Common Pitfalls in Student Essay WritingThe mistakes you should always avoid

Failure to address the questionMany essays which are poorly constructed

make the first, and arguably biggest, mistake of failing to engage with the terms of the question as it has been asked.

An ability to set the terms of the debate is key to any good essay, as it demonstrates critical awareness and an ability to distinguish relevant and irrelevant facts.

Failing to address the question will have a kn0ck-on effect for the rest of the essay, as it will lead to problems with the overall thesis and structure.

No clear argument or thesisEven if you do engage with the terms of the

question, your essay will still require a strong thesis.

If your thesis is not clear from the outset, the essay will immediately become difficult to read, as it will instantly begin to lose cohesion and structure.

The thesis is also important because it separates your essay from any critical debates that may have come before, and explains how you are going to enter the debate.

Basic premises & assumptions not explained In order for your essay to demonstrate its

understanding of the question, and in order to enlighten a reader, your essay will have to engage with certain basic premises.

For example, let’s say that you were writing an essay on the French Revolution; an essay which doesn’t engage with the ideas, beliefs, politics and key thinkers which led influenced the revolution will instantly become muddled, and may be that much harder to follow.

Basic premises and assumption not explained (2) If you don’t deal with the basic premises of

your essay, it also suggests that you don’t understand them yourself, and it demonstrates a failure to properly engage with them throughout the course of the essay.

Ideas introduced without explanation or context This is a similar pitfall to the one we

previously discussed. The ideas which you will use to formulate your essay will have to be clearly explained and will always need to be placed in context.

If you don’t introduce ideas without an explanation of their wider context, or how they may relate back to the wider academic field, then your essay will not read as being well thought-out.

Failure to acknowledge or address opposing arguments Whenever you enter an academic debate and

attempt to make your own mark, you need to be conscious of how you will be dealing with existing arguments.

If you fail to acknowledge or address opposing arguments, then your own will become very one-sided and will lack credibility.

Opposing arguments can often also contain within them some valid points, which could actually help your own. So don’t be too quick to dismiss them.

Statements unsupported by evidence or quotes. When you make your argument, you will need

to back it up with evidence and quotes. This is where your awareness of other

assumptions and arguments is vital. If you cannot deploy quotes and evidence

properly, then this points to an overall lack of strategy in your essay.

An ability to use quotes also, once again, demonstrates an ability to sort relevant information from irrelevant.

Poor style of writing An essay which does not use writing style

effectively will often fail to make its point. Common language gaffes include inconsistent use

of language, poor sentence structure, poor punctuation and grammar, and even failure to write in the correct tense.

Repetition and or rambling sentences will also reflect badly on your essay.

Poor writing also fails to signpost where it is going, so your reader may not be clear on why a certain point is relevant, or how it is leading on to the next one.

Lack of structure and consistency An essay that does not have a clear structure

and lacks direction, will ultimately fail to make its point

Without a clear introduction, your reader will have no idea where the essay is going. Similarly, the subsequent paragraphs will need to clearly signpost the argument.

Finally, the conclusion will need to complement the rest of the essay and explain how you are making your mark on the debate. It also needs to be consistent with what came before.

Insufficient & Inaccurate ReferencingReferencing is one of the most important

elements of an essay and one of the most common things that students get wrong.

Referencing is what ultimately helps to put your essay in context, and assures that you won’t be charged with plagiarism.

It’s also an important acknowledgement of the other theories, essays & academics that have helped you get to this point.

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