The Common Mistakes You Should Avoid In College Essay Writing
Your education is one of the most important things in helping assure your future, and you want to make sure that you give it your all. This is especially true of any essay writing assignments that you have to turn in. A lot of courses grade heavily based on these essays, and while that can undoubtedly put some pressure on you, it’s important to make sure that you’re doing it right. To that end, we’re going to look at some of the most common pitfalls that students make when trying to turn in an essay, and what you can do to make sure that yours stands out for good reasons, not bad ones.
Grammar And Spelling Issues
The first and most important thing that your essay has to be is readable. When you’re writing hundreds or even thousands of words, it is only natural that there may be a few mistakes along the way. This is especially true if you’re not the best typist. However, you still need to take the time to read over your essay and keep an eye out for any mistakes. Reading out loud tends to be better for catching typos or errors. There are also spelling and grammar-checking tools, with free versions, that can help you catch a lot of your mistakes, but some human intervention is definitely needed.
Not Using The Whole Prompt
It’s all too common that a student might start reading the prompt, thinking about the question, and veer off into their own topic. Feeling inspired to explore an interesting idea is good, but if you can’t tie it back to the prompt, then your essay is going to feel like one huge non-sequitur when your professor goes through it. Take the time to write out the foundational idea of the essay, then look back at the prompt and see if it addresses it directly. You can highlight key words in the instructions, such as whether you’re to analyze, compare, or discuss points, so that you can make your essay meet the functional needs of the prompt, as well.
A Weak Thesis Statement
A thesis statement that is too broad, too unclear, or lacking a specific focus is going to quickly stand out as one that has not been well thought-out. A thesis is the backbone of your entire essay, so take the time to think about what the core point you’re driving at is and how your essay is going to help you achieve that. Any claims that you make should be specific, arguable, and accurate to the content that follows. A precise thesis sets a tone and a direction from the very get-go, and can be an effective guiding star for the rest of your essay, making sure that you don’t meander too far off the point. In keeping with the last point, make sure it directly answers the prompt, as well.
Filler, Fluff, Padding, Stuffing, And Word Count Stretching
Whether you’re trying to make your essay longer in an attempt to make it more impressive, or you’ve run out of ideas to write on but you haven’t yet reached your word count, stuffing your paper with filler sentences is not going to trick anyone. The more you rely on phrases that add little substance, such as points about “in today’s society,” the more that the overall punch and value of your content is going to be diluted. If you’re running out of ideas to write on, then that most likely means that you need to do more research to find stats, studies, and facts that support or challenge your thesis.
Plagiarism (Especially The Unintentional Kind)
For a lot of college students, writing essays that are based heavily on research and referencing existing materials is a relatively new skill. While it is important to bring in independently written, external content to help you support your essay, how you incorporate it is important. First of all, you have to make sure that you properly credit all of your sources, so note down any sources you use as soon as you start using them. Take detailed notes while researching, but make sure not to word points or conclusions too closely to the sources that you’re working with. Plagiarism checkers are going to trip you up. Even if you’re careful to name your sources, linguistic similarity can be a huge issue, so you should do research on how to reduce Turnitin similarity score. Make time to use tools to see where your language needs to be changed before the deadline.
A Lack Of Organization
When you’re in the middle of writing or researching for your essay, it’s very easy for your mind to get into a flow state where you follow one idea into another, and one interesting point turns into a different one. While this can be great for brainstorming your overall essay idea, if you’re writing like that, it can quickly become disorienting and unhelpful. Jumping from point to point weakens your overall approach, so if you do want to explore different facets of your thesis statement or the question you’re trying to address, break it down into different sections. A content structure and outline can help make the essay look much more organized and help you avoid blending those points together.
Not Enough Evidence And Analysis
Bringing your own ideas to the table is typically great, but in academic writing, the standard for arguments is higher than just making an interesting point. If you state a fact, information, or even just a belief, then the more you can support it with evidence and analysis, the better. Some areas of your chosen topic may have little research to turn to, but you should be able to at least find some sources talking about the points to show that your ideas have some support.
Sometimes it can feel like simply getting to the finish line of an essay (or even getting past the blank page) can be a big challenge. However, you have to stick to the tips above to make sure that your essays meet, and go well beyond, the bare minimum.
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