support your focus.
- Supporting evidence for your main points.
- A conclusion that provides closure to your text without necessarily summarizing it.
If these elements are present in your advanced academic writing, you will be building on a strong foundation.
As you prepare for the comprehensive exam and dissertation, you will need to thoroughly research and think about your material. Sometime during this research and thinking process you will begin to write. Where you start writing - for example, with the body of the text instead of the introduction - is entirely up to you. The most important thing is that you have a writing process that works well for you. For more ideas about how to explore the writing process and when to actually begin writing, visit the Writing Handbook in the Online Writing Center.
