Academic essay writing

Key information

Year of study
2023-4
Duration
Term 1 (runs for 6 weeks)
Department
Foundation College

Module overview

The full Academic Essay Writing course in term 1 runs for 6 weeks and aims to give students a clear idea of how to approach writing an academic essay.

As well as looking at academic conventions connected with academic writing, the classes will also introduce strategies to ensure that writing tasks are completed effectively. The course will be very practical and will involve doing some small pieces of writing in class or for homework.

Areas covered include:

  • the academic essay- what is it?
  • analysis of essay titles
  • planning an argument
  • structuring an introduction and a conclusion
  • thesis statement development
  • supporting arguments
  • using and acknowledging sources
  • text cohesion and signposting
  • academic style and register

Workload

Courses are 6 weeks long and comprise 2 hours of classroom study.

Scope and syllabus

The course covers key lessons on planning and organising a typical SOAS essay (1,000-5,000 words) using counter-argument, writing an introduction and conclusion, writing a thesis statement, referencing using direct and indirect quotation, paraphrasing and summary writing, avoiding plagiarism, academic style and useful expressions in academic essay writing.

Teaching takes the form of small classes of 10-15, with personalised workshop activities as well as general input sessions. Students are expected to do some writing in the course, but homeworks should not be too time-consuming. For the smooth running of the course, full participation and completion of homework tasks is expected.

Timetable

Times of different classes become available when the application form for each block is released. The Block 1 and 2 application form is released shortly before the start of term 1.

Block 1 courses will run from weeks 2-7 and Block 2 courses will start in week 5 this year and run to week 10. Then Block 3 will run at the start of term 2 to week 6.

    Important notice

    The information on the website reflects the intended programme structure against the given academic session. The modules are indicative options of the content students can expect and are/have been previously taught as part of these programmes.

    However, this information is published a long time in advance of enrolment and module content and availability is subject to change. 

    Suggested reading

    • Arnaudet and Barrett (1990), Paragraph Development A guide for students of English. New York: Prentice Hall
    • Bailey, S. (2006), Academic Writing: A Handbook for International Students. London: Routledge
    • Day, T. (2013), Success in Academic Writing, Palgrave Study Skills. London: Macmillan
    • Greetham, B. (2013), How to Write Better Essays. Palgrave Study Skills. London: Macmillan
    • Swales and Feak (2004), Academic Writing for Graduate Students. Michigan: University of Michigan Press