Essay Writing Help and Guidance
Our Essay Writing Help and Advice pages are designed to help you get practical guidance on how to construct your
essay, what to include, useful tips and much more. To get started, choose the essay intent to get started.
General Essay Writing
Writing an effective essay is about more than just the words you use. No matter how well-spelled or elegantly
combined the words you use are, to be able to effectively communicate your essays you must also follow a few
simple guidelines regarding structure and organization. Practice makes perfect and with these tools at your
disposal you will be well on your way towards creating excellent essays in no time!
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Admission Essay Writing
Admissions counselors use the college essay as an opportunity to learn about the student beyond GPA and SAT
scores. With some admissions counselors reading more than 2,000 essays each year, it’s important to
understand how to write a great college essay that showcases who you are. Your essay should create an
emotional connection so that your essay is memorable and sets you apart from other applicants.
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Scholarship Essay Writing
Getting scholarship money to help fund your education should be a priority, but scholarships are extremely
competitive and difficult to get. One of the most important parts of your application is the essay—it is
here where you demonstrate your creativity and how you plan to further promote the initiatives by the
funding organization. Not sure where to begin? Our eight steps can help you write a better scholarship
essay.
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Sample Essays
It is helpful to get advice on how to write a good essay, but seeing these tools applied in practice can
really cement your understanding. Our Sample Essay section can help you scribble your way to an excellent
essay, where you can find essays for college admissions, medical school, business school, law school, and
even scholarship essays. Once you see these sample essays, you will be well on your way to writing a winning
essay!
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General Essay Writing Tips
The Five Paragraph Essay
Though more advanced academic papers are a category all their own, the basic high school or college essay has the
following standardized, five paragraph structure:
Paragraph 1: Introduction
Paragraph 2: Body 1
Paragraph 3: Body 2
Paragraph 4: Body 3
Paragraph 5: Conclusion
Though it may seem formulaic – and, well, it is - the idea behind this structure is to make it easier for the reader
to navigate the ideas put forth in an essay. You see, if your essay has the same structure as every other one, any
reader should be able to quickly and easily find the information most relevant to them.
The Introduction
Check out our Sample Essay section where you can see scholarship essays, admissions essays, and more!
Only then, with the reader’s attention "hooked," should you move on to the thesis.
The thesis should be a clear, one-sentence explanation of your position that
leaves no doubt in the reader’s mind about which side you are on from the beginning of your essay.
Following the
thesis, you should provide a mini-outline which previews the examples you will use to support your thesis in the
rest of the essay. Not only does this tell the reader what to expect in the paragraphs to come but it also gives
them a clearer understanding of what the essay is about.
Finally, designing the last sentence in this way has the
added benefit of seamlessly moving the reader to the first paragraph of the body of the paper. In this way we can
see that the basic introduction does not need to be much more than three or four sentences in length. If yours is
much longer you might want to consider editing it down a bit!
Here, by way of example, is an introductory paragraph to an essay in response to the following question:
"Do we learn more from finding out that we have made mistakes or from our successful actions?"
"No man is an island" and, as such, he is constantly shaped and influenced by his experiences. People learn by doing
and, accordingly, learn considerably more from their mistakes than their success. For proof of this, consider
examples from both science and everyday experience.
DO - Pay Attention to Your Introductory Paragraph
DO NOT - Use Passive Voice or I/My
The Body Paragraphs
The middle paragraphs of the essay are collectively known as the body paragraphs and, as alluded to above, the main
purpose of a body paragraph is to spell out in detail the examples that support your thesis.
For the first body paragraph you should use your strongest argument
or most significant example unless some other more obvious
beginning point (as in the case of chronological explanations) is
required. The first sentence of this paragraph
should be the topic sentence of the paragraph that directly relates
to the examples listed in the mini-outline of
introductory paragraph.
A one sentence body paragraph that simply cites the example of "George Washington" or
"LeBron James" is not enough, however. No, following this an effective essay will follow up on this topic sentence
by explaining to the reader, in detail, who or what an example is and, more importantly, why that example is
relevant.
Even the most famous examples need context. For example, George Washington’s life was extremely complex –
by using him as an example, do you intend to refer to his honesty, bravery, or maybe even his wooden teeth? The
reader needs to know this and it is your job as the writer to paint the appropriate picture for them. To do this, it
is a good idea to provide the reader with five or six relevant facts about the life (in general) or event (in
particular) you believe most clearly illustrates your point.
Having done that, you then need to explain exactly why
this example proves your thesis. The importance of this step cannot be understated (although it clearly can be
underlined); this is, after all, the whole reason you are providing the example in the first place. Seal the deal by
directly stating why this example is relevant.
Here is an example of a body paragraph to continue the essay begun above:
Take, by way of example, Thomas Edison. The famed American inventor rose to prominence in the late 19th century
because of his successes, yes, but even he felt that these successes were the result of his many failures. He did
not succeed in his work on one of his most famous inventions, the lightbulb, on his first try nor even on his
hundred and first try. In fact, it took him more than 1,000 attempts to make the first incandescent bulb but, along
the way, he learned quite a deal. As he himself said, "I did not fail a thousand times but instead succeeded in
finding a thousand ways it would not work." Thus Edison demonstrated both in thought and action how instructive
mistakes can be.
DO: Tie Things Together
DO NOT: Be Too General
A Word on Transitions
You may have noticed that, though the above paragraph aligns pretty closely with the provided outline, there is one
large exception: the first few words. These words are example of a transitional phrase – others include
"furthermore," "moreover," but also "by contrast" and "on the other hand" – and are the hallmark of good writing.
Transitional phrases are useful for showing the reader where one section ends and another begins. It may be helpful
to see them as the written equivalent of the kinds of spoken cues used in formal speeches that signal the end of one
set of ideas and the beginning of another. In essence, they lead the reader from one section of the paragraph of
another.
To further illustrate this, consider the second body paragraph of our example essay:
In a similar way, we are all like Edison in our own way. Whenever we learn a new skill - be it riding a bike,
driving a car, or cooking a cake - we learn from our mistakes. Few, if any, are ready to go from training wheels to
a marathon in a single day but these early experiences (these so-called mistakes) can help us improve our
performance over time. You cannot make a cake without breaking a few eggs and, likewise, we learn by doing and doing
inevitably means making mistakes.
Hopefully this example not only provides another example of an effective body paragraph but also illustrates how
transitional phrases can be used to distinguish between them.
The Conclusion
Although the conclusion paragraph comes at the end of your essay it should not be seen as an afterthought. As the
final paragraph is represents your last chance to make your case and, as such, should follow an extremely rigid
format.
One way to think of the conclusion is, paradoxically, as a second introduction because it does in fact
contain many of the same features. While it does not need to be too long – four well-crafted sentence should be
enough – it can make or break and essay.
Effective conclusions open with a concluding transition ("in conclusion,"
"in the end," etc.) and an allusion to the "hook" used in the introductory paragraph. After that you should
immediately provide a restatement of your thesis statement.
This should be the fourth or fifth time you have
repeated your thesis so while you should use a variety of word choice in the body paragraphs it is a acceptable idea
to use some (but not all) of the original language you used in the introduction. This echoing effect not only
reinforces your argument but also ties it nicely to the second key element of the conclusion: a brief (two or three
words is enough) review of the three main points from the body of the paper.
Having done all of that, the final
element – and final sentence in your essay – should be a "global statement" or "call to action" that gives the
reader signals that the discussion has come to an end.
In the end, then, one thing is clear: mistakes do far more to help us learn and improve than successes. As examples
from both science and everyday experience can attest, if we treat each mistake not as a misstep but as a learning
experience the possibilities for self-improvement are limitless.
DO: Be Powerful
DO NOT: Copy the First Paragraph
Taken together, then, the overall structure of a five paragraph essay should look something like this:
Introduction Paragraph
First Body Paragraph
Second Body Paragraph
Third Body Paragraph
Concluding Paragraph
More tips to make your essay shine
Planning Pays
Although it may seem like a waste of time – especially during exams where time is tight – it is almost always better to brainstorm a bit
before beginning your essay. This should enable you to find the best supporting ideas – rather than simply the first
ones that come to mind – and position them in your essay accordingly.
Your best supporting idea – the one that most
strongly makes your case and, simultaneously, about which you have the most knowledge – should go first. Even the
best-written essays can fail because of ineffectively placed arguments.
Aim for Variety
Sentences and vocabulary of varying complexity are one of the hallmarks of effective writing. When you are writing,
try to avoid using the same words and phrases over and over again. You don’t have to be a walking thesaurus but a
little variance can make the same idea sparkle.
If you are asked about "money," you could try "wealth" or "riches."
At the same time, avoid beginning sentences the dull pattern of "subject + verb + direct object." Although examples
of this are harder to give, consider our writing throughout this article as one big example of sentence structure
variety.
Practice! Practice! Practice!
In the end, though, remember that good writing does not happen by accident. Although we have endeavored to explain
everything that goes into effective essay writing in as clear and concise a way as possible, it is much easier in
theory than it is in practice.
As a result, we recommend that you practice writing sample essays on various topics.
Even if they are not masterpieces at first, a bit of regular practice will soon change that – and make you better
prepared when it comes to the real thing.
The Student Essay Writing Center provides you with help and advice in an easy-to-read and understandable
format.
Essay writing can be difficult, but it doesn't have to be. This resource is designed to make essay writing doable –
even fun and exciting! Here you will learn how to brainstorm, write, structure, and revise your essay so that you
can stand out from your peers.
There are many different types of essay writing and, depending on what you are writing for, the format and approach
can change. We’ve designed our Essay Writing Center to provide you with key tips and pointers so that you can get
started in the right direction – no matter if your essay is designed to persuade the college admissions team that
you’re the right candidate, if you are making your case to win a scholarship, or simply if you are looking for help
with your homework.
Despite the fact that, as Shakespeare said, "the pen is mightier than the sword," the pen itself is not enough to
make an effective writer. In fact, though we may all like to think of ourselves as the next Shakespeare, inspiration
alone is not the key to effective essay writing. You see, the conventions of English essays are more formulaic than
you might think – and, in many ways, it can be as simple as counting to five.
Want to see sample essays?
Because this is the first paragraph of your essay it is your
opportunity to give the reader the best first impression possible. The
introductory paragraph not only gives the reader an idea of what you
will talk about but also shows them how you will talk about it. Put a
disproportionate amount of effort into this – more than the 20% a simple
calculation would suggest – and you will be rewarded accordingly.
Active voice, wherein the subjects direct actions rather
than let the actions "happen to" them – "he scored a 97%" instead of "he
was given a 97%" – is a much more powerful and attention-grabbing way
to write. At the same time, unless it is a personal narrative, avoid
personal pronouns like I, My, or Me. Try instead to be more general and
you will have your reader hooked.
The first sentence – the topic sentence - of your body paragraphs needs to have a lot individual pieces to be truly
effective. Not only should it open with a transition that signals the change from one idea to the next but also it
should (ideally) also have a common thread which ties all of the body paragraphs together. For example, if you used
"first" in the first body paragraph then you should used "secondly" in the second or "on the one hand" and "on the
other hand" accordingly.
Examples should be relevant to the thesis and so should the explanatory details you provide for them. It can be hard
to summarize the full richness of a given example in just a few lines so make them count. If you are trying to
explain why George Washington is a great example of a strong leader, for instance, his childhood adventure with the
cherry tree (though interesting in another essay) should probably be skipped over.
The conclusion paragraph can be a difficult paragraph to write effectively but, as it is your last chance to
convince or otherwise impress the reader, it is worth investing some time in. Take this opportunity to restate your
thesis with confidence; if you present your argument as "obvious" then the reader might just do the same.
Although you can reuse the same key words in the conclusion as you did in the introduction, try not to copy whole
phrases word for word. Instead, try to use this last paragraph to really show your skills as a writer by being as
artful in your rephrasing as possible.
Now that you’ve learned how to write an effective essay, check out our Sample Essays so you can see how they are done in practice.
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